Learning Design

4.1. Some ideas about learning design

ARCs

Keller, developed a model of motivation called ARCS. He says that “….the ARCS model appears to provide useful assistance to designers and teachers…” (1987, p.1).  ARCS stands for Attention (both developing and sustaining it), Relevance (the way something is taught or its relevance for the student) and Confidence (achieving success).   To my knowledge this innovative design approach has not been widely used in New Zealand.

OTARA

A learning design option developed in New Zealand by Hunt & Moore (2005)  in New Zealand is OTARA— Objectives, Themes, Activities, Resources and Assessments. It’s a simple model that is scalable. Ed Tech attempted to use this as part of the CIA (Communicate, Integrate, Activate) approach but did not get any tutors picking up the idea. While it is simple and straightforward it does not follow any learning theories and it needs the addition of a column that identifies the core skills being taught too – it lacks the idea of scaffolding. It’s advantages are its simplicity and its scalability.

eLearning Guidelines

These have been developed by Massey University and are being updated for 2014. While they are not learning design principles they cover some ideas inherent in evaluating learning design.

Adapt

Collom, Dallas, Jong and Obexer (2002) describe a learning design model called adapt. Based on an analysis of existing practice they designed an approach, key to which is  the development of a common language. Adapt uses a 3 level grid that ( survival, consolidating and enhancing practice, exploring and experimenting) links to teaching ideas and suggestions under the headings of planning, design, development, delivery and continuous improvement.

Conversational Model

Laurillard  (2008, p. 1) says “A generic model for the use of technology in teaching practice is needed that is focused on the fundamentals of pedagogy, and an understanding of what it takes to learn. In effect, the model that is conceptualised around providing guidance for teachers in their analysis and facilitation of what it takes to learn, as well as support for planning, exemplars of learning designs, and advice on the use of the model for providing pedagogical-evaluative insight into a piece of learning design.”

She advocates the use of a Conversational Framework as a mid-way solution that brings together several learning theories in a project called Learning Design Support Environment (LDSE –www.ldse.org.uk).  The aim of this aspect of the larger LDSE “is aimed at enabling the teaching community to act rather like the research community (Laurillard 2008): to build on colleagues’ work, to discover new things for themselves, to share learning designs with the community, to collaborate, and, essentially, to problematise teaching.” (p. 4). The research looks at learning theories and measures how “current pedagogical design measure (s) up to the learning theory” (p.5).

Design principles, she says, enable generic support for the design process.  An example is the ‘seven principles for good practice in education’ (Chickering & Gamson, 1987; Nicol and MacFarlane-Dick; 2006 in Laurillard, 2008, p. 7):

1. Encourage contact between students and faculty;
2. Develop reciprocity and cooperation amongst students;
3. Encourage active learning;
4. Give prompt feedback;
5. Emphasise time on task;
6. Communicate high expectations;
7. Respect diverse talents and ways of learning.

The project uses learning design as a  ”pattern of design choices” (p.8) and using the Conversational Framework teachers and learners can see how they address these theories. The Conversational Framework aims to help teachers understand and implement the kinds of support students need to learn. There are iterative activities that teachers do and others that students are expected to do.

Table one. Adapted from (ibid, p 26). Contrasting pedagogical patterns and resulting outcomes

While this is a complex iterative model which would be time consuming to implement but provide good feedback and establish pedagogical patterns for us to adapt.