Well, not actually so much a habit but rather a way of thinking about designing instruction. This week has been a challenge for Julie and I developing our Constructivist lesson for class this Saturday. Throughout the program at Penn State we spend a lot of time on the Dick and Carey model and breaking down it’s parts. Even though I’m a relatively novice instructional designer, this model has become somewhat second nature to me and guides my thinking about design. I personally prefer a lot of structure and that’s why I believe I respect the model the way I do. Although I recognize that we sometimes have to adapt the model to our specific learning situation, having a system that provides a framework and logical progression of designing learning works well for me. It’s been a challenge designing a lesson this week without providing too much direction to the learner. I find it difficult to give up control and instead guide the learner to discover what they need to know on their own.
- How are we sure the learners will come to the right conclusion and learn the information we’ve determined they need to know?
- How do we decide when the learners are going off track?
- Who defines the right track – the learner or the ID that’s completed needs assessments to determine what the learner needs to know?
I have a lot of questions and look forward to experiencing Constructivism first hand tomorrow during our lesson. Perhaps the answers will become clearer. Stay tuned.
