Module II - Harless, Kaufman, Models - Oh My!!!!

Tuesday Class Session

• Great session about "Front-end" analysis and Needs assessment
• Take away points.

Look at the big picture.
Strive to understand client's needs.
Changes can occur in any phase of the ID process; be flexible.

 Learning Activities

• The work sheet exercises were challenging to me this week. Specifically, this activity made me realize that I have to spend more time reviewing the various models in the assigned reading materials. In terms of my project, I am clear about the following: Context; Educational partners/stakeholders; and Tasks.
• In addition, I have various theoretical frameworks (i.e., Andragogy; Theory of Margin, Social Cognitivism; Constructivism and Keller's ARCS) for contexualized support of my action plan.  

Final Thoughts

• Overall, I feel very comfortable with the front-end analysis process. The steps involved with this process are very straight forward. However, the main challenge is to make sure that you are accurately defining the discrepancies/gap/problem(s).
• Models - I am still grappling with trying to understand the various models we have reviewed so far in class. To date, Kaufman's model seems the most interesting because of its systemic nature and educational approach.
• Tamara found a website which discusses ID models in detail. This seems like it might be a useful resource to check out.
• Another great resource set forth by Dr. Rob: Instructional Design

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References

Images

(n.d.). Class. [Web Graphics]. Retrieved from http://blog.lib.umn.edu/tel/blog/class-is-in-session.jpeg
(2013). Thoughts. [Web Graphics]. Retrieved from  http://thegreateststructureontheplanet.files.wordpress.com/2013/06/thoughts.png

Module II - Front Analysis: Needs Assessment and Problem Identifcation

The required readings for this week were very informative and highlighted the vital importance for instructional designers to conduct front-end analysis.

Front-end analysis - Blueprint for success

What is front-end analysis?  Simply stated, it is a careful analysis, processing and review of "the instructional context, the prospective learners, and the learning tasks" (Smith & Ragan, 2005, p. 42).


Why are the above three elements essential?  At the K-12 level, the accountability and standards movement, led to an increase call for improved learning measurements and validity; high stakes testing; and educational management (Cross & Joftus, 1997; Klien, 1999; Lewis, 1997). Some teachers and administrators were resistant to this new policy focus (Bushnell, 2003); however, if one wanted to stay employed in the public school system, one had to accept the announced change due to it becoming an educational mandate, under the NCLB legislation which became the law of the land (Rush & Scherff, 2012). In regards to context, learners, and tasks, front-end analysis minimizes the risk of problems, mistakes, and negativity with the above elements. Specifically, researchers note, "Investing time and thought early in the design process saves time, cost, and frustration in the end. This investment allows one to design and develop instructional materials that support learning what is truly critical, in a way that the material can be used by the intended learners in their learning environment" (Smith & Ragan, 2005, p. 42).

Model - FEA, IDD, and HPT

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Important Concepts

Need (Dick, Carey, & Carey, 2009)

• Desired status - establishing a standard or goal 
• Actual status – existing level of performance 
• Gap – one must identify gap between the desired status and actual status 
• Equation: Desired status – actual status = need (Gap or need is defined as a comparison of the two) 

Needs Assessment (Discrepancy Analysis)

• Needs assessment is one of the tools used in performance analysis aka front end analysis. 
• It is a discrepancy analysis. 
•  It identifies the two polar positions:

• Where are we now? (i.e., “What is?”)
• Where are we to be? (i.e., “What should be?”)

• Thus, specifies measurable discrepancy (distance) between these two poles. In educational design, the two poles must be valid and representative.

• A needs assessment has three defining characteristics:
• The data must represent the actual world of learners and related people, both as it exists now and as it will could, and should exist in the future.
• No needs determination is final and complete; we must realize any statement of needs is in fact tentative, and we should constantly question the validity of our needs statements.
• The discrepancies (gaps) should be identified in terms of product or actual behaviors (ends), not in terms of processes (or means).

Final Thoughts

I found the readings very useful for thinking about and moving forward with my ISD Process Model assignment. I have three key objectives: analyzing/determining potential problems; identifying possible causes; and generating potential solutions. I learned that there are a variety of models available. I will pick a specific model to suit the needs of my context, learner/partners, and tasks.

