Week 1: Defining the Field

As I began reading the first chapter of Trends and Issues in Instructional Design and Technology, I realized that my definition of this field was closest to the early definitions described by Reiser that focused on instructional media--the physical presentation of instruction (Reiser & Dempsey, 2012). I thought of my own view as being current because I imagined using the newest media available in creating lessons. I envisioned experts in this field designing flashy presentations incorporating beautiful graphics and video clips that would hold the attention of visual learners. This view has been influenced by my experience as a teacher in public schools, where I have often felt that I did not have access to the latest and greatest technology media. My focus was on things I could use to improve my lessons, rather than processes or methods of designing instruction. For example, I thought my first classroom projector would really change how I  carried out my lessons, but at first I only used it for displaying the daily objectives and agendas. It was just a tool that helped me better organize and prepare for the different subjects I taught that year, but did not really change the method of instruction. I now depend on a projector for many other applications, but I still did not think of many aspects mentioned in more recent definitions as part of this field. After studying the evolving definitions in this chapter, I was inspired to learn that IDT involves so much more than using the latest technological gadgets to present instruction. In the past several years, I have become very interested in brain research and how people learn, and the newer definitions that are based on improving learning reinforce what I have come to know from reading about this topic and from observing what works best with students. I especially like that the 2008 definition mentions "facilitating learning" because I think that reaches the core of better instruction that is student centered, and therefore more meaningful to students.

In a recent lesson for my World Geography students, the main goal was for them to learn about the history of Baltimore and Washington, D.C., in preparation for a theoretical trip to the area. They started with a series of online scavenger hunts to learn facts relating to the beginnings of the U.S. government and the location of the capital. Then they divided into groups, and each group was given a different set of research instructions including specific questions to answer and places to locate on maps. They were to present their findings to the class in a PowerPoint presentation. (I had hoped to have them use Google Earth to pinpoint locations and create a virtual trip through the areas they researched, but the lack of sufficient bandwidth and time constraints prevented that.) The lesson qualified as student centered because the students conducted hands-on activities. It was goal oriented in that specific objectives were stated and students knew from the rubric what was expected. The required research was intended to lead students to make connections and reach conclusions about reasons for things like the selection of the site of the capital city, and for various other historical decisions relating to the area, but I realized many of the questions allowed for a short, narrow answer. I would reword them to encourage deeper investigation for a more meaningful performance. The lesson did meet the need for a reliable and measurable outcome, since students had clear objectives graded with a rubric. I think it could be improved in the category of data analysis, as the students did not really have much guidance and feedback. (Though, a few students questioned why some of their answers were wrong after they used unreliable Internet sources instead of the suggested websites.) Finally, the project met the instructional design criteria of a team effort since it was carried out in groups.

In Chapter 3, Reiser excludes teachers, chalkboards, and textbooks from his definition of instructional media in order to focus on other types of media in describing the history of media. Though he states that teachers, chalkboards, and textbooks have been the primary means of instruction since before the twentieth century, I would never have considered them as instructional media, and I doubt that most people today would think of media as including these three methods of delivering lessons. It makes sense that he would focus on media other than those three when describing the history of instructional media. Though instructional design does incorporate media into the instruction, its greater purpose is to analyze and solve instructional problems. Reiser mentions that with each new medium of the twentieth century came the hope that it would revolutionize instructional practices in schools. The reality in most of these cases, though, was that the media had little lasting effect on teaching practices in part because of teacher resistance and the cost of purchasing and maintaining the media (Reiser & Dempsey, 2012). The twenty-first century development of e-learning seems to bring a more promising and potentially lasting change, as we are witnessing as students participating in online learning.

Reiser, R. A. & Dempsey, J. V. (2012). Trends and issues in instructional design and technology, 3rd ed. Boston: Pearson.