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Blog Post #5: Principles of Instruction and Instructional Design

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On October 10, 2022

In edci337, edci337-blog, Interactive and Multimedia Learning

Hi everyone! This week we learned about Merrill’s first principles of instruction, instructional design, and lesson planning. I wanted to discuss Merrill’s principles and how I would use them. 

There is a scenario that immediately comes to mind where I have used Merrill’s principles of instruction. I am currently a visiting student at Athabasca University taking education courses, and for one class, I had to create a lesson plan and teach the lesson plan. The lesson was on globalization and how we can track where our T-shirts have been before arriving at our doorstep. 

Click here for more on Merrill’s Principles of Instruction and this infographic.

The learner and I engaged in solving this real-world problem about how globalization affects our everyday lives and how we wouldn’t have the things we do without globalization. The learners’ knowledge about importation and exportation was activated and served as a foundation for new knowledge about globalization (Greenwood, 2019). The learner and I then explored an interactive documentary, “Planet Money Makes a T-Shirt,” by National Public Radio (2013). The learner applied this knowledge to a quiz I had prepared for them (Greenwood, 2019). Throughout the documentary, I had the learner track every place the T-shirt visited before arriving at their doorstep by tracing lines between the locations on a map, thus integrating the new knowledge into the learners’ world (Greenwood, 2019). 

This is my instructional design example!

As Merrill (2002) suggested, more than only media and multimedia is needed to promote learning. It requires activation, demonstration, and application, which I used in the planned lesson. 

Lesson planning is an essential part of effective teaching. It is vital to create a lesson plan by considering your plan’s big ideas, learning outcomes, evidence of learning, assessment, and learning activities (Kurt, 2015). Considering these five items will help you create a lesson plan that is easy for you to follow and understand while teaching as it progresses. In addition, creating a plan will help ensure that your lesson includes the curriculum you intend to teach. Lesson planning also enables teachers to go back and review their lessons and consider what worked well, what didn’t work well, and what they would change for next time. 

I hope you enjoyed the read 🙂

Amelia

References

Greenwood, J. (2019, December 19). Merrill’s first principles of instruction. James Greenwood. Retrieved October 10, 2022, from https://www.james-greenwood.com/instructional-design/toolkit/merrill/ 

Kurt, S. “Instructional Design Models and Theories,” in Educational Technology, December 9, 2015. Retrieved from https://educationaltechnology.net/instructional-design-models-and-theories/Dr. Serhat Kurt, Instructional Design Models and Theories. Sept 28, 2022. 

Merrill, M. D. (2002). First Principles of Instruction. ETR&D, 50, 3. pp. 43-59.

National Public Radio. (2013). Planet money makes a T-shirt. NPR. Retrieved October 10, 2022, from https://apps.npr.org/tshirt/#/title 

A Final Word

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On June 23, 2022

In edci338, Social Media

As EDCI 338 wraps up, I would like to share the key points of what I have learned. 

Before this course, I did not know what a personal learning network was (PLN). Further, I only thought of social media as a way to communicate and stay in touch with close friends and family. However, as this course ends, I know that a PLN is an online community of people who can have meaningful, like-minded conversations and interactions. Further, I recognize that social media has many uses, such as interacting with people you would not have engaged with, various educational opportunities, and exposure to multiple viewpoints on issues in the world. Therefore, from this point on, I will hold myself to view social media as a networking tool that exposes my interests, history, curiosity, and place in the world. 

I would like to include my highlight reel of the favourite things I have learned over the last seven weeks, along with some of my best quotes. Here they are:

  1. “No references are needed to say that ever since the creation of social media, these online platforms provide a private and non-confrontational space for people to spread hatred and negative attitudes.”

I wrote this while discussing our digital identities and PLNs. We must remain digitally aware critical thinkers. What a person says on the internet represents that person. Inappropriate and passive statements can give others negative thoughts about the speaker.

  1. Visitor and Resident Maps

I enjoyed this activity that Jesse had us do. A visitor and resident map is an exercise we can all do to help us better understand how we use the internet. I thought it was exciting to see laid out on paper how I use online platforms and social media. It showed how I engage with others and what sort of PLN I have created for myself.

Here was my V&R map!
  1. Personal Learning Networks

Before this course, I never knew what a PLN was. A PLN is an online community of people who can have meaningful conversations and interactions. They are continually growing and everlasting. Your PLN, like what you post on social media and how you treat people online, will be there forever. 

