Section 7: New Directions for Instructional Design and Technology

progressyoureducation.com

The last section of your textbook discusses the concepts of distributed learning, reusability, rich media and the future of instructional design. Focus on the following for your post:

From Chapter 28 locate 5 examples of distributed learning. You may pick and choose from the following list.  

 Hybrid classes

learnkey.com

 Last year when I was teaching Adobe Photoshop and Flash classes, I used a hybrid approach.  We were lucky enough to have a subscription to LearnKey, which is an online instruction program.  I also had my own teaching resources, assignments and projects from before we had the subscription, so I used a combination of traditional classroom teaching methods and the online instruction for those classes.  I felt like it was a good combination.  The online instruction time provided me with extra class time to get hands-on time with my kids who were struggling or behind, and I also got to do some of the assignments and projects that drew kids to the class in the first place.

Virtual classes

odysseyware.com

My district uses OdysseyWare for our virtual courses.  We offer credit recovery via Odyssey, our seniors take Government/Economics via Odyessey and we offer electives via Odyssey.  I have mixed feelings on offering virtual classes to high school students.  On one hand, I can see how it could be a good second chance for a student who failed, but at the same time, it seems as though the students who fail are not the most self-motivated students in the first place, and online virtual classes require a certain amount of self-discipline and motivation. We went to offering the Government and Economics courses online to reduce a teacher needed for budget reasons.  Again, I have mixed feelings; I think our seniors need to be exposed to this type of learning, but at the same time, some of them need a human standing over them to make sure they are getting the most out of the class.  For the students who are excelling and in need of additional electives, I think it is a good solution.  I still think that having a real, live French teacher is the most beneficial when learning French, but having a virtual French class is better than nothing.

Distributed learning via virtual institutions

Lately, I've noticed ads on tv about Western Governor's University, so I checked into it a bit.  WGU falls under the "Distributed learning via virtual institutions" category, because it offers solely online instruction, and does not have any physical campus locations.  

Free distributed learning
Tx Virtual Schools Network is an organization that provides free distance education. The service is free to students, but there is a cost that the student's district must pay. A few of our students in Celeste used Tx Virtual Schools in the past. 

Skills-based training
http://www.crossculturalsolutions.org/ is a nonprofit organization that offers skills-based training to adults seeking an education in developing countries. They specialize in computer and vocational skills.

Chapter 29 discusses the concept of reusability. Think back over the courses you've had over your educational career and identify one with poor reusability characteristics. Explain how the course could be redesigned to improve reusability without changing the underlying content.

No one class comes to mind, but overall, I consider the classes that I can't clearly remember what we covered as having poor reusability. The "foggy classes" all had some common characteristics: they had little or no student participation or interaction, they were strictly lecture style classes, the material came directly from a text or notes and I would learn the material for a test, and the next day, it would be gone.

Although I took these courses before online learning and the Internet was what it is today, I think they could be improved by making the students have an overall more active part in learning.  I realize that in larger college courses, it's difficult to have the time for everyone to participate in class, but a class blog or discussion forum could be utilized.  I also think I would have personally taken more from these courses if I had had the task of gathering some of the information on my own (independent research, finding material to present to my peers, etc).  "Sit and get" classes are the traditional way of learning and teaching, but I strongly believe that making the student be actively involved in her learning gives the student ownership, and makes the new knowledge more relevant.



Chapter 30 takes a look at using rich media. Find or create a visual for instruction describing its surface and functional features. 

 Rich media is defined as "learning products that incorporate high-end media such as video, animation, sound, and simulation" (Reiser, 2007). Basically, I look at rich media as the tools we use in modern classrooms to engage and stimulate student learning that requires them to use more higher-order thinking skills. The more involved the learner is, the more effective, as shown below:



en.wikipedia.org



Chapter 31 discusses the future of instructional technologies in the near future from metadata to nanotechnology. Describe how nanotechnology could be used to improve a specific job or task you are familiar with.  

Our superintendent introduced us to Nanotechnology  about two years ago in an effort to help us see that by the time our kids graduate, this type of technology can be a reality to them, so we need to be teaching into the future, now from the past the way we were. Greatly simplified, nanotechnology deals with manipulating matter on an atomic and molecular level.

Since I deal with a diabetic student daily, I could imaging a nanotechnology device that the student could wear that could sense dips and rises in his blood sugar, and automatically calculate how much insulin is needed.  I would also imagine that the same device would be able to track his levels so his doctor would have more accurate data.  Based on the online video from Nokia, Nanotechnology devices such as these would have the ability to stretch, change shape, be dirt and water repellent and self-charge. (Sounds like exactly what a 13-year-old boy needs!)

