Instructional Designer Goals

 Learning Theory in Instructional Design

Introduction

            As an elementary school teacher, I am familiar with designing and implementing instruction. While developing, I consider all my learners and their needs, drawing from various learning theories and frameworks. As I have progressed through the Instructional Design and Technologies program, I have learned many similarities between the role of a teacher and an instructional designer. Throughout this course, I explored a specific learning theory each week, applying its principles in designing and creating a project to increase learner retention, engagement, and learning effectiveness. These learning methodologies include Behaviorism and Gamification, Mayer’s Principles, and Self-Determination Theory. Regardless of the teacher or instructional designer role, thoughtful consideration of learning theories is essential for student success.

Module Synthesis: Practical Application of Learning Theory

Module 1: Gamified Learning Experience

            For this assignment, I created a gamified learning experience using behaviorism principles and integrated gamified elements in Google Forms for a company’s policies. Employee feedback stated that the original presentation was too tricky and not engaging—the assignment aimed to recreate the onboarding training material engagingly and interactively.

            The basis of behaviorism is understanding how behaviors are learned, reinforced, and associated with specific stimuli. In online learning, digital prompts or stimuli can trigger specific student responses. I leveraged behaviorist principles by creating an interactive, storytelling escape room experience. Learners were challenged to escape the Policy Room by answering questions correctly and unlocking doors. Immediate feedback was provided to learners using the branching feature in Google Forms, dictating whether the individual proceeded or needed to make another attempt based on their response.

This was my first experience using Google Forms, and the branching feature was initially challenging to incorporate. However, I wanted to utilize it for its progression and gamification functionality. Due to the branching, engagement increased, positive reinforcement increased learner motivation, and mastery of content occurred with the support of small, incremental steps. The effectiveness of behavioristic principles and the combination of gamification elements was evident with increased learner retention and participation.   

 

Module 2: Keller’s ARCS Model in Infographic Design

            For this module assignment, I designed an infographic about remote work for a company’s remote employees, ensuring Kellar’s ARCS Model as a framework. There is a webpage employees can access that guides remote workers; however, the HR department still receives numerous inquiries for support. The infographic intends to inform and motivate employees to practice the best remote work procedures.  

            Kellar’s ARCS Model utilizes four key elements to sustain learner motivation and engagement: Attention, Relevance, Confidence, and Satisfaction. While designing my infographic, I captured my learners’ attention by choosing a bright, vibrant color scheme, including bold headers, and organizing information sequentially. Next, I designed the infographic to be relevant to employees by including images of home offices and remote worker testimonies. Thirdly, the infographic builds confidence for workers by including a step-by-step guide on working remotely and establishing boundaries. Also, by including a list of resources for additional information. Lastly, this increased employee satisfaction by concluding the infographic with joining a community on Slack to share and learn tools to work remotely successfully.

            In a previous course, I designed an infographic detailing steps for using DaVinci Resolve. With that prior experience, I felt more confident designing another while considering Kellar’s ARCS Model elements. Visual design and details play a crucial role in engagement and information retention.  The ARCS Model aims to increase learner motivation throughout the educational process.

Module 3: Mayer’s Principles in Multimedia Learning

            In Module 3, I created a multimedia training module using Google Slides for a company’s workplace safety manual. I was expected to integrate Mayer’s Principles of Multimedia Learning to enhance engagement and learner retention. The module must be designed as a tool, incorporating different media elements rather than as a compliance requirement.

            Mayer’s 12 Principles of Multimedia Learning stems from cognitivism and that effective learning occurs when instructional materials align with the human cognitive system. Humans process information on two channels, one specifically for visual and another for auditory. Considering this, designing multimedia content with visual and auditory elements leads to more effective learning. When designing the training module, it was expected to apply at least five of Mayer’s principles. One of the principles I chose was the Signaling Principle, which emphasizes showing learners precisely what to pay attention to. I did this by bolding headings and/or specific words. Another principle I integrated was the Spatial Contiguity Principle, which states that humans learn best when relevant text and visuals are physically close together. I applied this principle to each slide, ensuring that visuals and text were spatially aligned.

            When designing multimedia content, especially for educational purposes, it is essential to create the presentation carefully to support learners. Careful consideration of visual and multimedia elements can lead to learner engagement, comprehension, and retention. Designing content that does not distract learners but interests them is essential.   

Module 4: Community of Inquiry (CoI) in Online Learning

            I was tasked with building an Online Learning Community within Slack in Module 4 for this assignment. The community aims to foster a sense of belonging among remote workers by designing a space that promotes sharing, reflection, and discussion. A Google Document would detail the Slack channel and how to enhance CoI’s social, cognitive, and emotional presence. I completed the alternative assignment by designing and moderating a Slack Learning Community. Instead of describing participation guidelines, role definitions, and engagement strategies, I implemented them in a Slack channel and moderated participation.