There is a lot of detailed planning and thinking involved with front-end analysis. Some organizational and processing questions I have include the following:

• Who are the specific educational partners (i.e., learners; parents/community members; and educators/colleagues) that I need to be aware of to achieve success?
•  What are the gaps/discrepancies?
• Since this is a hypothetical scenario, what methods might I use if a collection of data was really required? (i.e., Questionnaire; observation; interview (face-to-face or phone); Group data collection/DACUM/Delphi)

Check this out -  The ADDIE Analysis Phase

URL Address - http://youtu.be/JZdv5lrJs4U

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References

Bushnell, M. (2003, May). Teachers in the schoolhouse panopticon - Complicity and resistance. Education and Urban Society, 35(3), 251-272. doi: 10.1177/0013124503035003001. Retrieved from http://eus.sagepub.com/content/35/3/251.full.pdf+html

Cross, C.T. & Joftus, S. (1997, September). Are academic standards a threat or opportunity? National Association of Secondary School Principles. NAASP Bulletin, 81(590), 12-20. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/216025449?accountid=14214

 Dick, W., Carey, L., & Carey, J.O. (2009). The systematic design of instruction .(7th Edition). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education,Inc Klein, M. (1999, May). The debate around standards. Voices from the Middle, 6(3), 27-29. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/213933649?accountid=14214

Lewis, A.C. (1997, October). Standards for new administrators. Phi Delta Kappan, 79(2), 99-100. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/218504586?accountid=14214

Images

(n.d.). Blueprint for success. [Web Graphic]. Retrieved from http://www.learningsolutionsmag.com/images/articles/main/id_714_608.jpg

(2013). Concerns. [Web Graphic]. Retrieved from http://www.appsaucerules.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/16515446-a-thinking-man-or-person-thinks-beside-the-words-questions-comments-concerns-problems-and-complaints.jpg

(n.d.). Reflections. [Web Graphics]. Retrieved from http://www.musicspecialties.com/Relaxation/Reflections.jpg

Video

Gardner, J. C. (2011, September 25) The ADDIE analysis phase. Retrieved from http://youtu.be/JZdv5lrJs4U

Module I - Reflections

Tuesday's class session was very engaging with a rich group discussion.

We opened with the Brown Bag video of Professor Alexander Romiszowski who shared his authentic real world experiences of doing instructional design, development, evaluation (IDDE) and training at the international level. Specifically, Dr. Romiszowski has worked in such variety of foreign countries, such as Argentina, Brazil, Mozambique, South Africa, Spain, and Thailand, just to name a few. Two key take way points I gleaned from the video is that IDDE and training in real world settings can be challenging and "stakeholder buy-in" is absolutely essential for project implementation completion, and success. In addition, Professor Pusch stated that as an instructional designer - (1) You should have no ego; (2). Understand that a lot of negotiation is involved with a project; and (3) Select a project based on three-prong constraints: Cost, time, and resources.The above given advice is excellent because it reminds student that planning, patience, and efficiency are important elements to promoting project success.

Learning Activities

As a group, we completed two worksheets, Practical Exercise I and Terms Both activities were very useful because they helped students to process and apply the content information from our reading assignments. From the exercise I worksheet, the cloud imagery helped to reinforced the idea of an Open/Closed system. In addition, the ability to differentiate between a system approach and being systematic is very important because of the decisions one might have to make and the models and interventions that one might have to employ as a instructional designer.


Assigned readings

Although our class worksheet/learning activity addressed the terms listed below. I wanted to have a fuller contextualized picture of the theoretical framework associated with each term. The summary table below facilitates information processing of important key terms and ideas from our assigned readings. It was very interesting to learn that systems theory is relevant in instructional design as well as in other fields of study such as chaos theory, fuzz logic, science, and math.

"Instructional Systems Design (ISD) models are themselves applications of general systems principles. Predesign analysis phases, the creation of products and programs that function as elements of total system, the extensive use of feedback - all are examples of systems processes" (Tessmer & Richey, 1997, p. 89).

