Past, Present, and Future Trends in Instructional Design and Technology
Past, Present, and Future Trends in Instructional Design and Technology
Sharon Mahabir
EDTC 6320
October 13, 2013
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Past, Present, and Future Trends in Instructional Design and Technology
Throughout history, educational psychologists and experts in the field
of education have sought to improve and develop the quality of learning
taking place in the classroom. As the methodologies used to instruct learners
have evolved, so has the field of Instructional Design and Technology.
Instructional Technologists continuously strive to meet the needs of the
“digital learners” of this generation. As Phillip Molebash (n.d.) so fittingly
described, the challenge of instructional technologists today is “to prepare
the children of today for a world that has yet to be created, for jobs yet to be
invented, and for technologies yet undreamed.” Technology continues to
grow exponentially and instructional technologists work effortlessly to
integrate these various instructional media into the classroom in a
meaningful and relevant way. Ten years ago, it would have seemed
farfetched to imagine sitting at a computer, videoconferencing with another
class thousands of miles away about the effects of global warming. Yet
instructional designers have worked hand-in-hand with educators to make
this sort of experience commonplace.
This research paper will address the evolution of Instructional Design
and Technology. As the field has changed throughout the course of history,
so has its definition. To define Instructional Design and Technology is to
examine its past, present, and future. As the extraordinary advances in both
instructional media and instructional design and theory over the last century
are analyzed, the profound impact this field has had in the realm of 2
Past, Present, and Future Trends in Instructional Design and Technology
education will become evident. The current trends in the field mark a clear
path for the future of Instructional Design and Technology in education. It is
apparent that the future remains bright for this ever-changing, ever-evolving
field of study.
The definition of Instructional Design and Technology has evolved over
the years and will continue to evolve as new theories are developed and new
technologies are discovered. Most currently, Reiser & Dempsey (2012) state
that the Association of Educational Communication and Technology, or AECT,
has defined the field as “the study and ethical practice of facilitating learning
and improving performance by creating, using, and managing appropriate
technological processes and resources.” This definition encompasses three
very important facets of the field. To begin with, according to this definition,
the instructor is viewed as a facilitator rather than a teacher. This shifts from
the traditional view of the teacher as the giver of knowledge. In this view,
students take a more active role in their learning and determining what they
will learn and how they will learn it. The definition also identifies the goal of
not just simply learning the material but also improving student
performance. This is also a shift away from traditional teaching in that it
expects that students will not simply obtain knowledge, but will be able to
apply that knowledge to new situations. Lastly, the definition addresses the
need of designers to create, use, and manage the appropriate technology
suited to the task. As such, instructional technologists must continue to keep 3
Past, Present, and Future Trends in Instructional Design and Technology
up with current trends and new technologies in order to continue to provide
the most relevant resources for students.
In 1933, Frederick Devereux wrote, “Today the world of the learner is
almost unbounded. He must acquire facts relating to a bewildering variety of
places and things…New subject matter and new devices for instruction are
being scrutinized for their potential contributions to the learning process”
(Mishra, Koehler, & Kereluik, 2009). The device that Devereux was referring
to was the “talking picture”, or motion pictures, as we know them today. As
one can perceive, even in 1933, technological advances and their
possibilities in education were creating a buzz of excitement in the field of
Instructional Design. This continued throughout the twentieth century and
into the twenty-first century. Although there remained an interest for
audiovisual technology in the early twentieth century, one of the most
influential technological advances came in the early 1970’s with the
introduction of the microcomputer. As Reiser (2001) points out, many
educators were drawn to this new invention because it was small enough to
be used on a desktop, could perform many of the functions of the larger
computers, and were cheaper in comparison to anything before it. School
districts saw the potential in this new technology and according to the U.S.
Congress’ Office of Technology Assessment in 1988, the percentage of
schools that had access to at least one computer rose from 18% in 1981 to
95% in 1987 (Aslan &Reigeluth, 2011). In addition, school districts began 4
Past, Present, and Future Trends in Instructional Design and Technology
offering professional development workshops to teachers in an effort to
teach them how to program the computers and use them within the
classroom. During this time, however, computer use in the classroom was
often limited to drill and practice and tutorial activities. Unfortunately, the
microcomputer did not have the impact that professionals in the field hoped
that it would. However, soon there would be a technological advance that
would change the face of education forever.
