In the upcoming 8 weeks, I will be learning about instructional design and creating a project using the ADDIE model. Several years ago, I was assigned to be a SME for the creation of online art history classes for Post University. I was assigned an instructional designer who oversaw the project: setting deadlines, providing guidance in course content, and personal support throughout the process. Just a few weeks ago, I was again assigned to be an SME to update these online courses. Having worked with an instructional designer before, and again presently, I have a unique perspective on this instructional design class that I can draw from moving forward with my own design project.
This post is the first of a four-part series where I will catalog and reflect on the instructional design process. Cheng-Chang (Sam) Pan (2012) defines instructional design as being “rooted in systems theory, where the design of instruction is considered systemic and systematic” (p. 3). He goes further by explaining instructional design using the ADDIE model. However, Lou Russell (2015) argues that the ADDIE model is limiting in project management: that the approach is too simplified and sequential, without clear steps throughout the process to revise and altar previous steps. This leads me to believe that using the ADDIE model in instructional design needs to be more fluid and less restrictive to the sequential order of steps. Take a look at this video I found on the ADDIE model and how to use it for educational instructions. I like how the first image shows the ADDIE model as a circular, and not a linear, process:
Over the years, the once linear ADDIE model has been adapted to allow a more cyclical approach. Having the fluidity to re-trace previous steps, especially when risks are exposed, is essential for successful designs. In my past experience as an SME, there were no opportunities to go back to previous work, and there was not a final evaluation step. It is my theory that because we didn’t do these steps then, I now have to re-design these past projects to accommodate the exposed issues that have surfaced. Having learned the process of instructional design through my observations, I feel confident that I can successfully create an instructional design project using the ADDIE model while being fully aware of the need to have opportunities to reflect and revise throughout the entire process.
Hall, M. (2017, Sept. 22). Instructional design video: ADDIE model. [Video]. YouTube. Retrieved from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3CQ2NyosVvs
Pan, C.-C. (2012). A symbiosis between instructional systems design and project management. [article]. Canadian Journal of Learning and Technology, 38(1) 1-10.
Russell, L. (2015). Project management for trainers. Ed.: 2nd edition. Alexandria, VA:
Tracy Collamore PLE Project 