by Samantha Calamari on Lynda.com
Instructional design (def.) Creating learning materials and experiences, ideally digestible and interactive (ie. engaging)
Inclusive design (def.) Consideration of the range of user diversity when creating products and services
Inclusive Instructional Design (IID) Creating learning and content for a variety of perspectives and needs
Universal design (def.) Attempts to reach all learners
IID vs UD
IID adapts content in order to fit all learner’s needs while UD attempts to apply to everyone
Customized (or near to) vs Broadly applicable
Questions to keep in mind
What learners are you reaching? Define audience characteristics
Who are you not reaching? Again, define
How can you reach those you aren’t currently reaching? Brainstorm steps on how to reach those you hope to reach
Include ways to control pace and delivery of content
Ie. subtitles, screen readers, text, videos, ability to change pace of video/audio, change color of text
Trends change, so try to keep up on new features
Include notes on features at start of course so people are aware of how they can access the materials
Control over their learning increases a user’s stake
Providing pre-assessment can give users an understanding of the gaps in their knowledge and can focus their attention accordingly later
Consider what it’s like to feel excluded (those moments of friction) and empathize with those who may feel that with your courses
Inclusive Design vs Accessibility
ID is designing with, while accessibility is designing for
ID is a method, accessibility is an attribute
Ideally, they work together
Digital Divide
Members of society who lack computer/internet access, often due to privilege (age, wealth, locale, etc.)
Survey to assess needs, don’t assume all learners are digitally literate
Make file size as small as possible
Make it easy for users to communicate challenges they may have with accessing their content
Adults have different learning needs than kids
Andragogy – Teaching adult learners and considering their needs
Adults need “why?” – be able to decide value
Project based instruction – Do, not memorize
Consider varied backgrounds and experiences (which vary more w/ adults)
Autonomy to learn
Provide “to-do” tasks that users can use in their real life to practice
Learning styles
VARK – Visual, Auditory, Reading/Writing, Kinesthetic (learn by doing)
Diversify content/assignment formats for each kind of learner
Assignment examples based on type
Visual – Videos, images; drag/drop, select the picture
Auditory – Audio, speaking…
Reading/Writing – Reading content, writing answers
Kinesthetic – Physically practicing content, drag/drop, “doing the thing”
How can we better apply to all kinds of learners? The content and assessments, I think, now works well for visual and R/W learners. We could work on including more write-in your answer kind of questions, while may not be able to be tangibly graded by the system, could provide written explanations on correct answers for R/W and Kinesthetic learners. Maybe try to include anagrams for auditory learners.
Course mentions including flashcards for learners — create to include in workbook?
Invite students to engage with the material
Course recommends using social media/forums for users to discuss. Maybe create guide for clients on how their can invite their users to better engage with the content and peers?
Instructional Design – Adult Learning by Jeff Toister
Lynda.com
Adults must play an active role in their learning
Speak to the practical sense, allow users to make the case to themselves on why they should be invested in their learning
Six Principles of Andragogy
- Need to know – share purpose or objectives
- Experience – learning is easier when you can build on prior experience
- Self Concept – need to be able to guide their own learning
- Readiness – training works best when it can be applied to an immediate problem
- Problem Orientation – training focused on acquiring knowledge to address problems, rather than just learning content, works best
- Intrinsic Motivation – establish own motivation, alignment with own goals
Learning Theories – All Require Active Participation
Cognitive – memorization, acquisition of knowledge
Behaviorist – achievement of performance objectives
Constructivist – experiential learning, learning by discovery
Four Stages of Competency
Unconscious Incompetence – high confidence (relative), low ability
Magic window is here, can’t learn unless they pass this threshold
Conscious Incompetence – low confidence, low ability
Conscious Competence – learner self confidence can remain low here, you know what you don’t know; must design training where users can measure their own progress so that users can keep that in perspective
Unconscious Competence – high confidence, high ability
Passive vs. Active
Provide users a point to pause, think, and apply knowledge
Active Pros – Challenge, Confirmation, Feedback
Repetition in information with variety in delivery (VARK) increases engagement
Brains instinctively fill in gaps in knowledge. Can be used to develop active learning and create connections. Repeating visuals, content, info can be used to this goal.
Barriers in Learning
Squish – learning objectives aren’t defined, can happen often with soft skills training
No Proof – activities that don’t inform if users are engaging or not
I Sorta Got it – getting stuck in the learning curve
Vortex – stressed participants (from weak understanding or heavy workload) return to instinctive behaviors
Use it or Lose it – infrequent use of skills causes the loss of that information