499-01: Internship Project

The ADDIE instructional design model begins with the Analysis phase. This step challenged me to focus on identifying a learning objective and setting goals. I examined a multitude of factors and asked myself a lot of questions.

What is the current learning environment(structure, content, delivery method)? What is the perceived need for instruction? What are the characteristics of stakeholders (instructor, students)? What media opportunities are available? (podcasts, net meetings, videocasts)?

Concept Map - my beginning

The discovery process seemed unending. I think I began overthinking...or did I?...well maybe...or maybe not...hmmmm....

Concept Map - this is where I ended up!

Next step: Design

Now that I had a pretty clear picture of the overall learning approach, I was ready to move on to the next phase: Design. This step involved planning, review and revision; planning, review and revision and more planning, review and revision. This became my juggling act.

I began by deconstructing the course and reoganizing the content into manageable chunks of information. The goal was to move the students through the course sequentially without confining them to weekly activities. I decided to create Learning Units, a one-stop shop for all their topic needs.

Once completed, I needed to step back and take a look at the design as a whole not just as individual pieces. Was there a flow? Did it make sense? This of course, led to more rearranging...

Concept Map

Next step: Development

Next up: The Development phase. This step in the process was the most familiar to me, I just needed to find the right balance. Having spent years as a technology generalist, I am familiar with many multimedia tools and delivery formats (though acquiring a broad range of knowledge equates to limited time to master). This internship project gave me the opportunity to explore and apply new media and emerging technologies.

The challenge was to rethink learning activities. Could a learning objective be better met with a different delivery mode? Working with audio and video, I focused on creating RLOs - reusable learning objects . I also considered how to meet different learning styles by offering the same content in different formats.

I also knew I needed to focus on building a learning community by fostering student-2-student and student-2-instructor relationships. To accomplish this, I needed to set a welcoming tone with collaborative learning activities and open forums appropriately paced throughout the course.

Concept Map

Next step: Implementation

Showtime! The Implementation stage of this process is when the course goes live. A quick checklist: Has it met the instructors expectations? Do the links work? Is there logical movement through the course? One last opportunity to revise and the course is launched.
Time to take my hands off and let it go. (THAT wasn't easy!)

Concept Map

Next step: Evaluation

Evaluation is the last step is in the design process. It measures the effectiveness and quality of the final product. It ultimately cycles you back to the Analysis process to review the learning objectives and goals. Did I meet them?

At this stage I needed to gather my evidence. I did this by observation and feedback from the students and instructor. Did the course design support the learning objectives? Did it meet the goals? Were there technical difficulties? I also spent a day hanging out in the Virtual Cafe at a pivotal point of the course for live assistance. The results of the assessments and evaluations will assist in recycling the project for the next semester.

...the Analysis process begins again... What worked? What didn’t? Why and why not?

Concept Map

Learning Objective