Research Sheds Light on Personal Experience

Using the SAGE database, I stumbled upon the Advances in Developing Human Resources journal, published by the Academy of Human Resource Development. In this journal, I found two articles in particular that apply not only to the theories we’ve learned this week, but also to my profession as well.

1. “Design Considerations for Web-Based Learning Systems” by William W. Lee, Diana L. Owens, and Angela D. Benson.

Lee et al. begin their article with an overview of the history of instructional design. I found the section in which they outline the differences between objectivist and constructivist approaches. But what was even more helpful in the article is that they extended the compare and contrast to include the models of ID themselves. Lee, et al. The objectivist approach to ID is “sequential and linear” where as the constructivist approach is “nonlinear, and sometimes chaotic”; objectivists plan “top down” and constructivists plans are “organic” and “collaborative” (p. 407). This article helped me diagnose some of the struggles I’ve encountered in my workplace. While I find that I am a bit more constructivist, my boss is entirely objectivist. Honestly, this article shed light on all of our previous misunderstandings and disagreements!

2. “Alternative Training Models” by Charles Cowell et al.
While my teaching experience is all in the realm of high school English and Theatre, my professional work as an Instructional Designer is with the military. Cowell et al. use their article as a chance to explain what I have been learning the hard way: the ADDIE model is not universal. While rigid adherence to ADDIE is required for all of my work with the military, my experience in high school is significantly less structured. As Cowell et al. say, “the ADDIE model functions well in a highly structured and authoritarian setting” (p. 466). The article outlines a process called “Telling Ain’t Training” which differs from the ADDIE model in that the trainer (e.g., teacher) isn’t involved in the early stages of the ADDIE process, but is still required to “honor the tenants of systematic training” (p.470).

Though this article didn’t explicitly talk about the theories we’ve learned this week, the issues it addresses are certainly connected. As instructional designers we have to consider the various sides to many issues:
- The learner’s means of processing information;
- The instructional designer’s means of processing information;
- The issues the instructional designer faces when deciding how to present information for processing.


References:
Cowell, C., Hopkins, P.C., McWhorter, R., Jorden, & D.L. (2006). Alternative training models. Advances in Developing Human Resources, 460–475.

Lee, W.W., Owens, D. L., & Benson, A.D. (2002). Design considerations for web-based learning systems. Advances in Developing Human Resources, 405–423.