Instructional design

Origins As a field, instructional design is historically and traditionally rooted in cognitive and behavioral psychology, though recently constructivism has influenced thinking in the field. This development coincided with a time when the behaviorist paradigm was prevalent in American psychology. There are also those who cite that, aside from behaviorist psychology, the origin of the concept could be traced back to systems engineering. While the impact of each of these fields is difficult to quantify, it is argued that the language and the "look and feel" of the early forms of instructional design and their progeny were derived from this engineering discipline. Specifically, they were linked to the training development model used by the U.S. military, which were based on systems approach and was explained as "the idea of viewing a problem or situation in its entirety with all its ramifications, with all its interior interactions, with all its exterior connections and with full cognizance of its place in its context." The role of systems engineering in the early development of instructional design was demonstrated during World War II when a considerable amount of training materials for the military were developed based on the principles of instruction, learning, and human behavior. Tests for assessing a learner's abilities were used to screen candidates for the training programs. After the success of military training, psychologists began to view training as a system and developed various analysis, design, and evaluation procedures. In 1946, Edgar Dale outlined a hierarchy of instructional methods, organized intuitively by their concreteness. The framework first migrated to the industrial sector to train workers before it finally found its way to the education field. 1950s (published in 1956) defined a cognitive domain in terms of six objectives. In 1954, B. F. Skinner suggested that effective instructional materials, called programmed instructional materials, should include small steps, frequent questions, and immediate feedback; and should allow self-pacing. The article describes how to write objectives including desired behavior, learning condition, and assessment. 1960s Robert Glaser introduced "criterion-referenced measures" in 1962. In contrast to norm-referenced tests in which an individual's performance is compared to group performance, a criterion-referenced test is designed to test an individual's behavior in relation to an objective standard. It can be used to assess the learners' entry level behavior, and to what extent learners have developed mastery through an instructional program. 1980s Although interest in instructional design continued to be strong in business and the military, there was little evolution of ID in schools or higher education. However, educators and researchers began to consider how the personal computer could be used in a learning environment or a learning space. Many of the first uses of computers in the classroom were for "drill and skill" exercises. There was a growing interest in how cognitive psychology could be applied to instructional design. The rise of the Internet introduced new tools for online learning, which were seen as effective for supporting learning. As both technology and constructivist theory evolved, classroom practices shifted—from basic drill-and-practice methods to more interactive, cognitively demanding activities. By the late 1990s and early 2000s, the term learning design entered the field of educational technology. It reflected the idea that designers and instructors should choose an appropriate blend of behaviorist and constructivist strategies for their online courses. However, the underlying concept of designing for learning is likely as old as teaching itself. One definition describes learning design as “the description of the teaching-learning process that takes place in a unit of learning (e.g., a course, a lesson, or any other structured learning event).” 2000–2010 In 2008, the Association for Educational Communications and Technology changed the definition of educational technology to "the study and ethical practice of facilitating learning and improving performance by creating, using, and managing appropriate technological processes and resources". 2010–2020 Academic degrees focused on integrating technology, internet, and human–computer interaction with education gained momentum with the introduction of Learning Design and Technology (LDT) majors. Universities such as Bowling Green State University, Pennsylvania State University, Purdue, San Diego State University, Stanford, Harvard University of Georgia, California State University, Fullerton, and Carnegie Mellon University have established undergraduate and graduate degrees in technology-centered methods of designing and delivering education. Informal learning became an area of growing importance in instructional design, particularly in the workplace. A 2014 study showed that formal training makes up only 4 percent of the 505 hours per year an average employee spends learning. It also found that the learning output of informal learning is equal to that of formal training. As a result of this and other research, more emphasis was placed on creating knowledge bases and other supports for self-directed learning. Timeline ==Models/Frameworks==