  1. Social Media Inclusivity

Depending on the’ area’ of the Internet you are on, it could be inclusive, or it could not be inclusive (Arfini et al., 2019). I think of the Internet and social media as I think of different places in the world. You will see other things and have different experiences depending on where you want to go. To get to some niches (like the sketchy or illegal ones), you might have to cross some borders (do something to access these different places). There is a wide variety of what you can find online, and some areas are not inclusive. However, some amazingly constructed inclusive and diverse social media platforms are safe spaces for those to voice their opinions and share their stories. 

Here is more information on inclusion in the workplace.

In sum, post-course, I will continue to use my PLN to help with professional development. I plan on going into an education-related field. A solid PLN will provide me with unique ideas, support from other people in my area of work, and a platform to share my ideas, thoughts, and experiences with others who are in the same place as me. 

Further, I believe my PLN can be relied on for open professional opportunities. With the way social media and various online platforms function nowadays, finding information on almost anything, including professional opportunities, is effortless. 

I’m very excited to put the information and strategies I have learned throughout this course to work in my future endeavours!

Bye, everyone! It was a pleasure learning alongside you all.

Amelia 🙂

References

Arfini, S., Bertolotti, T., & Magnani, L. (2017;2019;). Online communities as virtual cognitive niches. Synthese (Dordrecht), 196(1), 377-397. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11229-017-1482-0

Peer Review – Misconceptions about Learners with Disabilities

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On June 15, 2022

In edci335, Learning Design

Hi there! 

This is a peer review of an interactive learning resource (ILR) about the misconceptions of learners with disabilities that a remarkable group worked hard to make. 

My overall impressions are that your document is clean, easy to follow, and intriguing. Your learning outcomes are very appropriate; they are aligned with one another. Further, your assessments and activities allow for your resource to be interactive, and this is a phenomenal subject to teach to students. 

Your group wrote, “The current classroom design operates within a linear fashion that only benefits students who can effectively follow it.” I wanted to say that this is a very impactful statement. There are too many teachers that confine students with this linear structure of instruction that your group described. According to Beauchamp and Parsons (2000), education should include children with disabilities in regular classrooms. This is known as inclusive education (Beachamp and Parsons, 2000). Inclusive education helps students and staff understand and appreciate all groups present in communities (Beachamp and Parsons, 2000). We all know that people are different, and instructors should understand that students are inherently different, and some students require accommodations to succeed. To be inclusive, different approaches need to be used for different students (Beachamp and Parsons, 2000). Everyone learns differently, and many learning theories and designs should be used to maximize the potential for student learning!

I also really enjoyed the learning topics your group has chosen. Your group’s learning topics had a lovely flow and built off of one another wonderfully. In my constructive suggestions, you will see that I suggested your group might want to consider switching around topics one and two to further improve the flow and impact of your topics. This will enhance the understanding that your students have a learning disability and the misconceptions about learners with disabilities.

I made a live feedback video for your group to watch. I must apologize; it is long. I didn’t realize I talked so slowly! I suggest adjusting the playback speed to 1.25 or 1.5. 

Again, I strongly suggest adjusting the playback speed to 1.25 or 1.5. 

Your resource is well-designed, thoughtful, attractive, professional, and user-friendly!

Here is a little summary of my constructive suggestions for the improvement of your resource

  1. Your group might want to consider expanding each lesson topic. What exactly will your group say to the students? How do you expect students to gain an understanding of your topic?
  2. Include a vocabulary list. This textbook-like resource would be straightforward to use and will serve to be very beneficial for your students.
  3. Double-check that your group’s statements are supported with references and citations. Under “Concept Analysis,” many statements were made that were not supported with evidence. To avoid plagiarism and ensure your resource is as valid and reliable as possible, it might be beneficial to include some more citations. 
  4. Include descriptions and rationales for the objective of your resource, what learning theory your group is utilizing, what is your learning design, what is the learning context, and what are your technology choices? Further, how is your group designing this resource to be inclusive, especially if you have learners with disabilities learning about learning disabilities!
  5. Your group might want to consider switching around topics one and two. It might be easier to start by explaining to students what a learning disability is and then diving into the background of misconceptions about learners with disabilities.

I also wanted to say your group did a phenomenal job going the extra mile and providing so many additional resources in your ILR. All these resources are places anyone can go to learn more about your topic.

If you want to learn more about education and inclusive education, I highly recommend “Teach from the Inside Out” by Larry Beauchamp and Jim Parsons. 

Thank you, and I hope this feedback was helpful! Great job!

Amelia 🙂

References

Beauchamp, L, & Parsons, J. (2000). Teaching From The Outside In. (3rd ed.) Edmonton AB: Duval House.

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