E-Learning or Live Training? Tips On How To Decide

An important part of designing instruction in a corporate setting is determining what format to use- web-based e-learning, or live face-to-face training. I recently asked the Instructional Design and E-Learning Professionals Group on LinkedIn in a discussion forum for best practices and got some great responses. Below is a summary of factors that have been suggest so far, along with my interpretation of how they should be considered:

• Stability of the material
• If the materials will likely not change a lot over time, then it might be worth building e-learning because you won't have to constantly change the e-learning.
• Type of learning (soft skill, technology, etc.) and the objectives of the learning
• If a person is learning a "soft skill" (like communication skills or something) or a physical skill (like welding) it might be better to have the training be in-person. But if it is a technology skill, it might work to put it as a piece of e-learning. The third option of using a blended approach (using web-based and live components) might also be powerful- using video or multimedia to demonstrate skills or knowledge and then having the participants practice in a live setting. (I have used blended approach for a lot of what I do and it can be very powerful).
  
• Available resources
• If there are few resources available to develop the unit of e-learning, then go with a live training. (This could work the other way, too).
  
• Our timeline
• If there is no time to create a quality unit of e-learning, have it done live.
• Number of people to be trained
• If you are training only a few people, it is probably not worth investing resources into developing a unit of e-learning. But if you are training several thousand, it is more likely to be worth the resources.
• Location of the people
• If everyone is in the same building, it might be easier to just train them live. If they are spread out throughout the world, creating e-learning is likely more useful.

One of my students also pointed out this very comprehensive breakdown of how to select the appropriate medium for training, prepared by SkillSoft.

I hope these are useful. What else might you add?

ADDIE Process - Development Phase

This post is part 3 in a 5-part series on the Phases of the ADDIE Process of Instructional Design. 
< Previous Post: Design    |    Next post: Implement >

After analyzing the instructional needs and designing a plan based on those needs, it is time to develop your instructional materials. This means creating all of the materials you planned for in the design phase. Depending on the situation, this can be (and probably will be) a lot of materials, and could include:

• Paper-based handouts
• Web-based content
• Instructional multimedia
• Interactive materials
• Faculty or facilitator guides
• Student guides
• Job aids
• activity guides

The creation of the materials is often done by more than one individual. In some organizations, instructional developers or programmers take the content created in the design phase and develop the materials. In other organizations, the instructional designer develops the materials. In my own work as an instructional designer, I have done the majority of the development work, though I usually receive support from others on several aspects of the course development including heavier programming, content editing, and multimedia production.

This is the phase in which the instructional designer uses physical tools to create instructional materials. As you develop, be sure that you are considering your analysis and that you are basing your materials on the plans you created in the design phase. To learn more about the development phase, watch this video:

New Video: What Instructional Designers Do

It can sometimes be difficult to explain what an instructional designer does. I made this video which describes clearly (I hope!) what most instructional designers do. I hope it is helpful.

What do you think? If you are not an instructional designer, does this explanation help? If you are an instructional designer, does this description make sense?

What is the Difference Between Instructional Design, Instructional Science, and Instructional Technology?

What is the difference between instructional design, and instructional technology, and instructional science? There are many different subsets of the field of instructional design, and in this post I will clarify the differences between these different terms.

Science* is "knowledge, as of facts or principles; knowledge gained by systematic study" (http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/science). Instructional Science, therefore, is knowledge about instruction and learning and is based on systematic research and study of what works in instruction. Much of this knowledge is produced through research, and practicing instructional designers also acquire useful knowledge through experience.

Instructional Technology is a tool or technology used to aid learning. I perceive three main types of instructional technologies or tools (and describe them in more detail in another post):

1. Instructional Theory - a set of prescriptions describing what the instruction should be like when it is finished. Instructional theory "offers explicit guidance on how to better help people learn and develop" (Reigeluth, 1999; also, see Wikipedia's article on Instructional Theory).
2. Instructional Design Process - systematic guidance on specific steps or phases to follow to help ensure that the instruction is of high quality. Examples include the ADDIE Model and the Dick & Carey Model (Dick, Carey, & Carey, 2006). Both of these are briefly described in Wikipedia's article here.
3. Physical Technologies and Tools - physical objects used to create and represent the knowledge that is being taught in the instruction. These technologies are be used by the instructional designer to create the instruction.

So then what is Instructional Design? It is the deliberate planning and creation of materials used to provide knowledge to learners. I discuss this in more detail in previous posts entitled What is Instructional Design part 1 and What is Instructional Design part 2.

