POI Week 2 Responses

OK, here are the week 2 questions with my responses:

1.  How do you plan to design your online course to encourage free flow ideas and requests for clarification--discussion forums, email, chatrooms, team activities, other?

I generally make use the discussion boards for clarification.  I also generally set up a specific discussion board for clarification, and I will also set up one for general topics or off topics.  I call it the Student Union or Watercooler. I generally let the students handle the topics in there and let it be "their space."  I use synchronous chat for office hours.  I have it open at certain times and students can come in and ask questions as needed.  I use Facebook for the same thing.

2.  What thoughts do you have about timing access to different components of the lesson(s)--one-time dump, progressive access, access tied to specific assignments, allow students to work ahead or go back to catch up, other?

I've done both, and it generally depends on the content.  Some content lends itself to work-at-your-own-pace, and some doesn't.

So there you have it.  Nothing earth-shattering, but my opinions nonetheless.  I'm actually kind of bummed about how this course is going.  Not a whole lot of discussion going on, and everyone is waiting until the last minute to post and that makes it difficult for anyone to respond.

Yeah, you know what I'm talking about . . .

Preparing Online Instructors (POI)

So I've been feeling the need to get back to blogging.  It's been tough, though, as I go up for tenure this coming fall, and I've been focusing on getting my research published.  Actually, I guess I've been more "micro-blogging" on FaceBook.  But my heart has been here.  I know there is a lot being written about the future of blogs like this, but I'll be honest with you: while it is really inspiring to hear from people who read this blog (even--especially--when they don't agree with me), my intended audience here is me.

As I said, I go up for tenure this coming fall, and that brings with it extra pressure.  And last semester wasn't a good one.  Yes, I got three publications, but my teaching wasn't to the level I'm accustomed to.  And to make matters worse, while I research and design online instruction, they were all online courses, and I definitely didn't practice what I preach.  So I figured I needed to "sharpen my saw."  To do this, I enrolled in a course offered by the faculty development group here at Oklahoma State University. The title of the course? The title of this post: Preparing Online Instructors.

We're one week in, and I'm already feeling weird about taking the class.  There is quite a range in technological expertise amongst the students, and an even broader range about pedagogy.  To be honest, as an instructional designer and when it comes to online instruction, I feel that I'm more experienced than the instructors.  Now that's not a knock on them, I just think I've done more.  So as we've started discussions, I find I write a lot more detail--based on my experience--than the other learners.  I'm afraid I'm going to come off looking like the "know-it-all," and I don't want that.  But if you're going to ask me a question, you had better want my answer, because I'll give it to you.

I thought the course would be a good way to get back to blogging, so here's what I'm going to do.  As I participate in discussions, I'm going to post my responses here.  I don't really know why other than if I'm going to spend that much time writing, I'd like feedback on my ideas and thoughts from those within my field.  So feel free to comment.

One more thing, I'll never identify a classmate by name.  I'll use an initial.

Here we go . . .

Alan Young on Instructional Design

Here's an interview with Alan Young, Director of Curriculum Development at Brigham Young University-Idaho. The interview was done for my students in EDTC 5753: Introduction to Instructional Design. In it, Alan discusses his background, how he came to the instructional design field, what his current day-to-day job as an instructional designer is like, what skills he feels are important for instructional designers, and what he feels the future of the field will be.

Dr. Jennifer Summerville on Instructional Design

Here's an interview with Jennifer Summerville, Ph.D, Associate Dean for the Distance and Weekend College for Collin College. The interview was done for my students in EDTC 5753: Introduction to Instructional Design. In it, Dr. Summerville discusses her background, how she came to the instructional design field, what her current day-to-day job is like, what skills she feels are important for instructional designers, and what she feels the future of the field will be.

This podcast had to be removed for clearance purposes.

Dr. Andrew Teasdale on Instructional Design

Here's an interview with Andrew Teasdale, Ph.D, an instructional designer in the Clinical Guidance Organization for Humana Health Care. The interview was done for my students in EDTC 5753: Introduction to Instructional Design. In it, Dr. Teasdale discusses his background, how he came to the instructional design field, what his current day-to-day job as an instructional designer is like, what skills he feels are important for instructional designers, and what he feels the future of the field will be.