In 1993, the public was introduced to Mosaic, a web browser that
would provide instantaneous information to the world using the World Wide
Web. This proved to be an invaluable resource for schools, and as such, the
availability to such technology grew rapidly. In fact, by the year 2000, the
availability of microcomputers reached one in every five students. In
addition, schools having access to the Internet rose dramatically from 3% in
1994 to 94% in 2005 (Aslan & Reigeluth, 2011). More teachers began using
websites as instructional tools rather than just for drill and practice activities.
This made a dramatic turn in 2001 with the passing of the No Child Left
Behind (NCLB) initiative. Because of the growing demand for students to
meet certain norm-based standards on standardized tests, teachers moved
away from using computers as instructional resources to using them mainly
for assessment and data management. Despite this, educational leaders and
school districts continue to realize the value of technology in education, and
in recent years, there continues to be a push for teachers to return to the 5
Past, Present, and Future Trends in Instructional Design and Technology
use of technology integration within their instruction. As the World Wide Web
has developed, the world also has seen the invention of Web 2.0
technologies. With this, we ushered in an age of blogs, social media, and
interconnectivity with virtually anyone in the world. This is the world that
most students today were born into. This is the age of the “digital natives”.
Before there was the digital world, however, there was B.F. Skinner.
Skinner assisted with what became known as the “programmed instruction
movement”. In his article The Science of Learning and the Art of Teaching,
Skinner stated that instruction should be broken down into small steps,
teachers should question students frequently, and give instant feedback.
This movement is credited with the development of the systems approach in
education, which includes analyzing content and breaking it into specific
behavioral objectives. When Benjamin Bloom wrote The Taxonomy of
Educational Objectives in 1956, Bloom’s Taxonomy was created and
teachers were encouraged to develop objectives encompassing higher level
thinking skills. Today most educational objectives are written with the
thought of how students could remember, understand, apply, analyze,
evaluate, and create the knowledge to be acquired.
Another important theorist in the history of Instructional Design and
Technology is Robert Gagne. With his five conditions of learning and nine
events of instruction, Gagne revolutionized how educators would instruct
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Past, Present, and Future Trends in Instructional Design and Technology
students. This theory would also be adapted by Madeline Hunter in the mid-
1980’s, who developed the ITIP, or Instructional Theory Into Practice, a
lesson design template that would be used widely throughout school districts
across the United States. Gagne’s theory would prove to be beneficial to
educators who sought to incorporate instructional media into their lessons.
As recently as 2011, Gagne’s Nine Events of Instruction were used to plan an
online, multimedia learning module to be used with business students in
Malaysia. Combined with instructional media, the Nine Events of Instruction
were shown to be highly effective not only in student retention of knowledge,
but also in student motivation and volition (Neo, Neo & Leow, 2011).
However, perhaps the most influential theory in the field of
Instructional Design and Technology is that of constructivism. Constructivism
values problem solving and collaboration among peers, and views the
teacher’s role as a ‘facilitator’ of learning. Constructivism has been
developed and refined as a result of the contributions of four influential
theorists. Jean Piaget contributed his idea that people learn by building on
past experiences and learning. His idea that we must connect prior
knowledge is an essential component of constructivism. In addition, John
Dewey believed that education should be rooted in real and relevant
experiences, and that inquiry should be an important part of the learning
process. This again forms an essential building block of the constructivist
approach. Lev Vygotsky also played a part in forming the foundation of 7
Past, Present, and Future Trends in Instructional Design and Technology
constructivism by contributing his social aspect of learning. His belief in
collaboration among peers is evident in constructivism today. Finally,
Seymour Papert’s innovative use of computers and instructional media has
led to the extensive use of planning constructivist lessons using instructional
media appropriate to the task.
Constructivism enjoys widespread use today and is a foundation for
many school districts. Spring Branch ISD’s Five-Year-Initiative, coined T-2-4,
embraces constructivism as a way to prepare students to successfully
complete higher education. T-2-4 ambitiously sets the goal of doubling the
number of students completing a four-year, two-year, or technical degree by
2017. Teachers are encouraged to actively use the constructivist approach to
improve student performance and adequately prepare students to be
successful not only in tomorrow’s college setting, but in the ever-evolving
digital society as well.
