Instructional Design & Technology

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Embarking the World of Instructional Design & Technology

Filed under: Introduction — instructdsgnstudent at 8:22 pm on Sunday, November 7, 2010  Tagged
The Instructional Technology and Design (ID) blog has been designed to meet the core requirements of the EDU 6115 course at Walden University. Throughout the blog I will reflect on course requirements and provide occasional updates on my learning progress. I invite you to be a catalyst in my learning; please share your knowledge, thoughts and opinions via the comments section. I’m excited and nervous to embark on the world of blogging but I’ll dive in here and let a major chapter in my educational experience unfold.
 

 

Week 2 Assignment

Filed under: Week 2 — instructdsgnstudent at 5:46 pm on Sunday, November 14, 2010
The week two assignment is to locate at least two resources (Web sites and/or online journals) on this week’s topics: the brain and learning, information processing theory, and problem-solving methods during the learning process. Write a new blog entry that cites the websites and/or online journals, and comment on the value of these resources.
 
Source 1- website: http://www.edpsycinteractive.org/  I found two sources of information for the week 2 assignment. Surprisingly while searching the web I came upon a blog posted by a Walden Student in 2009 who recommended the website. This individuals blog can be found at http://idtdrum.wordpress.com/2009/11/15/resources-found-for-brain-learning-information-processing-theories-and-problem-solving-methods-during-the-learning-process/. I enjoyed seeing a blog posted by a peer from a year early as it demonstrates the usefulness of blogging in the ID field.
The first source I found at http://www.edpsycinteractive.org/ is particularly useful because it has a plethora of informational articles and points the learner to further reading by providing many references. I particularly enjoyed the information on “Becoming a Brilliant Star.” This article delves into the development of the brain and other societal factors that contribute to a child growing to becoming a Brilliant learner in every aspect and provides a holistic point of view.

 

Source 2 – Walden Library Article -Studies In History and Philosophy of Science Part A Volume 41, Issue 3, September 2010, Pages 237-246 Computation and cognitive science -doi:10.1016/j.shpsa.2010.07.012 

 For my secondary source “Computation vs. Information Processing: why their difference matters to cognitive science” I found to be useful to the field of ID because it looks at the difference between computation and information processing. Initially I considered computation and information processing as the same, but this article provides an alternate view point. The authors of this article Piccinini and Scarantino state “we distinguish information processing from computation and examine some of their mutual relations, shedding light on the role each can play in a theory of cognition. We recommend that theorists of cognition be explicit and careful in choosing notions of computation and information and connecting them together.” (2010, p237). This article moves the reader from making perceptions on the use of terminology and delves into the terms and their role in understanding cognition. Instructional Designers must have a solid understanding of cognition, computation, and information processing in order to facilitate meaningful instruction. The aforementioned article provides additional information that proves useful to IDers.

Thanks for reading and I hope that you explore each reference and find the information to be as interesting as I did. Please feel free to leave comments.

 

Week 1 Assignment Requirements

Filed under: Week 1 — instructdsgnstudent at 8:57 pm on Sunday, November 7, 2010  Tagged
Week 1 Assignment Requirement

Locate three Instructional Design (ID) blogs that provide ample stimulation to contribute thoughtful insights and critique the usefulness of each blog.

I located three blogs which provided refreshing points of view that are easily understood equally by novices and grandmasters of the Instructional Design and Technology (ID) field. Below is a description of each site/blog and a brief synopsis of the reasons each blog is beneficial to the ID field of study and meet the objectives of the EDU 6115 course requirements.

 

Cathy Moore’s blog located at http://blog.cathy-moore.com/ provides a plethora of information pertaining to the field of Instructional Design and Technology. The blog provides perspectives on topics such learning styles, narration ideas, and tips on designing action filled learning. Additionally, Cathy provides readers with instructional design ideas to promote innovation and creativity in the field of Instructional Design. I particularly appreciate the instructional design ideas as I am a newcomer to the field and realize that these tips will be utilized in my career. This blog also provides awareness of upcoming webinars and contains several links to other websites and blogs that are useful for ID professionals. This particular blog will allow me to make insightful contributions in the EDU 6115 course. This will be a blog that I will utilize now and in the future. Kudos to Cathy!

 
Christy Tucker’s blog located at http://christytucker.wordpress.com/ also contains a surplus of resources. Her blog introduces what Instructional Design and Technology is, how to enter the field, some of the skills and attributes successful ID professionals possess, and informational articles that pertain to the field. One blog keeps readers abreast of new technology in the field entitled “ First Impressions of TelePresence.” An additional post entitled “Google Wonder Wheel & Other Search Options” is an useful tidbit of information allowing web searches to excel to the next level – you don’t have to be in the field of ID to have this search option work for you. J Christy’s blog also allows readers to ask her questions about the field of ID. I will definitely utilize this option throughout this course and my career. Overall, I appreciate that Christy is on the cutting edge of technology and shares this knowledge with her readers. Kudos to Christy!
 
The third blog that I found and believe will be useful throughout the course is a collection of blogs offered by Langevin at http://www.langevin.com/blog/tag/instructional-design/. Although this not an individual blog I appreciated that there are hundred of blogs pertaining to ID that can be easily located under one site. I also like that the site is setup to allow RSS feeds based upon the specific topic of information that you are seeking. For instance the collection has RSS feeds for “Evaluation of Training“, “Consulting Skills for Trainers“, and “How Adults Learn” to name a few. Many of the blogs were insightful and provided practical based information along with some theoretical based knowledge. Since this one site provides a plethora of information that is organized and easy to decipher I feel that this collection of blogs will prove to be beneficial throughout my course of study with a significant amount of information to choose from. Kudos to Langevin!