Guiding Questions	Key Insight
What is a system?	"A set of interrelated and interacting parts that works together toward some common goal" (Smith & Ragan, 2005, p.24). "Characterized by the interactions of its components and the nonlinearity of those interactions" (Walonick, 1993, para. 1).
What is system theory?	“Provides a consistent framework for classifying and evaluating the world” (Walonick, 1993, Term Definition section, para. 20).
What is a systems approach?	“Provides a common method for the study of societal and organizational patterns; It offers a well-defined vocabulary to maximize communication across all disciplines; A consistent method of scholarly” (Walonick, 1993, Summary section, para 2).
Systemic approach vs. Systematic approach	Systemic approach involves addressing all elements that can potentially contribute or effect a particular situation Systematic approach involves adopting a specific plan, process, or model. For example the ADDIE in instructional design is considered systematic (Romiszowski, n.d.).

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References

Fang, B. (n.d.). Interview with Professor Alexander Romiszowski. [Class Handout]. IDE 632, Instructional Design and Development II, Spring 2014. Syracuse University.

Smith, P. L., & Ragan, T.J. (2005). Instructional design. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons

Tessmer, M., & Richey, R.C. (1997). The role of context in learning and instructional design. Educational Technology Research and development, 45(2),  85-115.

Walonick, D.S. (1993). General systems theory. [Class Handout]. IDE 632, Instructional Design and Development II, Spring 2014. Syracuse University.

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Images
(n.d.). Brain. Retrieved from http://ctl.byu.edu/sites/default/files/images/brain2.gif

(2013). Video. [Web Graphics]. Retrieved from http://www.textalibrarian.com/mobileref/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/Video.jpg

Opening Class Session - Good Start

Learning Community

The students in this course are very diverse and come from varied sociocultural backgrounds. I was please to see that there are some older students in this class. Many adult learners have a wealth of work/life experiences and prior knowledge which often enrich and deepens the learning experience in a traditional class setting (Knowles, 1973).

An end of the semester, a final project is due in this course. I am glad that the instructor offered students the option to work in pairs or as a group. Collaborative learning is a great way to promote deep engagement with the course content material and student-student interaction.

Trust and positive interdependence are two elements which the instructor hopes will develop between class members. To achieve the above goals, he encouraged students to work in groups, dialogue with each other on a consistent basis via email, BlackBoard, or blogging.

Technology Integration

In today's globalized world, digital acuity, awareness, and accessibility are essential for connecting with other individuals on both an intimate level (email) as well as on a large scale basis (social networks; blogging, and wiki construction). In this course, we will use Evernote as the cloud-based 2.0 platform for publicly sharing course content materials; posting completed hand-out materials from the assigned learning activities; and class PowerPoint presentations. Lastly, students are expected to post weekly reflections at their chosen blog site. Blogging is an excellent mechanism for promoting active/collaborative learning, authentic exchange of ideas, and ongoing peer-peer interactions (King & Cox, 2011). In this course, we are using Black Board for the course learning management system with functional features to email, construct internal blogs, and post modular summaries.

Course Content

• Two questions opened the learning activity in this week's class session: What is instructional design? and What is instructional development?
• Both questions led to students drawing upon their prior academic knowledge as well as their professional and personal experiences in order to articulate their understanding of the two concepts. 
• The instructor used a PowerPoint (PP) presentation to introduce new  conceptual information and ideas to students as well as to review key IDDE theoretical frameworks, such as the ADDIE and Dick and Carey models. PP is a great way to capture and hold students attention. The visual images in alignment with the brief bulleted talking points helps students to retain important course content. Lastly, all module course materials will be available for download via Evernote. 

Final Impression

Overall, IDE 632 seems like it is going to be a fun and engaging class. The required assignments build incrementally on one another; thus, minimizing the chance/risk for students to feel stressed and overwhelmed. The reading assignments seem very manageable, although slightly dry. The students in the course seem very welcoming and approach. I am looking forward to a great semester.

Check this out - What does an Instructional Designer do?

URL Address: http://youtu.be/f2q-SYS2Kbc

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References

King, K.P, & Cox, T.D. (2011). The professor's guide to taming technology. (Ed.). Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing, INC.

Knowles, M (1973). The adult learner: A neglected species. Houston, TX: Gulf Publishing Company.

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Images

Learning community.[Web Graphic]. Retrieved from http://www.phf.org/Picture%20Library/Grouplearningtogether.png


(2013, 05). Technology integration. [Web Graphic]. Retrieved from http://www.marcishepard.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/tech-integration-Blooms.jpg