A degree in instructional design is different than a degree in instructional technology. Clearly there is a lot of overlap, but different programs have different emphases. I earned a master's degree in instructional technology, so in my courses we spent a fair amount of time focusing on the tools. In contrast, a degree in instructional systems design might place more emphasis on the instructional design process. I currently teach in the Master Program in Instructional Design and Performance Technology at Franklin University. This program focuses more on the design process and on linking design to business results.

*Random side-note: When I think of science, I think about 10th grade chemistry class. I thought the girl in front of me was really cute, so that was where my mind was, a lot of the time. The teacher did a bunch of experiments with test tubes and bunsen burners and by the end of the class, I knew two things: (1) there is a periodical table of the elements and (2) I was too scared to even talk to the cute girl.

References

Dick, W. O., Carey, L., & Carey, J. O. (2005). The systematic design of instruction (6 ed.): Pearson/Allyn &; Bacon.

Reigeluth, C.M. (1999). What is instructional design theory? In C.M. Reigeluth (Ed.) Instructional design theories and models: A new paradigm of instructional theory (Vol. 2, pp. 5-29). Manwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
 

the miracle of hearing (and instructional technology)

This post is a little more personal than many of my previous posts.

Today my daughter had ear surgery to correct a hearing loss that she has had since she was born. She has always worn hearing aids and struggled more than most to learn to hear and speak, but we recently learned of an innovative surgery that will correct her hearing. It has been an incredible experience and we are grateful for the blessing of having our little girl be able to hear again.

As an instructional technology geek, I couldn't help but get a little excited at the doctor's use of technology to teach us what he did during the surgery. Below is an image that he drew for us on his i-pad just after the surgery. He emailed the image to me and I have added the text to replicate what he said as he explained the simple image to us.

As a technology lover, I am just blown away by the powerful technologies that have blessed my life. Most important were the technologies that have given my beautiful 8-year old daughter an increased capacity to hear and live life with greater advantage. The incredible combination of skill, technology, and knowledge is miraculous to me. And (as an instructional tech geek) it was a pleasure to see technology used in an innovative way to teach us how our daughter's ears were improved.

What is Instructional Design? part 2

In my last post (What is Instructional Design? part 1), I explained my idea of what instructional design is. In this post, I want to explain a little further the kinds of tools an instructional designer uses to create worthwhile learning experiences. Instructional designers use 3 main types of tools in their work: (1) instructional theory, (2) instructional design processes, and (3) instructional technologies and tools.

This video explains how these are used. (You can also continue reading below for more details).

The Activity of the Instructional Designer

The picture below demonstrates the activity of an instructional designer as it relates to these tools. First, I want to clarify that the tools designers use are either abstract or physical. Abstract tools are those that instructional designers use to guide their thinking and actions. I categorize them as instructional theory and instructional design processes. Physical tools are those that are used to actually develop instructional materials, which I categorize as instructional technologies and tools.

So, in our picture, the instructional designer uses physical tools and technologies to manipulate content and create materials that the learners will interact and learn with. These physical tools can be a computer, software, a camera, a Learning Management System (LMS), etc. These tools are used to develop physical materials.

A good instructional designer also works with abstract tools as they design instructional materials. He or she considers what is known about good instruction, which should include awareness of current instructional theory. For example, Merrill's First Principles of Instruction is a set of research-based prescriptions for how to create effective instruction. Instructional Designers also think about specific instructional design processes as they develop the material. For example, the ADDIE process walks students through the basic steps of instructional design to help ensure that quality instruction is created. The abstract tools are used to guide the development of the physical materials and help ensure the materials adhere to abstract concepts of what works in instruction.


The important thing here is that instructional design is an activity that involves the use of tools to create instructional materials. If you have any additional thoughts on the activity of an instructional designer, I would love to read them. This view is based on my experience and thinking, and I am sure that others have additional insights to share.

What is Instructional Design? part 1

What is instructional design? A friend and colleague of mine, Rob Barton, asked (and answered) this question in a fairly recent blog post. His thoughts are interesting and have made me think of my own response to that question- what is instructional design? Here are my thoughts (which are fairly similar what Rob wrote).

What is Instructional Design?

This is an important question, and sometimes I have a hard time answering it. (This is probably because I get geeked out and start talking about all the "academic" details of the field and practice). It is easiest to describe it through what an instructional designer does. An instructional designer, at the most basic level is a person who creates materials that help people learn.