As one examines the present day field of Instructional Design and
Technology, it is evident that this field has made profound and significant
advances in recent years. In regard to technological resources, the last
decade has seen the development of was to be coined “Web 2.0”. The term,
named by Dale Dougherty, Vice President at O’Reilly Media, refers to the
new age of collaborative digital media available online. These include blogs;
social networking sites, such as Facebook, Twitter, and Edmodo;
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Past, Present, and Future Trends in Instructional Design and Technology
videoconferencing capabilities; and online document sharing, such as
GoogleDocs and Photobucket. What used to seem like impossible tasks in
classroom instruction are now a reality. Students skype with classes across
the country as they investigate similar topics. When field trips are a financial
impossibility, students are able to videoconference with experts within the
field of their investigative topic. There continues to be a wide array of
possibilities for the design of instructional lessons that incorporate the latest
and best in digital technology.
With the ever-growing push to incorporate digital technology comes a
great need to provide teachers with professional development in this area.
Currently, few trainings are offered, and the ones that are offered often tend
to focus on simply learning how to use the technology rather than how to
implement its integration within the lesson design. As a result, teachers are
hesitant to utilize the resources available to them and, with the ever-growing
demands placed on teachers, many have little motivation to acquire
additional technology training. As reported by Aslan and Reigeluth (2011), on
average fifth graders spend only 24 minutes a week using computers and
eighth graders spend only 38 minutes a week. This statistic is quite shocking,
due to the fact that, as stated before, 95% of schools have Internet access
and there is a 1:5 ratio of computers to students. This indicates that much of
the technology available to schools is simply going unused.
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Past, Present, and Future Trends in Instructional Design and Technology
How then should Instructional Designers approach educating teachers
to successfully integrate technology into their classrooms? First, it needs to
be realized that each training will bring a multitude of individuals with
different levels of expertise and experience using technology. Therefore,
much as teachers would create a constructivist lesson involving exploration
and peer collaboration for their students, so must designers create
professional developments for their teachers. In addition, the trainings must
not only focus on learning how to use a given technology, but more
importantly, how to successfully implement it into the instructional day. Sam
Carlson (2002), Executive Director at World Links, also suggests that a
minimum of eighty hours of professional development are needed before a
successful integration of technology resources into the classroom can be
seen consistently. Furthermore, training should also be provided for school
administration as well. This training should not only incorporate the non-
educational uses of technology relevant to the administration, but also
instructional uses so as to allow principals and school leaders the opportunity
to fully comprehend and offer support to teachers as they integrate
technology in the classroom.
This then leads to the problem of many teachers’ lack of motivation
and volition to receive training and commit to utilizing it within the
instructional day. Carlson (2002) presents five suggestions for providing both
extrinsic and intrinsic motivation for teachers to attend such trainings. These 10
Past, Present, and Future Trends in Instructional Design and Technology
include: providing opportunities to receive a certification of technology that
correlates with salary increases, the opportunity to receive public
recognition, the willingness by school leaders to build the professional
development into the school day, providing the knowledge that utilizing the
information from the training will increase productivity in the classroom, and
finally, the opportunity for teachers to become trainers or experts in the
area. It is important for school leaders and instructional designers to take
into consideration teacher motivation when planning technology trainings.
Without the motivation to attend professional developments and the volition
to utilize what was learned within the classroom, it is unlikely that school
districts will see a large increase of technology use in the lesson design of its
teachers.
With the increased use of digital media and the Internet, another main
concern for today’s students and teachers alike is the issue of CyberEthics.
