Learning design, simply put, is the design of a learning experience. The purpose may be to support a learning goal or to address an expressed or defined challenge or problem in the learning environment. At its core is a consideration of the actions that learners may take in order to learn, and design decisions are based on current knowledge about how people learn.
Effective learning design is the result of a productive collaboration between content experts, learners and learning practitioners. Learning designers are familiar with promising practices related to course and resource design and the technologies that support it, including the creative use of open educational practices.
Process and consultations
The context of your request will determine the process to a large extent. You may just want to talk about a challenge you are having in your course or learning environment. Or you may have an idea in mind to develop a new course, learning activity or learning resource.
What you can expect from a consultation:
- A conversation about your project, your learners and the goals or challenges you are working with.
- Identifying the problem or learning design challenge you are trying to address. This involves a discussion and decisions about focus and scope of the project.
- Determining a range of possible ways to address the learning design challenge – review examples where possible.
The design process extends to the following activities:
- Implementing a possible solution.
- Designing a feedback process.
- Iterating initial ideas/ implementation based on feedback.
Principles
Learning design consultations and projects are guided by a few principles.
Respect
The goal is to honor your intentions, expertise and experience and help you to achieve your goals by leveraging our resources.
Iteration
Small step development and frequent, early feedback helps ensure that the design supports the goals.
Collaboration
Clear roles, decision making principles, documentation and process flows support collaboration.
Efficiency and effectiveness
No project is perfect. Energy and resources can be focused to develop a usable resource as quickly as possible in order to learn from, build and revise over time.
Sustainability
Considerations include sustainability of the project over time.
Project examples
Learning resource design
- Digital Tattoo Project
- Process documentation: Anatomy of a Learning Design Project
- Learning Commons: Student Toolkits
- Process documentation: Just Do It: Confessions from a Student-Led Project
- DIY Media at UBC
- Process documentation: DIY Media Learning Community
- Teaching With WordPress
- Process documentation: TWP2015
- Open UBC
