W1 Assignment

Exploring Addie

ADDIE is an Instructional Design Model that is utilized by hundreds of instructional designers in various settings, from those designing programs for K-12 curriculum, to instructional design for higher education courses, E-learning, and for professional development for educators, organizations and businesses. It serves as a framework or model to assure effectiveness of courses, class materials or training programs.

ADDIE  is an acronym that stands for Analyze, Design, Develop, Implement and Evaluate. Here is a quick overview of the ADDIE process:

First, you Analyze the needs of your students or audience.  You determine who your audience is and what it the learning goals for them are. During this phase you determine what existing knowledge your students or audience has for in learning. You must relate the new information to something your audience already understands or has reference for. For example, you cannot teach algebra if your audience has not yet mastered addition.  You must define what goals and objectives you wish to meet, look at what obstacles may come up, and determine the timeline for your project. You ask yourself such questions as, “What is the time frame you have to work within to be prepared to deliver this material?” “What is the planned budget for this project?”
The next phase of the ADDIE process is Design. Here you become more specific about the learning and instructional objectives you plan to meet. In this phase you look at what types of design, i.e. what graphics you want to use, what should be included in the content, what types of lessons, modules, etc. will be developed.  Are you designing for face-to-face teaching, E-learning, or a combination of both? What types of media and technology will be used? Does your design plan match the audience?

Next, is Development. In this phase you actually produce the materials. You also may need to search out additional resources to meet the goals and objectives for learning that you have set. Development of multimedia formats are also developed during this phase.

Next comes, the phase of the process where you Implement the course or training program you have produced.  Included in this phase is the necessary training programs and processes, as needed, for both for teachers and learners. This includes distribution of materials that may include books, training manuals, handouts, etc.

The final stage if the ADDIE model is Evaluation. A process for evaluating the effectiveness of the program or course is determined throughout each stage of ADDIE.. A method for assessing whether you met the instructional standards, goals and objectives is completed. You determine and implement the types of evaluation tools will give you the feedback necessary to make any revisions needed.

ADDIE holds the basic building blocks for instructional design. It gives the designer the opportunity to create learning opportunities that are student-centered, goal oriented and results that can be measured for effectiveness.  As Robert Branch (2011) of the University of Georgia explains, “Genuine student-centered learning is typically designed at both macro and micro levels to ensure that every component of the instruction is aligned in a way that facilitates a student’s progress from being teacher dependent to becoming teacher independent.”

My personal experience with ADDIE has been that it is a highly effective tool, a basic format from which to build a course, workshop, seminar or training program. I have utilized this model many times in creation of workshops for educators, parents, organizations, and businesses. This model I found particularly effective in developing professional development programs for educators.

One thing that I value highly is student-centered learning. I am a big fan of progressive education that puts the student in charge of his or her learning experience. I believe experiential components are essential in the development and design of educational programs, as well as making sure the methods of instruction are meaningful to students’ interests and lives. I have found it is also critically important to be certain to include a variety of teaching methods that utilize the means to reach diverse learning styles.

In many of my programs and workshops, beyond the basic steps of an Instructional Design System such as ADDIE, I utilize my personal design system that  I fondly call the Intuitive Design System. When I know and understand who my audience is or will be, I generally get a sense of how to design materials to reach them and meet the learning objectives that are set.  A combination of my personal style of Intuitive Design with the basic foundations of ADDIE, my extensive experience teaching different audiences in a variety of environments, with a focus on student-centered learning allow me to design programs that are very highly effective, empower learners and touch and change peoples’ lives. I will continue to integrate these systems to design exceptional products and educational programs for both my online and in person learning communities.

Branch, Robert (2011, March). Instructional Design, The Foundations of Instructional Technology, University of Georgia.http://projects.coe.uga.edu/ITFoundations/index.php?title=Instructional_Design

Instructional Design Model, College Station Texas. (2001, January 23). L:\htms\training\handouts\pf_files\addie.docdoc

Instructional Design Models & Theories. Instructional Design Central.http://www.instructionaldesigncentral.com/htm/IDC_instructionaldesignmodels.htm