For the past several years, I have designed instruction for college professors. I help them organize and create course materials and assignments that will help the students learn what is being taught. I do my best to use strategies that are based on what works according to the research. Instructional designers work in many different settings, including public school (K-12), colleges and universities, corporations, and in the military. Most of my experience as an instructional designer has been in higher education.

So, here is where my thinking gets a little more geeky. Below is my more lengthy (and academic) description of what an instructional design is and what instructional designers do.

A More Detailed Explanation

First, instruction (as it relates to instructional design) is an imparted unit of knowledge. Instruction is given with the intent that the one receiving it will acquire or learn that knowledge. (I use the term knowledge broadly to include skill, information, attitude, etc.)

Second, design (as it relates to instructional design) is the deliberate planning and creation of instructional materials.

So, instructional design is the deliberate planning and creation of materials used to impart knowledge to learner.

The Tools of Instructional Designers

As instructional designers plan and create instructional materials, they use several tools and technologies to accomplish their design goals. In my opinion and experience, these include the following major types:

• Instructional Theory, which is a set of prescriptions describing what the instruction should be like when it is finished. Instructional theory "offers explicit guidance on how to better help people learn and develop" (Reigeluth, 1999). There are many instructional theories, and the most useful and beneficial are those which are based on sound learning theory,  peer-reviewed research, and reflective practice. An example of an instructional theory is Merrill's First Principles of Instruction (Merrill, 2002, 2007, 2009), which I am partial to and have written about (see my publications page). 

• Instructional Design Processes, which provide guidance on specific steps or phases to follow to help ensure that the instruction is of high quality. Examples include the ADDIE Model and the Dick & Carey Model (Dick, Carey, & Carey, 2006). Both of these are briefly described in Wikipedia's article here.
• Instructional Technologies and Tools,  which are physical objects* used to create, manipulate and represent the knowledge that is being taught or imparted. These technologies can be used by the instructional designer to create the instruction, by the learner to gain and expand knowledge, or by both. Examples include a Learning Management System such as Blackboard or Articulate, or classic teaching and learning tools such as a pen and a piece of paper.

The three Types of Instructional Design Tools.

Related Post: The Difference Between Instructional Design, Technology, and Science

Instructional designers use these tools as they design instruction. Of course, instructional design does not occur in a vacuum, and designers must be aware of and adapt to the context in which they design. This is actually very complex and I will attempt to treat this in a later post. I have written about this idea elsewhere (Gardner, 2011).

In my next post What is Instructional Design? part 2, I will expand on what I have written here and also share a video that explains what instructional designers do.

What Do You Think?

I am interested to read your thoughts. As a whole, instructional designers seem to have a hard time defining what they do and how we do it. Perhaps this is because every design context is different and the way design occurs is therefore different, but are there fundamental similarities? Do you agree with my assertions here?

* Note: I state here that instructional technologies are physical objects. One might remind me that a design process or a theory is also a technology or a tool, but I make the distinction between physical tools and abstract tools. An abstract tool can be represented physically. For example, an instructional design workbook (physical) might guide an instructional designer through the ADDIE process (abstract). Abstract objects can therefore both internal to the designer (something they know, perceive, and conceptualize) and external as a physical representation of that tool or technology.

References

Dick, W. O., Carey, L., & Carey, J. O. (2005). The systematic design of instruction (6 ed.): Pearson/Allyn &; Bacon.

Gardner, J., (2011). How Award-winning Professors in Higher Education Use Merrill’s First Principles of Instruction. International Journal of Instructional Technology and Distance Learning, 8(5), p. 3-16).

Merrill, M. D. (2002). First principles of instruction. Educational Technology Research and Development, 50(3), 43-59.

 Merrill, M. D. (2007). First principles of instruction: a synthesis. In R. A. Reiser & J. V. Dempsey (Eds.), Trends and Issues in Instructional Design and Technology, 2nd Edition (Vol. 2, pp. 62-71). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Merrill/Prentice Hall.

Merrill, M. D. (2009). First Principles of Instruction. In C. M. Reigeluth & A. Carr (Eds.), Instructional Design Theories and Models: Building a Common Knowledge Base (Vol. III). New York: Routledge Publishers.

Reigeluth, C.M. (1999). What is instructional design theory? In C.M. Reigeluth (Ed.) Instructional design theories and models: A new paradigm of instructional theory (Vol. 2, pp. 5-29). Manwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.