A rubric is a learning and assessment tool that articulates the expectations for assignments and performance tasks by listing criteria, and for each criteria, describing levels of quality from excellent to poor (Andrade, 2000; Arter & Chappuis, 2007; Stiggins, 2001). The clarity of rubrics is the most important characteristic for its comprehension and application.
Quality Matters (QM) is a continuous improvement model for assuring quality of online and hybrid/blended courses through a peer review process.
To meet Quality Matters expectations, a course must meet all the Essential Standards AND achieve a total overall score of 85 out of 100 points.
In Assessing the Online Learner (Palloff & Pratt, 2012), , the authors present effective assessment as not only an element of good course design, but a key component in student engagement.
In 2013, I took a position as training director of a crisis hotline. The majority of call agents worked remotely from locations all around the world. Even though the virtual training program was successful, the process could have benefited from an AAR during the train the trainer phase.
As an instructional designer and educator, understanding and using Bloom's revised taxonomy is crucial to creating significant learning experiences. An important part of the course design process is aligning the Bloom's levels with the topic.
Numerous articles, studies, and reports point to the remarkable growth of online education and the difficulty of justifying eLearning to faculty members.
Understanding the connection between formative and summative assessments, and the how formative assessments should help the learner do well on the summative assessment, is vital for an instructional designer.
Content chunking involves organizing information in “chunks” so that it’s easier for learners to digest. Instead of memorizing multiple concepts, online learners are able to analyze each concept thoroughly and absorb the content, one bite at a time. Once they’ve assimilated the content, they move onto the next concept.
Addressing generational differences in course design is an important, yet challenging task for instructional designers. In theory, design for younger learners is less complex than design for mixed-age adult learners. Much has been written comparing Baby Boomers to Millennials; however, today’s secondary schools are not filled with millennials. These students are from Generation Z (also known as post-millennials, iGeneration, Homeland generation).
My experience includes working as a nonprofit training and development specialist, training director, and as an instructional designer in higher education. Plus, I'm almost finished with my IDTE Master's program (3 classes to go!). Basically, I could be considered something between a novice to early intermediate designer. Here’s what I’ve learned so far.