Chapter 32 provides two points of view on the direction of the field - the straight and narrow road and the broad and inclusive road. Which point of view do you agree with and why?

I agree with the Broad and Inclusive Road because it allows for more variety, and it is more flexible and adaptable.  Technology is always changing and advancing, so being able to adjust and change as needed seems to make more sense. Although the Broad and Inclusive route may not be as neatly defined and uncharted, I think the lack of limitations leaves more doors open for potential learning.  When we keep our minds open to new ideas, methods, and strategies, we are able to learn and grow more. The Broad and Inclusive Road falls in line with my overall educational technology teaching philosophy.

Section 6: Getting an IDT Position and Succeeding at it

***For some reason unknown to me, Blogger and I have not seen eye-to-eye this week, so I apologize if it's wacky this week. Nothing I've planned has panned out this week, so between Internet connection issues, Blogger being difficult and a kid who is still sick, I'm afraid I'll be late if I don't post as-is. Hopefully it makes sense to someone other than me at this point :)

Chapter 24 takes a look at lessons learned from the chapter's author for obtaining a position in instructional design. Take a look at a few of the sources provided for job openings from lesson 1 and search for at least 3 positions that are of interest to you. Describe the general nature of the positions and list the skills required for the job. Do you have these skills? 
POSITION #1
Title:​Instructional Designer / Adult Learning Educator - Consultant
Company Name:​Build It Green (a non-profit whose mission it is to promote healthy, energy and resource efficient residential buildings)
Min Education:​BA/BS/Undergraduate
Min Experience:​5-7 Years
General Nature:
The company is seeking an Instructional Designer/Adult Learning Educator Consultant to help advise how to develop effective curriculum to further our training program in the residential energy efficiency and green building arena. The position is responsible for helping to design and develop these trainings in cooperation with existing training department, staff, and other consultants. The company is also interested in transferring their new and existing trainings to an online platform.  Major audiences are:  building professionals, real estate professionals, and homeowners.
 
Scope of Work
*Design and develop quality learning programs to be delivered in a variety of media
*Apply adult learning theory and sound instructional design methodology to training deliverables
*Work with subject matter experts and audience representatives to design highly effective  
  training programs
*Implement strategies for effective re-purposing/reuse of current learning content
*Build It Green is an Equal Opportunity Employer and strives to reflect the diverse community it serves. All applicants who contribute to this diversity are strongly encouraged to apply.
 
Job Requirements
*5+ years of experience in instructional design, curriculum development and/or education
*Bachelor’s degree in instructional design/technology or related field. Master’s preferred
*Experience developing both ILT and (synchronous and asynchronous) distance learning 
*Experience in online learning design, instruction
 

POSITION 2:
Title: Technical Instructional Designer
Company Name:Crocs Footwear
Min. Education:BS in Education, Instructional Design, or related field
Min. Experience:3 years of instructional design and/or technical writing experience
General Nature:
The responsibilities of this job will be split between working with teams to develop/refine work processes and designing training events to support the implementation of new processes.  Individual should demonstrate and utilize effective process and needs analysis, project management, course development, and evaluation skills. Designs, develops and presents instructional material for employee training courses that support implementation and maintenance of company processes. Has independently developed entry and advanced level courses for both internal and external audiences. Able to utilize process documentation, multimedia technology and authoring tools. Acts as liaison between Operations and IT to determine needs of the course and appropriate method of delivery.
 
Job Requirements/Scope of Work:
*Work with cross functional teams to define work processes that meet functional objectives
  and associated skill requirements
*Translate identified requirement into relevant course objectives that target skill development
*Design, develop, and implement multi-modal training events
 *Virtual and live classroom training
* Performs other incidental and related duties as required. 
 
Qualifictions/Requirements:
To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.
Also needs knowledge in:
*Intermediate to advanced knowledge of Adobe Captivate/Presenter
*Intermediate to advanced knowledge of MS Office Suite including Visio & MS Project, or
 other process mapping and project mapping tools 
*Engage and effectively facilitate team work
*Strong technical writing
*Ability to learn company technology quickly
*Virtual and live classroom presentation skills
*Multimedia, curriculum and course development skills
*Ability to work independently or on a team.
 