Point/Counterpoint with an academic and a practitioner: On Cammy Bean, certification, and instructional design

I've had some people ask me to post some more of my thoughts on instructional design and certification. They were interested in the conversations Cammy Bean and I have had about those topics, and wondered where those conversations were going. Today Cammy e-mailed me, and she and I have been going back and forth, and she's graciously agreed to let me post the conversation here. See it here after the jump (with minor edits).

Can't we all just get along? Or the need for instructional design certification

To say the last couple of weeks here at effectivedesign have been interesting is an understatement. First of all, I had been reading the posts at Cammy Bean's Learning Visions blog, and had been linking to them on my weekly post of links. On my Links for 1-26-08 to 2-01-08 post, Cammy commented to me (on my birthday, no less) and said, "Hey there! I’m delighted to see that you’re getting so much out of my non-educated musings on instructional design. I’ll look forward to reading your musings on ID from the other side of the fence. Cammy" I'll be honest, I thought it was just cool that Cammy had actually come and seen my blog. So I ponied up and wrote my This one’s for you, Cammy Bean! Or, is the role of the instructional designer changing? I began thinking about Cammy and others in her situation who are instructional design practitioners and how what their jobs are and what they really do and what we teach in academia. So I wrote about that disconnect in my post Instructional design in academia–where theory and practice RARELY meet. And that post really started things going. Stephen Downes mentioned our conversation on OL~Daily, and then all sorts of people started chiming in. COOL! So I continued the conversation with Cammy by writing how to get an Instructional Design education without paying tuition and an immediately accessible instructional design education. Later, I posted Have we “Reclaimed” Instructional Design? to try and further suss out just what I've been thinking about instructional design as well as teaching and practicing it.

Read what I find interesting about all this and my thoughts about instructional design certification after the jump.

Have we "Reclaimed" Instructional Design?

In 1996, David Merrill and the ID2 Research Group published Reclaiming Instructional Design, a paper that "attempts to make clear [their] belief that instruction is a science and that instructional design is a technology founded in this science," and they wanted "to identify some of the assumptions underlying the science-based technology of instructional
design, and to clarify its role in the larger context of education and social change."

In short, as they titled the paper, it was time to "reclaim instructional design" from "a lot of people associated with instructional technology who don’t seem to know where they are going. Neophytes who are pursing instructional technology are lured this way and that by the varied philosophical voices crying lo here."

So, twelve years later, where are we? Have we "reclaimed" instructional design?

An immediately accessible instructional design education

Cammy at Learning Visions asked me to whittle my list down more. As a former English teacher, I relish the thought of making my writing "tighter." So while the purpose of my initial post on how to get an instructional design education without paying tuition was meant as a "here's what you need to know," I still missed the mark.

Let me explain.

All of these posts back and forth with Cammy have dealt with instructional design in a non-academic context. We have been talking about how to do the job WITHOUT a graduate degree. So what did I do? I gave her a graduate reading list. How's that for good design?

So I decided I was going to trim the list to only FOUR things, and they couldn't be theory-laden. Rather, they had to be something a brand new designer-by-assignment could pick up and learn something that would be immediately applicable.

See the list after the jump.

How to get an Instructional Design education without paying tuition

Well, yesterday Cammy has responded to my post on the disconnect between academic instructional design and practical instructional design. Subsequently, the last five hours or so has been interesting. First of all, I see that Stephen Downes has mentioned our conversation on OLD~Daily, and that has led to a number of comments on my blog as well as others posting about them on their blogs.

I've got to admit, I'm enjoying thinking about these questions.

Wendy Wickham from In the Middle of the Curve has joined the conversation. Wendy has an MA in Instructional Technology from Towson University (I don't think I know anyone on that faculty). Wendy makes a good point saying:

How I use theory - selling my instructional design ideas.

People respond to jargon. And, interestingly, people love learning other people's jargon. I had never seen such an excited group of people as the day I introduced ADDIE to the Project Management group and related that process to how they do business.

Do I use ADDIE? Not always - but it does seem to be a nice way to keep track of the status of my ID projects.

Citing academic theory makes it sound like you are putting more effort into it than "I dunno - this just made sense. Whadya think?"

Do I need my MS in Instructional Technology to practice? No. The theoretical ammunition I received in that program helps.