CyberEthics, a term used to describe ethical usage of the Internet and its
features, has been a very gray area for many. As more teachers have begun
incorporating digital technology into their classrooms, the issue of ethics in
educational technology has become more apparent. From copyright
infringement and plagiarism to the hacking of personal information, many
students, teachers, and even administrators are unsure of where the line of
ethics falls when dealing with the Internet. As Janna Baum (2005) reports, in
a poll conducted by Scholastic, Inc. of 47,235 elementary and middle school 11
Past, Present, and Future Trends in Instructional Design and Technology
students, 48% of them do not consider hacking to be a crime. Baum (2005)
also reports on a national study in The Chronicle of Higher Education in
which 25% of post-secondary students admit to copying and pasting text
from websites without appropriately citing the source. Furthermore, although
teachers would like to teach the issue of cyber ethics more in depth, many
teachers are unaware of how to approach this. In a recent study conducted
by Microsoft and the National Cyber Security Alliance regarding if and how
cyber ethics is taught, only 23% of the teachers surveyed discussed with
students the importance of passwords. In addition, only 34% of the teachers
discussed the importance of not sharing personal information, and only 33%
discussed the issue of respecting privacy. On the surface, it appears that
American teachers are simply not doing their jobs. However, upon further
examination, it was also reported that 76% of the teachers surveyed had
received less that thee hours of the proper training and 36% received no
training at all. This is an alarming statistic, considering the amount of
accessibility students have to digital media, both at school and at home.
How do school districts and educational leaders then ensure that cyber
ethics becomes as important to students as the media it protects? Baum
(2005) suggests a systematic approach to teaching students about the
importance of cyber ethics. This includes developing a cyber ethics
curriculum, teaching cyber ethics in the classroom, using the internet as a
tool to teach cyber ethics, creating an acceptable use policy, and having 12
Past, Present, and Future Trends in Instructional Design and Technology
students take a pledge to be responsible Internet users. Many districts have
already started this process, primarily as a result of the requirements of the
federal government’s E-rate funding program. In order to receive funding to
purchase new technological equipment, the Children’s Internet Protection
Act (CIPA) requires that a district provide training for students in regards to
appropriate online behavior, including the use of social networking websites
and the intolerance of cyber-bullying. As a result, school districts have
purchased cyber ethics curriculum, such as that provided by Common Sense
Media, and teachers are trained and expected to implement that curriculum
in the classroom. In addition, students and parents sign an acceptable use
policy agreeing to adhere by the policies for Internet usage set forth by the
school district. As instructional technology and digital media becomes more
commonplace in the classroom, this is definitely a step in the right direction.
Instructional Design and Technology continues to grow and change
each year, especially in the field of education. As more technologies are
discovered and more theories refined, Instructional Design and Technology
must change and adapt to fit the needs of the next generation. Many new
technologies are entering or will enter the classroom in the near future. The
digital world of Web 3.0, also known as the “semantic web”, holds exciting
possibilities for education. The ability to customize and personalize
applications to fit the needs of individual students opens up vast possibilities
for individualized instruction. As the Windows 8 hybrid, the laptop and tablet 13
Past, Present, and Future Trends in Instructional Design and Technology
in one, makes its debut this fall, it holds great potential for classrooms across
America.
Instructional Design and Technology is a rapidly growing field. As more
school districts begin to realize the value of employing such individuals, the
demand for this growing field will continue to increase. As schools move
toward utilizing online learning programs and more complex digital media,
Instructional Designers will be an integral and necessary part of every school
district. From designing relevant professional developments for teachers to
working alongside teachers to develop engaging and meaningful lessons for
students, Instructional Designers prove themselves daily to be an invaluable
resource to educators and administrators.
In conclusion, Instructional Design and Technology has grown
exponentially from the early twentieth century until now. Resources that
were once overhead projectors and instructional radios have become digital
networks and videoconferencing. The need for the Instructional Designer
continues to grow as well. As technology continues to permeate every aspect
of society, and as the education field continues to move toward refining the
development of the constructivist classroom, individuals skilled in designing
lessons that will facilitate learning and improve performance will be in an
ever-growing demand. With this demand will come the need for Instructional
Designers to focus on effectively training teachers to successfully integrate
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Past, Present, and Future Trends in Instructional Design and Technology
the new digital media into their lesson design. In addition, it will be essential
for teachers and school leaders to work together with Instructional Designers
to develop an effective cyber ethics curriculum in schools. As Web 3.0 takes
hold, and the potential for true individualized learning becomes a reality, the
field of Instructional Design and Technology will play a vital role in education
for many years to come.
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Carlson, S. (2002). The Missing Link in Educational Technology: Trained Teachers.
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Educational Broadcasting Corporation (2004). What is the history of constructivism,
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Spring Branch ISD (2012). Define Success. Retrieved from http://cms.springbranchisd.com/district/SearchResults/tabid/29460/Default.aspx?Search=T24
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