The
iDEA Book
Educational research and practice examples for distinctive course design
About This Book
The iDesign Educational Assets (iDEA) Book is your one-stop resource for research-supported instructional design. It has been curated and organized by iDesign specifically to support faculty and instructional designers as they move through the course design process. Each page of the iDEA Book consists of a brief description of the featured design concept, downloadable Pro-Tips sheets, and hyperlinked materials, articles, and other relevant Web resources that iDesign has vetted and curated. Pro-Tips are indicated by a large blue download button. Hyperlinks are indicated with bold blue text. The iDEA Book is part of the iDesign Scholarship Not Swag campaign. We support educational research and its dissemination through useful open education resources (OER) because we believe it will have a lasting, positive effect on teaching and learning that far outweighs T-shirts, pens, candy, or toys traditionally given away by instructional design and educational technology companies. We hope to be an industry trendsetter in this regard and challenge other organizations to follow suit. Therefore, the iDEA Book is an open educational resource. All original materials are licensed as Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 4.0. You will find the license indicated in the footer of applicable downloadable materials. Citations and retrieval information are provided on curated materials. | The iDEA Book is an open educational resource developed and disseminated by iDesign. Materials inside the book created by iDesign are licensed as Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 4.0. |
About the Curators
The iDEA Book was created by the Learner Experience (LX) Design team at iDesign. The team contributed materials and tested the book as part of their ongoing work with subject matter experts, teachers, and faculty in K–12, higher education, and industry settings. We are proud to share this project with the rest of the world in the hopes of improving the course design process for educators everywhere. About iDesigniDesign partners with universities to build, grow, and support online and blended course and program offerings. We are passionate about serving faculty and designing engaging learner experiences that unlock the potential of instructional technology. For more information about iDesign and our services, visit the iDesign website. Become a ContributorThe iDEA Book is a living document filled with hyperlinks to other living documents and web-based resources. We know that over time hyperlinks will break and some resources will become outdated or overshadowed by others in the field. Therefore, we are asking for your assistance to keep the iDEA book fresh, current, and useful. See a typo, broken link, or other error? Alternatively, do you want to nominate a webpage or public web resource for the iDEA book? Submit your proposed improvement through this Google form to let us know about errors, broken links, or other high-quality, public resources. Thanks in advance for your assistance! |
Table of Contents
7 | Introductory modules and communication plans
8 | Course structure and module design
Instructional approaches
Instructional approaches are strategies for presenting information and facilitating learning. There are many different instructional approaches. Since certain instructional approaches align better with specific types of information than others, instructors will often use multiple approaches in a course. Download the Pro-Tips to review strategies for choosing the best instructional approaches.
Select the blue links below to learn more about specific instructional approaches.
Case-based learning Game-based learning
Connected learning Problem-based learning
Direct instruction Reflective learning
Learning objectives
Learning objectives or outcomes are statements that define the knowledge, skills, or attitudes that students should achieve through participation in a learning experience.
Well-written objectives capture observable, measurable behaviors that students are able to demonstrate after completing the activity or experience. Download the Pro-Tips to review strategies for writing learning objectives.
Learning taxonomies are classification systems that describe different types of learning. Their dependence on demonstrable action verbs makes them useful for writing learning objectives.
Select the blue links below to learn more about common learning taxonomies and access-related tools.
Miller’s pyramid of clinical competence
Alignment and mapping
Course alignment is typically demonstrated in a course map. Typically, a course map is a table that enables faculty and learning architects to lay out and arrange major elements of the course design without being forced to commit to a timeline or precise sequence. The tabular structure reinforces alignments across critical instructional elements such as learning objectives, materials, activities, and assessments. Download the Pro-Tips to learn how to show alignment through a course map.
Select the blue link below to access a course map sample.
Learning materials
In online and blended learning settings, textbooks, other readings, videos, and presentations are often used to convey key concepts. However, just as in traditional courses, online learners sometimes struggle to engage with learning materials. Download the Pro-Tips for strategies to facilitate active learning and promote student engagement when reading or viewing activities are essential.
Learning activities
Learning activities are actions, practices, or behaviors that facilitate learning. The nature of the learning activity will affect how students master content and processes. For this reason, the activities must align with course learning objectives. Learning activities also lead to the creation of learning artifacts (concrete, documentable evidence), which allow learning to be assessed. Download the Pro-Tips to review strategies for designing learning activities.
Select the blue links below to learn more about specific learning activities.
Crowdsourcing Educational gaming
Digital storytelling Reflecting
Learning assessments
Assessments are activities that enable students to make their learning visible so that it can be documented and feedback can be provided. Assessments complete the course design loop, providing evidence that students mastered learning objectives by engaging in the learning activities of the course. This section reviews best practices in learning assessment. Download the Pro-Tips to explore strategies for designing assessments for your course.
Select the blue links below to learn more about specific assessment approaches and instruments.
Introductory modules and communication plans
Successful communication in digital learning environments requires an intentional and balanced strategy. Introductory or orientation modules play a key role in that process by establishing the expectations and tone of the course. They usually include a welcome message from the instructor, access to the syllabus and other course documents, and orientation materials for any technical requirements or course mechanics. They also provide an opportunity to begin building a learning community that will support student engagement and knowledge construction in your course.
Select the blue links below to learn more about introductions, announcements, and other forms of communication.
Course structure and module design
If a course tells a story, then each module comprises a chapter in the narrative. As in stories, modules have a loosely repetitive structure that students can anticipate and depend upon, so they can focus their attention on mastering the learning objectives of the course. Select the blue links below to learn more about course structure and module design.
