1. The name of the event:
Designing
the Learner’s Journey (LinkedIn Learning course)
2. The
date and time of the event:
The
course was taken on November 14, 2023, and completed at 6:03 AM UTC (3:03 PM
Japan time).
3. Event
Description:
This course, taught by Dr. Michael
Allen (2023), CEO of Allen Interactions and noted figure in the e-learning
industry, looks at designing e-learning experiences that are focused on the
students’ affective states and their experience, and only focusing on content
when needed. It considers the importance of backwards design, focusing on what
an educator and/or trainer would like their students to be able to produce by
the end of a course or program, and using that to design the whole course with
varying modules accounting for students’ various levels of experience both in
learning and in life. It also introduces potential affective roadblocks to
learning to consider when designing a course and/or program. In addition, this
course touches on addressing characteristics that can influence learning.
4. Personal
Reaction:
Though the concept of backwards instructional design and some of its
benefits was not foreign to me, having been introduced to it in previous
courses related to instructional design, Dr. Michael Allen’s (2023) online
course highlighted several aspects that I hadn’t considered or applied to my
work before and in a manner which was easy to understand, which has made it
easier for me to take these concepts and apply them to my own professional
context, and find relation to my own interpretations of innovations in teaching
and learning (Parma, 2023c).
First, the need to move away from content first to
learners first, experience second, and content as needed was enlightening. Too
many times have instructors, including myself, been boggled down by including
as many resources as we could when designing lessons and courses. Focusing more
on the learners and their experience levels, and plugging in content as needed
during instructional design really puts the learners first, and has the added
benefit of reducing the time spent on content searches. This essentially
represents an innovation for me as it is both a new idea and a problem solution
to implement in my own practices as noted in my final definition for innovation
(Parma, 2023c) based on the course content.
Second, highlighting affective roadblocks to learning
was a great reminder of the potential challenges learners could have during the
learning experience. In particular, disinterest really caught my attention. On
several occasions I have assumed interest by the learners in the lessons and
courses I have taught based on the fact the learners were present in the class.
As Dr. Allen (2023) has indicated, interest is not a starting point for
learners, but something that must be earned through engagement. This relates to
the internal and external factors that can influence learning based on my own
definition of innovation (Parma, 2023c).
Third, having students map their learning journey was
an interesting addition that I hadn’t considered before. It provides students
with self-awareness regarding the experience levels and needs, and gives
insight into the students’ affective states and what knowledge or skills they
consider important, to consider when amending, expanding or redesigning courses
and programs.
The concepts presented have really made me reconsider
my approach in my present professional context, both in my face-to-face group
and virtual individual classroom environments, and I believe by employing some
of these strategies, the experience will be more engaging and enriching for my
learners and myself. These concepts also present themselves as a new
idea/problem solution (in the sense of improving on my teaching and learning)
that I hadn’t considered, helping further expand my own personal knowledge of
innovation in the educational field.
5. Tie-in
to Professional Context:
The concepts presented in Dr. Allen’s (2023) course have great
relevance to my own professional context. As a senior instructor for Westgate
Corporation in Japan, I am not only an English communication instructor at a
private high school, but I am also very involved with curricula and
instructional design. Employing some of the strategies from the course would
definitely be of benefit to my students and my work.
Beginning with a focus on the
learners, taking into account their age groups, interests, motivations and
needs through short questionnaires or mapping (Allen, 2023), their levels of
English proficiency available through previous evaluations and in-class
participation, the potential roadblocks, and outcomes expected, I can develop
curricula, and by extension individual lessons based on the curricula
developed, that are engaging, relevant and focused on my students’ English
learning journey. In addition, with the end goals in mind, it becomes easier to
breakdown the curricula into individual sections to be used as lessons. From
there, I would only need to fill in the specific content which is relevant to
support reaching the aforementioned goals. Also, incorporating feedback from my
students in regards to their learning experience would help in future
amendments, expansions or redesigning of the courses to be more flexible, and
considers the affective states of my students and accounts for their various
learning styles.
Furthermore, as an online
professional instructor on iTalki, I am completely responsible for what I
design and teach. Similar to my work for Westgate Corporation, with Dr. Allen’s
(2023) backward design method with the end outcomes in mind, I can tailor a
course that is specific to my individual students’ interests, motivations and
needs, and account for their proficiency levels and experience, making the
lessons relatable and relevant. With that said, having my students use mapping
to highlight their strengths and weaknesses, and prioritize the skills they
would like to develop, would be of great help in my efforts to deliver a great
learning experience.
Dr. Allen’s (2023) course has
great relevance to my present work, and I am sure I will apply some of the
concepts presented soon. Furthermore, I am confident these concepts will have
relevance in any future educational positions I take when engaged in
instructional design and implementation.
6. Artifacts
Produced:
Artifact #1: End Outcomes: 2nd Year English Communication Winter Term Form (Parma, 2023a)
.png)
Artifact #2: English
Communication Experience Map and Feedback (Parma, 2023b)
7. Recommendations:
The content covered in this course
would be of most benefit to anyone involved in any aspect of developing
e-learning courses and programs. The backwards design recommended by Dr.
Michael Allen (2023) focusing on the affective states of learners, and
accounting for the experience level of the learners would be incredibly helpful
for all individuals involved in e-learning lesson and curriculum planning to
develop engaging courses and programs that would be learner-centered, giving individual
learners a chance to learn at their own pace and in a manner most useful to them
with the various modules available, and focused on what are the expected
outcomes from learner. This would also have the added benefit of reducing time
in planning individual lessons and/or modules as learner outcomes would already
be established and content gathering would be more focused.
With that said, some aspects of
the course content can be expanded to be relevant for anyone involved in
teaching, mentoring and/or training. The backwards design advocated by Dr.
Allen (2023), having the end outcomes established from the get-go, and taking
into account student affective states and levels of experience, would
facilitate developing programs and curricula that are learner-centered,
considerate of affective roadblocks to learning, and help minimize
time-consuming content search and focus more on the actual learning experience
of the learners.
References
Allen,
M. (2023, November 14). Designing the Learner’s Journey. LinkedIn
Learning.
Use every learner’s time productively (linkedin.com)
Parma, S. (2023a, November 17). End Outcomes: 2nd Year English Communication Winter Term Form. Westgate Corporation Japan.
Parma, S. (2023b, November 21). English Communication Experience Map and Feedback. Westgate Corporation Japan.
Parma,
S. (2023c, November 22). Glossary and Reflection. Blog Spot.
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