Migrating existing multimedia courseware to Moodle

Open source course management systems offer increased flexibility for instructors and instructional designers. Communities can influence the development of these systems and on an individual basis, the possibility to modify the system software exists. Migrating existing courseware to these systems can therefore be beneficial, sometimes even required. We report here about our experience in migrating an existing courseware system consisting of multimedia content and interactive, integrated infrastructure functionality to an open source course management system called Moodle. We will assess the difficulties that we have encountered during this process and, discuss the importance of standards in this context, and we aim to provide other instructors or instructional designers with guidelines and assessment support for other migration projects

Instructional Designers Conducting Professional Learning Using Social Media: A Phenomenological Study of Their Experiences Through a Self-regulated Learning Lens

Because the instructional design and technology field is dynamic (Sharif & Cho, 2015; Wang et al., 2021), instructional designers need to pursue continuous, just-in-time professional learning (Carliner, 2018) to improve knowledge, skills, and abilities (Sharif & Cho, 2015; Ritzhaupt & Martin, 2015), without being constrained by location, budget, and time (Muljana et al., 2020; Muljana et al., 2021). On the one hand, the omnipresent social media technologies offer affordances for facilitating this type of professional learning. Such technologies allow instructional designers to reach out to colleagues, search for ready-to-implement strategies, and find relevant, timely information. On the other hand, conducting continuous learning requires proactive and strategic planning, in which self-regulated learning (SRL) plays a role. Unfortunately, not all working professionals are aware of the strategies to develop SRL skills. In addition, using social media may be perceived as a learning distraction. A call for an in-depth exploration of intersecting instructional designers’ continuous professional learning, social media, and SRL emerges to address such challenges. This qualitative study is aimed to explore instructional designers’ SRL experiences conducting professional learning using social media. Three research questions guide this study: (1) How were instructional designers’ SRL experiences conducting professional learning in a social media environment? (2) How did instructional designers support their SRL by using social media? (3) What challenges did instructional designers experience when conducting professional learning using social media? These questions are addressed through a phenomenological study that employs semi-structured interviews and thematic analysis using multiple coding approaches. The findings suggest that an application of SRL seems to occur while instructional designers use social media for professional learning (e.g., through determining the sources of motivation, setting proximal goals and strategic plans, seeking help, trying the strategies offered by colleagues, an adaptation of strategies, and open-minded attitudes during self-reflection activities). Additionally, there appears to be a gradual development of SRL skills while instructional designers interact in social media environments. They also encounter challenges, but some challenges can potentially be overcome by applying SRL strategies. Discussion and implications inform (a) instructional designers who pursue continuous professional development, (b) educational programs and instructors who educate prospective instructional designers regarding ways to promote relevant skills by scaffolding SRL skills and considering social media-supported learning, and (c) employers and those with supervisory roles who support employee’s just-in-time learning

Conversation as Inquiry: A conversation with instructional designers

Instructional designers regularly engage in a process of professional and personal transformation that has the potential to transform the culture of institutions through faculty-client relationships. Instructional designers promote new ideas and understandings in social contexts that include other designers and clients, among others. This research program attempts to understand this process, using narrative inquiry and instructional designers’ stories of practice to explore two interconnected theoretical frames. One frame is methodological and offers a case for narrative inquiry as an alternative approach to research in educational technology. The second frame is practice-based, and uses narrative inquiry to explore the themes of reflexivity, voice, strong subjectivity and power/authority through the stories of three instructional designers

Instructional Designers\u27 Perceptions of their Personal Background and Experiences in their Work