Great point. I had the same experience working with some military officials earlier this year. But later Cammy responds:

I completely agree that this stuff impresses clients. I use it all the time.

But one can learn the jargon without going to grad school. And one can cite the academic theory by reading and staying informed.

Perhaps the (somewhat cynical) question to ask is -- what's the right amount of jargon needed to get by? Do I need to know all of the things on John's list?

Personally, I don't think so. I've gotten by well enough without most of those theories, it seems.

This comes back to my quest from last year of getting an informal masters in ID.

If one were to construct an informal, self-paced, DIY instructional design curriculum, what content would you include?

So Cammy, only because I'm a big fan of yours, I present How to get an Instructional Design education without paying tuition.

Instructional design in academia--where theory and practice RARELY meet

I've had Cammy Bean's posts running through my head all weekend. I've been mulling over the differences between what I teach my students that instructional design and design theory are and how we actually do it. Anyone involved with the field at all knows that there is a huge gap between the two.

I remember having this conversation with a graduate school friend of mine, Platte Clark, a few years ago. Platte and I worked on our master's degrees in English at the same time, and we shared an office for about a year. Actually, Platte and another guy, Rulon Wood, are responsible for steering me to Instructional Technology, as they were both working on double master's degrees in both English and IT. At any rate, Platte left school with work still to do on both degrees. He had been offered a big job with Novell Education (I believe), and it was too good to turn down. He later went to work for Franklin Covey, but suffice it to say that Platte is HIGHLY intelligent, and a gifted designer. Again, he just *gets it.* Eventually he finished his MS in English, but not his MS in Instructional Technology. I remember talking with him about his frustrations about the academic field.

This one's for you, Cammy Bean! Or, is the role of the instructional designer changing?

I've never shied away from my adoration of Cammy Bean and her Learning Visions blog. If you don't know who she is, she describes herself by saying:

I'm Cammy Bean, the author of Learning Visions. My business card currently says "Manager of Instructional Design", but I do a bit of everything. If you're interested, read my current job description.

Learning Visions is my place to explore topics related to e-Learning, including things like web 2.0 technologies, Second Life, wikis, Facebook, and other new tools that can be used for training and development. I attempt to share my experiences with current e-Learning projects and challenges I might be facing. I ask a lot of questions. Like most bloggers, I also tend to write about blogging.

I've been working in the corporate training field since the early- to mid-90's. Most of that time, I've been working for the e-Learning vendors: companies that design and develop e-Learning programs for a wide variety of projects. I've served as instructional designer and project manager on programs for banks, airlines, department stores, consulting firms, construction companies, training companies, and more. These days I work at InVision Learning in Westborough, Massachusetts (USA).

I started blogging in earnest in February 2006. A lot of really smart people were talking about some really interesting things and I wanted in! Every day I learn something new from the blogs I read and from the comments people leave here.

Please join in the conversation and leave a comment on my blog if you've got something to say. Don't be shy!

I think the thing that I love most about Cammy's blog is that she does what I do, and yet, I went to school and earned a Ph.D. that says I'm an instructional designer, and she didn't. I don't know why that to me is so fascinating, but it is. I've often thought that in academia we act too much like we're curing cancer when, in fact, we're not. I think instructional design is something that is a talent. Some can do it without the training. I could. I knew what effective instruction was before I ever took a class. At the same time, however, I also think it is a skill that can be developed. I've told my students for years, "I can teach anyone to hit a golf ball, but Tiger Woods was born to be who he is." I can teach anyone the clinical side to instructional design, and they'll be able to write good behavioral objectives, align it to a proper assessment, etc., but if they don't just *get it*, I can't teach them to.

Distance Education Changes

Here's an interesting change in how we think about distance educaton written over on the Cognitive Dissonance blog. It's not "anytime, anywhere . . ." it's "everywhere, all the time."

It's interesting when you think about it.

Plagiarism and the Internet

Doug Johnson had an interesting post on his Blue Skunk Blog today about plagiarism and the internet: http://doug-johnson.squarespace.com/blue-skunk-blog/2006/6/26/preventing-plagiarism.html

This is exactly the type of thing I talk about with my students. It's time for us to be innovative as instructors. We can't keep doing the same things over and over again and complain about the educational system or that students aren't learning. I think a lot of the problem is not just lazy students, but most definitely lazy teachers. It's easier for them to do what's always been done than to try to innovate and change.

