#omgimdone

Mastery: Personal Development and Leadership

This course not only set the ball rolling but more importantly, set the foundation for the months that followed. Reading and reflecting on Greene’s writings in Mastery as well as exploring Duckworth’s concept of Grit and Pausch’s Last Lecture allowed me to identify and articulate what I wanted to take from this program and how it will help shape my professional and personal growth as I make the shift from instructor to instructional designer.

Strategies for Learner Engagement

I am pretty sure this course was designed to be a trial by fire or at least that is how it seemed. I started this program with very little experience and/or knowledge of the Adobe Creative Suite or any other design software. However, this was not the case for long. I was amazed at how quickly I learned the tools and was able to deliver a product I was proud of. While striving to meet project requirements, I still found ways to add personality—not just my personality—but a personality for the soldiers showcased on the infographic. Instructional assets with personality are more interesting and therefore more engaging. Learners can connect with content—in this case, the soldiers’ stories—on a deeper, more authentic level.

Visual and Verbal Communication

The biggest takeaway from this course has to be the knowledge I gained regarding design elements and principles. Not only did I learn why things like balance, hierarchy, and unity are important, but I also picked up several tips and tricks that help text and images pop. Furthermore, I began developing a deeper understanding about cognitive load.

An equally important takeaway, contributing to my professional development as an instructional designer is understanding the art of giving and receiving feedback. Feedback is an essential part of the design process. It allows the creator to view his or her work through a fresh set of eyes. The goal of instructional design is learning. If someone sees something that may hinder learning, then I want to know. We should always strive to create instructional media assets that maximize learning outcomes.

Corporate Training and Motivational Development

Looking back on this course, one of the most important things I gained from this experience is an understanding the importance of delivering a quality presentation. Like everything in design, poor quality distracts from the intended message. The goal of instructional design is to help people learn. When learners are distracted, learning is compromised. This includes shoddy audio and inadequate lighting as well as poor presentation skills. The experience of evaluating and reflecting on examples of both good and bad presentations has sharpened my metacognitive practices. To this day, I catch myself making a faux pas in front of my students such as sticking my hand in my pocket while discussing critical content. I not only self-correct—but I also restate content in case my body language undermined my delivery.

Instructional Design and Evaluation

This course marks a turning point in my personal development as an instructional designer. This was the first course, during which I was able to acknowledge my confidence with graphic design and design tools. Developing and understanding of adult learning theories are critical to my professional development as an instructional designer. I think the biggest takeaway from this course is seeing the enormous complexity of instructional design and K-12 technology integration. This complexity is not surprising, though given the number of stakeholders in education such as state and federal governments in addition to corporations. Sadly, the most important stakeholders in education—student, parents, and teachers—are the ones drowning in all of the mess.

Digital Media and Learning Applications

The most significant contribution to my personal development were tough lessons on humility and perseverance. Another significant contribution to my personal development as an instructional designer was learning what I don’t see myself doing ten years down the road. I value the opportunity for having had the experience to learn what goes into creating web-based Java applications using jQuery and other stuff. At the same time, I value learning that this is not for me. Creating animated media assets using outdated and unsupported software was oftentimes frustrating. On the bright side, the frustration fueled my desire to explore other available options. I became excited when I learned about how easy it is to integrate animation using programs like Articulate and look forward to working with this program in the future.

Music and Audio for Instructional Design

I discovered I really enjoy creating and editing audio for instructional purposes. Of course, I enjoyed researching content. I also had a blast writing and editing script. I even liked searching through hundreds of files searching for the perfect audio clip or sound effect. Furthermore, I appreciate the opportunity to work alongside my knowledgeable and experienced peers. The feedback and expertise I received from my cohort regarding audio editing advice and additional resources proved to be of great value. Their insight and expertise helped grow skills and therefore my confidence.

Filmmaking Principles for Instructional Design

I have to admit to a guilty pleasure—ravenously binge watching cooking shows. Then I had the opportunity to create a video tutorial on how to make cornbread. I could see the final cut in my mind’s eye.  Picture an overhead shot of steamy hot golden goodness. I created a storyboard outlining scenes, timing, camera, lighting angles—the whole nine yards. Then it was time to shoot the video in my kitchen, which turns out to be the exact same width as the tripod base. Also, the tripod is a too short as well as too long to capture the overhead angles I originally wanted. The filmmaking project taught me adaptability. I had to adapt to my surroundings. To create an engaging video, I used several cameras to capture different angles, cut the clips together, and ultimately made a video a person could watch and learn from.

Game Strategies and Motivation

As an educator, who is an avid gamer, I really looked forward to this course. I have attempted to gamify my classrooms in the past, albeit unsuccessfully. Gamification is much more than XP, badges, and loot. Gamification, when applied properly, is an excellent motivational tool that doesn’t just actively engage learners—it can help learners develop a sense of flow. The game(s) I developed for this course support my beliefs as an educator. I want to fill the world with authentic, real-world, multidisciplinary project-based collaborative learning activities. Given today’s learner, these activities have to be fun, engaging, and easy to execute as well as available in multiple formats on multiple platforms in multiple languages.

Media Asset Creation Creating the media asset bundle to highlight the culmination of skills, knowledge, and experience gained throughout the program, was demanding. The opportunity, however, allowed me to better appreciate and value teamwork and collaboration—things I will look for in potential employers. The biggest takeaway from this course was writing the Training Needs Analysis. I found myself often referring to this document as I designed each asset, which helped me stay on track by focusing on the target learning goals. In addition, I approached the science coach, explained the project, and asked her what she needed for her classrooms. I found a subject matter expert, who provided content resources as well as suggestions and instructional strategy ideas.

2) How well were you able to utilize the concepts and techniques you learned from the program (theories, systems design, interface styling, and the creation of multimedia content) as you designed, developed, and implemented your Final Project?