This study examined how the personal characteristics of instructional designers influenced their current instructional-design practice (ID). I first looked at the instructional designers’ perceptions of the relationship between their personal characteristics and their ID practice. I then looked at how these variables were used by the designers to influence their ID practice. The study was guided by the following questions: What specific personal characteristics instructional designers perceive as being an important influence on their ID practice? How do instructional designers use specific personal characteristics to influence their ID practice? How do instructional designers use specific personal characteristics to diversify their ID practice? Specific personal characteristics included personal attributes such as age, and experiences, including prior work experiences. Personal characteristics were informed by the literature, the pilot study, and personal experiences. This qualitative research study used interviews as the primary source for data collection. The theoretical framework was symbolic interactionism. A pilot study was used to test and fine-tune the research data-collection methods and analysis. A snowball sampling technique yielded 15 instructional designers working in a higher education setting in the United States. I included instructional designers who did not receive formal training in ID but who obtained the necessary skills to perform the job through experience. The data analysis followed the guidelines proposed by Miles and Huberman, Kvale and Brinkmann, Roulston, and Rubin and Rubin. Findings showed that instructional designers perceived that specific personal characteristics such as (a) gender, (b) age, (c) key people, (d) spirituality, (e) philosophy, (f) formative years, and experiences such as (a) education—student experiences in the classroom, and program preparation, and (b) work experiences—prior work experiences, and ID professional work experiences influenced their ID practice. These personal characteristics influenced the designers ID practice by adding a secondary perspective through their cultural and biological influences, and by directly informing their approach to process through educational and work experiences. Study results showed that specific personal characteristics and experience allow instructional designers to alter their current ID practice, thereby transforming a once-homogeneous process to a heterogeneous one

Transforming Higher Education: Agency and the Instructional Designer

In addition to the important role instructional designers play in the design and development of instructional products and programs, they also act in communities of practice as agents in changing the way traditional colleges and universities implement their missions. Through reflexive practice, interpersonal agency and critical practice designers are important participants in shaping interpersonal, institutional and societal agendas for change. This paper draws on the stories of instructional designers in higher education to highlight their interpretations of their own agency in each context. These designers tell a strong story of struggle and agency in higher education contexts, and it is a story that portrays designers as active, moral, political and influential in activating change. By viewing the stories of instructional designers through the macro lens of narrative, we can better illustrate the scope of agency and community that instructional designers practice each day

A Multiple Case Exploration Of Designers And Reflection In The Design Space

For decades, scholars have searched for ways to more effectively teach and practice instructional design. A variety of strategies have been employed to address the ambiguity in and challenges of the field. Much of the focus in the education of instructional designers has been on teaching students how best to use the many models developed for the field (Rowling, 1992). These efforts, while meant to help the new instructional designer succeed, have often been stifled by the ever-changing landscape of what instructional designers are asked to do in their roles after graduation (Kenny, Zhang, Schwier, & Campbell, 2005). Other research centers around the ways students can fuse their new instructional design knowledge with practical activities. While many scholars have begun to focus on alternative methods for preparing instructional designers and improving instructional design processes, instructional designers themselves have been neglected. We teach instructional designers about the profession before we have truly understood the professional. From a teaching standpoint, this approach contradicts the very foundation of instructional design education: that of recognizing that the learners/users are at the center of instructional design (Cennamo & Kalk, 2004). The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine instructional designers during design by engaging them in structured reflection as (a.) a way to better understand instructional designers in the design space and (b.) a technique for instructional designers to improve their design. Seven designers were asked to explore their thoughts, feelings, and experiences over six weeks while engaged in a design project. This study used various data collection methods including reflection journals, interviews, and surveys. The Self-Reflection Insight Scale (SRIS) and REFLECT rubric were utilized to measure reflection abilities, and grounded theory was employed to conceptualize the data (Strauss & Corbin, 1990), while concentrating on discovery and the development of theory (Charmaz, 1983). Results showed that each designer is unique; designers rely on distinctive designer precedents; designers perceive reflection to positively impact their design products; designers\u27 depth of reflection waxes and wanes; and designers reflect more deeply when provided with feedback

Investigating Instructional Designers\u27 Decisions Regarding The Use Of Multimedia Learning Principles in E-learning Course Design

This study employed a qualitative research design using the Decomposed Theory of Planned Behavior (DTPB) to investigate instructional designers\u27 use of multimedia learning principles (MLPs) in e-learning course design. While MLPs have been extensively studied in educational research and are largely associated with positive results, evidence suggests that instructional designers are not uniformly implementing these strategies when designing e-learning environments. The purpose of this study was twofold: (a) to understand better the alignment between instructional designers\u27 knowledge and demonstrated implementation of MLPs; and (b) to understand the factors that influence instructional designers\u27 intent and actual implementation of MLPs in their e-learning course design. Based on two interviews conducted with seven instructional designers and an analysis of representative work samples, this study produced seven findings. Participants were recruited using homogenous purposive sampling method from two small corporate organizations whose primary business is the development of e-learning environments. Overall, these findings suggest that, despite being exposed to MLPs and holding positive behavioral beliefs regarding the usefulness of them, instructional designers may hold negative beliefs and face constraining conditions that pose significant barriers to the utilization of MLPs in e-learning course design. Other findings regarding MLP use in design are discussed and future directions for practice, policy, and research are offered