It's times like this I feel blessed to be an instructional designer. Though that at times does cause me problems (because I feel inclined to almost completely redesign each course every time I teach it).

It's like I tell my students: Good teaching is hard work.

Another GREAT definition

I was in a workshop last week and Larry Ragan from Penn State's World Campus was speaking and he gave a WONDERFUL description of what we do. He referred to instructional designers as educational engineers.

I thought about this a lot, and it makes complete sense. Electrical engineers design electrical systems, mechanical engineers design mechanical systems, and educational engineers (instructional designers) design educational systems.

I like it!

What my graduate students need to know

As I've begun advising graduate students again, I've thought a lot about things they "need to know." With that in mind, I've attached three files that I think they should all read and follow the counsel therein.

Write your dissertation first and other essays on graduate education by M. David Merrill

Suggested self-study program for Instructional Systems Development (ISD) by M. David Merrill

Annotated bibliography on Instructional Design

A great definition of what we do

So today I finally got in the mail a book I had ordered about a month ago, Teaching Concepts: An Instructional Design Guide, by Merrill, Tennyson, and Posey. I'm so excited to read it. I'm really looking at trying to validate more of what we say we do. But that's just the kicker isn't it? We always have a hard time explaining to those who aren't in the know what it is exactly that we do. In the preface of this book they give a great explanation:

"There has evolved from the research conducted by cognitive and behavioral psychologists a set of very specific, empirically validated procedures for teaching concepts. If followed, these procedures provide far more efficient and effective concept instruction than that typically seen in classrooms or mediated instructional materials.

"The procedures outlined in this book may appear to be extremel laborious compared to procedures you are now using to prepare instructional materials. However, after you have prepared several lessons using the recommended procedures, you will find that your planning efficiency has actually increased. In addition, your students will find your lessons more enjoyable and much easier to understand.

"... Instructional design is a phrase which means selecting and arranging instructional materials in a way which helps students learn more efficiently and effectively. It also means selecting and arranging special materials which allow you as a teacher, or the students as learners, to find out whether they have learned what you intended."

Now that's pretty much how I explain things, but I found this entire passage really clear. I can't wait to read the rest of the book.

Look what the cat drug in!

So I'm unpacking the last boxes for my office yesterday, and I came across the craziest thing. In my first class with David Merrill, he asked us the first day, "What makes something instructional?" He then told us to write our answer up. Well, I found my response. I must say that for my first (or second) semester in the field, my response was both incredilbly naive and at the same time really pretty good. I wrote:

"What makes something instructional?

"I've been wondering this a lot lately. Most of the work I do deals with web-based instruction. Lately I've been wondering, however, if I am helping design effective instruction for the web. It seems like a lot of what I have been doing is designing online textbooks and workbooks. I don't really feel like that is instructional. Knowledge might be disseminated to a degree, but I don't know that any real learning is taking place.

"I think that real instruction and learning takes place when there is thinking taking place. I think both student and teacher have to think for learning to take place. Let me give an example: I was evaluating a web-based course the other day, and I pointed out a problem in the lesson. The questions the students were asked to answer weren't challenging them to think. Just like many textbooks or workbooks, all a student needed to do to answer the questions was to read them adn then go back and find the answers in the content. I don't agree with that. I keep telling the writers to make the students apply the knowledge. Don't allow them (the students) to simply regurgitate knowledge. Make them think.

"I know that it is hard to do. You can't know how each student will respond to everything. But I think that making students think helps things be truly instructional.

"I had a statistics class this summer. For part of our grade, we had workbook exercises to complete. I didn't learn anything. Why? Because it had no challenging areas for me to think. For example, in each chapter we had a few pages of fill-in-the-blank questions. The problem was, however, that the answers were right next to the blanks!

"That's what I want to avoid when designing my courses. How would I have made the workbooks better? Well, I probably would have written the questions better and not put the answers next to the blanks. Again, being redundant, I would have made the students think."

Boy, some of that sounds a far cry from my staunch behaviorist views now.

At any rate, after we all wrote those David Merrill gave an incredible lecture on what he thinks makes something instructional. And after all these years, I agree with him--it holds up. What did he say makes the difference?

The ability to practice.