            Constructivism is the basis of the Communities of Inquiry framework, emphasizing the importance of interaction, collaboration, and connections in an online setting. My use of Slack was limited to communication, and I had no prior experience creating and moderating a channel. However, I decided to experiment with making a channel and developing an online community. I designed a kickoff activity to engage participants, including a personal initial post to encourage participation. Then, as the community members contributed, I observed and responded, fostering the social, cognitive, and emotional presence from a moderating approach. Intentional design was crucial in promoting encouragement and participation. 

Module 5: Sociocultural & Situated Learning in Team-Building

I designed a scenario-based digital activity for this module assignment that integrated principles from sociocultural learning theory and situated learning. This company decided to create an in-house marketing team, and six new members were hired. Each member comes from a diverse background with various experiences and areas of expertise. Within a Google Document, I designed a team-building activity for the newly hired employees, who all work remotely. The activity aimed to foster communication, trust, and common ground among the new hires.

This assignment was difficult for me to complete. The directions were unclear, and the provided example was too vague. However, my approach relied on sociocultural learning, emphasizing the importance of social interactions and cultural context for cognitive development. The newly formed marketing team’s goal was to create a pitch for an upcoming product collaboratively. The pitch was for a newly developed AI-powered tool that allows users to “test drive” careers through scenario-based learning and challenges. Within pairs and collectively, the team problem-solved the best approach to market the product and showcase its realistic capabilities. Inclusivity and cultural awareness were crucial in this activity, highlighting each member’s unique background and knowledge. Applying the principles of situated learning proved helpful, emphasizing the importance of learning that occurs in real-life scenarios. Also, learning outcomes are strengthened when real-life collaboration takes place.

Module 6: Self-Determination Theory, Transactional Distance Theory, and Generative AI in Cybersecurity Training

            Module 6’s assignment was a group project completed over a few weeks with two other members. We were tasked with creating a quick pitch for a self-paced eLearning module on workplace cybersecurity safety using Adobe Express. While not explicitly pointing out specific elements in the presentation, principles of Self-Determination and Transactional Distance Theories were integrated, as was the application of generative AI.

Aspects of Self-Determination Theory were integrated into the eLearning module pitch, suggesting learner autonomy, competence, and relatedness. This supports employee motivation and purpose, giving control to employees’ learning paths. AI-driven interactions reduce transactional distance and enhance dialogue and immediate feedback to learners. Generative AI elements were also applied to facilitate real-life cybersecurity scenarios and help learners analyze cybersecurity threats in real time. Immediate feedback was provided to ensure learners' understanding and confidence before progressing through the training, supporting autonomy.

Although my group and I only created the pitch and not the training module itself, it was crucial to remember what the eLearning training would be like. Allowing learner control over AI interactions would increase engagement and motivation. Integrating AI chat technology elements would reduce communication gaps, increasing remote workers' confidence. When carefully designed, AI can reduce transactional distance and enhance self-directed learning. 

Connecting the Dots: Integrating Learning Theories for Effective Learning Design

            The structure of this course is project-based, with weekly assignments designed and developed based on a specific learning theory. Although studying and applying learning theories in isolation is one approach, instructional designers must consider a variety of theories for each project they encounter.

            Behaviorism and gamification enhance engagement and motivation through reinforcement when approaching instructional design. Keller’s ARCS Model ensures learner motivation and relevance by capturing the learner’s attention with careful design choices. Mayer’s Multimedia Principles consider a learner’s cognitive load by carefully selecting visual and auditory design preferences. The Communities of Inquiry (CoI) framework fosters meaningful online engagement, communication, and presence. Sociocultural and Situated Learning Theory emphasizes authentic, real-life scenarios and skill development. Lastly, self-determination theory, Transactional Distance Theory, and AI-powered simulations enhance learner autonomy and accessibility for real-time feedback.

Conclusion: Connectivism and Networked Learning

            Connectivism emphasizes learning through growing networks, connections with colleagues, and digital tools. To continue expanding my knowledge and skills as an instructional designer, I will participate in online communities, professional groups, and specialized networks. Strategies to stay informed include attending webinars, conferences, or forums. Another would be participating in professional organizations, including the Association for Educational Communications and Technology or the eLearning Guild. Another strategy would be to join and/or participate in a Slack community specifically for instructional designers, a Reddit community for instructional design, and engage with LinkedIn groups. Lastly, I could continue practicing Working Out Loud (WOL) by regularly contributing to a professional blog, such as this, to encourage people to get involved and share their knowledge and experiences. This continuous networking approach will maintain relationships, hopefully lead to others, and remain informed on latest developments.