Leadership Competencies for Instructional Designers: Identifying Critical Incidents Used to Lead Design Projects That Improve Performance

Even though an instructional designer may not have formal authority or direct reports, to be successful, they need leadership skills. Although the literature calls for instructional designers to possess several critical leadership skills, it does not consistently present the same important skills and often defines them very broadly. Further, authors who have argued that leadership skills are not taught to instructional designers in a sufficient way often call for more education on leadership competencies in graduate school, but the literature does not state where these skills are currently being learned and fostered. This qualitative research study used methods of grounded theory and the Critical Incident Technique (CIT) to identify leadership competencies instructional designers use to successfully lead design projects and to identify where they learn and practice these leadership competencies. In interviews, 25 instructional designers shared stories about successful and unsuccessful projects they led and where they felt they learned the skills needed to lead successful projects. After qualitative coding to determine common themes, the most frequently cited success behaviors are collaborating positively and communicating successfully with subject matter experts (SMEs) or stakeholders, continuous review with stakeholders or SMEs, completing a needs analysis, project management, and gaining support. Translating these success behaviors into leadership competencies resulted in four key leadership competencies necessary for instructional designers to lead successful projects: (1) positive collaboration and continuous review with SMEs and stakeholders, (2) completing a needs analysis, (3) project management, and (4) gaining support. These competencies match the research done previously on instructional design and leadership and align with leadership competencies identified by the Center for Creative Leadership. Instructional designers cited doing the work, having a helpful mentor or supervisor, or trying and failing as the most common places where they learned how to successfully lead design projects. This poses an opportunity for further research to be conducted on where these competencies can be taught to new instructional designers. Further research could also be done to define these competencies further or to do similar studies for specific industries or experience level of instructional designers

The Intersection of Job Satisfaction, Job Dissatisfaction, and Motivation of Instructional Designers in Online Higher Education: A Transcendental Phenomenological Study

Online education has become a significant part of the strategic growth and health of institutions of higher education (HEIs) today. Instructional designers support the strategic mission of the HEI, and while research to date has looked extensively at the role of the instructional designer in higher education, no research has looked at the experience of the instructional designer focusing specifically on the feelings and intersection of job satisfaction, dissatisfaction, and motivation. The purpose of this transcendental phenomenological study is to understand the experiences related to job satisfaction, dissatisfaction, and motivation for instructional designers working in online higher education. The theoretical framework for this study is Herzberg’s motivation-hygiene theory. The central research question is what experiences do instructional designers in online higher education associate with feelings of job satisfaction, dissatisfaction, and motivation? Participants were instructional designers working in online higher education, and data collection included interviews and screen-captured videos of instructional resources created by instructional designers. Data analysis followed the recommended format outlined for transcendental phenomenology. Findings indicated that job satisfaction, dissatisfaction, and motivation were related to their work, the relationships they developed, the institutional context, and their individual values and motivation. Although instructional designers generally expressed motivation to do quality work regardless of levels of satisfaction and dissatisfaction, they also expressed greater levels of organizational engagement with greater job satisfaction. This area would benefit from further research in the role and satisfaction of instructional designers considering current events related to the transition to online learning during the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as specific research in job satisfaction related to the organizational structure of the instructional design team

Instructional Designers\u27 Perceptions of the Practice of Instructional Design in a Post-Pandemic Workplace

This article explores instructional designers’ perceptions of changes to instructional design practice in a post-pandemic workplace. A thematic analysis of interviews conducted with 33 instructional designers revealed that instructional designers believe that the profession is profoundly altered post-pandemic. Findings around post-pandemic instructional design practice include adopting agile instructional design practices, increasing collaborations with others within a context of empathy, recognizing the importance of accessibility, and increasing reliance on technology to deliver both instruction and training within the context of an expanded portfolio of how instruction will be delivered in the future