POSITION #3:
Title: Instructional Design Specialist
Company Name: Sam Houston State University
Min. Education: BS in Education, Instructional Design, or a related field
Min. Experience: 3 years
General Nature:
To assist faculty in the design and development of web-based courses and course content, and to provide support to faculty and staff in the use of instructional technologies.
Scope of Work:
Assist and support faculty in the development and implementation of web-based courses utilizing instructional technologies. Provide design and development support to faculty in course redesign for web-based delivery. Support faculty in the design and creation of course content for support of web-based courses. Provide audio and/or video service and support for faculty. Provide support to faculty in developing appropriate teaching/learning applications and best practices for web-based courses. Facilitate faculty training as needed for web-based course implementation. Develop and conduct instructional technology workshops for faculty. Consult with faculty members to determine appropriate technology and strategies for course delivery. Create and maintains appropriate records and spreadsheets of work activities. Participate in continuing professional development activities. Perform other related duties as assigned.
Job Requirements:
Bachelor’s degree in Instructional Technology, Educational Technology, Computer Science, Education or related field. Minimum of three year’s experience in course development and instructional design using emerging technologies or a combination in any of the following: web page development, computer multimedia, and computer use support. A combination of education, work experience, and training that would produce the required knowledge and abilities could be considered.
 
Overall, I feel I have most of the skills these jobs require, but at this point in my career, I lack in Instructional Design experience. I have 9 years of classroom experience, but not as much experience training adults, and "out of the classroom" experiences. To try to remedy this in the last few years, I have started taking on more staff training responsibilities in my district, and presenting at TCEA.  I'm not ready to get out of the classroom yet, but I like knowing that I have another direction I can take my career if I decide I need a change in the future.
 
Remember that the field of instructional/educational technology is not just focused on education, but on business and industry as well. Look at the resources provided on page 258 in chapter 25 and select one of these links and complete the self-assessment. What did you learn about yourself from the assessment? 
 
I completed the Skills Profiler self assessment from Careeronestop.org. I began by selecting a job from a list of job types (I chose Career/Technology Education Teacher, Middle School.) I then had to select work activities common to my job that I had experience in. I was able to select most of the work activities the site listed. The skills were grouped by the following categories: basic skills, social skills, complex problem solving skills, technical skills, system skills, resource management skills and desktop computer skills. I felt I had a strong hold of most of the skill categories, but I lacked some of the technical skills and system skills, as our network administrator handles most of those issues for us.  Next, I was asked to rate my skills on a scale of one to seven. Based on these questions, the site provided me with a list of job types that matched my skills, and a list of job types that matched my work activities. I was surprised by the list regarding my skills, because the majority of the jobs were types of physicians.  The job list regarding my work activities lined up how I expected it to; with various types of teaching positions being on my list. Here are the lists the site provided me with:
 
JOB TYPES BY SKILL:
 
    Job Type
Your skills match
Hospitalists
72.7% ( 16 of 22 skills)
Preventive Medicine Physicians
65.2% ( 15 of 23 skills)
Neuropsychologists and Clinical Neuropsychologists
63.6% ( 14 of 22 skills)
Psychiatrists
63.6% ( 14 of 22 skills)
Nuclear Medicine Physicians
62.5% ( 15 of 24 skills)
Law Teachers, Postsecondary
60.0% ( 12 of 20 skills)
Social and Community Service Managers
60.0% ( 15 of 25 skills)
Counseling Psychologists
59.1% ( 13 of 22 skills)
Mental Health and Substance Abuse Social Workers
59.1% ( 13 of 22 skills)
Naturopathic Physicians
59.1% ( 13 of 22 skills)
 
 JOB TYPE BY WORK ACTIVITIES:
 Job type
Your skills match
Career/Technical Education Teachers, Middle School
100.0% ( 32 of 32 skills)
Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education
96.9% ( 31 of 32 skills)
Career/Technical Education Teachers, Secondary School
96.8% ( 30 of 31 skills)
Middle School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education
88.9% ( 32 of 36 skills)
Graduate Teaching Assistants
75.0% ( 15 of 20 skills)
Special Education Teachers, Middle School
75.0% ( 30 of 40 skills)
Teacher Assistants
72.7% ( 24 of 33 skills)
Kindergarten Teachers, Except Special Education
71.4% ( 30 of 42 skills)
Special Education Teachers, Kindergarten and Elementary School
71.4% ( 30 of 42 skills)
Special Education Teachers, Preschool
71.4% ( 30 of 42 skills)
 
 
Chapter 26 lists several websites for professional organizations and websites for professional publications. Visit 2-3 websites for professional organizations and 2-3 websites for the professional publications and address the following:
 
ORGANIZATIONS
 

TCEA: (Texas Computer Education Association)  
Mission: The Texas Computer Education Association is dedicated to the improvement of teaching and learning through the use of computers and technology.
The Texas Computer Education Association (TCEA) is the largest state organization devoted to the use of technology in education. Founded in 1980, the organization has been very active throughout its history supporting instructional technology. Our primary focus is on integrating technology into the PreK-12 environment and providing our members with state-of-the-art information through conferences, workshops, newsletters, the Internet, and collaborations with higher education and business.
Cost of membership: $30
Publications: TechEdge Magazine
Conferences and meetings: Annual winter TCEA conference in February, Summer conference(Technology for Tots), Area mini-conferences throughout the year
Opportunities for professional development: webinars, workshops (
http://www.tcea.org/learn/workshops) for full PD offerings: http://tcea.org/documents/PD/pdcatalog.pdf
 

ISTE (International Society for Technology in Education) www.iste.org
Mission: "The impact of our work is to ensure that technology empowers educators to help more students achieve their full potential."
Cost of Membership: $99
Publications: Learning and Leading with Technology magazine, Journal of Computing in Teacher Education, Journal of Research on Technology in Education
Conferences and meetings: ISTE Annual Conference
Opportunities for professional development: Leadership Academy, webinars, online courses,
 
ITEA International TEchnology Education Association www.itea.org
Mission:To advance the field of Test and Evaluation worldwide
in government, industry and academia.
Cost of Membership: no cost for membership, but there are fees for conferences, etc.
Publications: Journal of Technology Education
Conferences and meetings: ITEA Annual Symposium, Cyber Conferences, various presentations around the country throughout the year
Opportunities for professional development: https://netforum.avectra.com/eweb/DynamicPage.aspx?Site=itea&WebCode=EventList&FromSearchControl=Yes
 
PUBLICATIONS
Contemporary Issues in Technology and Teacher Education
Focus/Goals: Established in 2000, Contemporary Issues in Technology and Teacher Education (CITE Journal) is a peer-reviewed publication of the Society for Information Technology and Teacher Education (SITE) and is co-sponsored by four other teacher education associations. It is an interactive electronic journal, capable of incorporating into its articles video, sound, animated images, and simulations, as well as ongoing dialog about issues that advance the field.
Submission guidelines: Articles must relate to Current Issues or Current Practice; acceptance rate is 29%, must be an original work, previously upublished, pass review standards by whichever organization the article falls under, must be submitted electronically
Peer Reviewed: yes
Online: yes
 
Educational Technology and Society
Focus/Goals: the issues affecting the developers of educational systems and educators who implement and manage such systems. The articles should discuss the perspectives of both communities and their relation to each other: The aim of the journal is to help them better understand each other's role in the overall process of education and how they may support each other.
Submission Standards:
Peer Reviewed: yes
Online: yes
 
Journal of Interactive Online Learning
Focus/Goals: Provide a forum for the dissemination of research on  interactive online education;Disseminate ideas that enhance the practical aspects of  interactive online education;Further knowledge and understanding of emerging innovations  in online education ;Foster debate about the use and application of online education;Explore uses of mobile applications and devices in teaching and learning
Submission Guidelines: Submissions from all disciplines, as well as from interdisciplinary perspectives, are welcome, if manuscripts conform to basic journal goals. Each submission is rigorously refereed using a double-blind peer review process with reviewers from relevant disciplines. Issue submission deadlines will be published here on the JIOL website.
Peer Reviewed: yes
Online: yes
 
I knew there were organizations and publications such as these, and I am a member and have presented at TCEA, but I did not realize how many there were, and how specialized some of them are. I did a couple of Google searches, and found even more than are listed in our book. I got way sidetracked browsing through some of the journals. (Which is why this week’s post took me hours longer to complete J) I found many of these resources to be very useful, because no matter what field of study I work in, there is a journal available to refer to, and to help keep me current in my field.
 
Chapter 27 looks at competencies for instructional design and technology professionals. If you were responsible for identifying the domains, competencies, and performance statements for a performance technologist, what would they include and why? 

If I were to establish domains, competencies and performance statements for a performance technologist, I would refer to Table 27.6 in our text. After reading over the lists, I feel these are clear, concise points that could easily be evaluated.  I would also provide the technologist with a copy of these competencies, because I feel it’s important to regroup and evaluate yourself every so often.