Instructional Design can be summarized as the "scientific" or systematic approach to training. The process called Instructional Systems Design was adopted as a general system for the design of instruction to be performance focused. More recently, instructional design has become learner focused and seeks to plan learning that considers the fundamentals of instruction from the participant's perspective. Kemp et. al. (1998) list these fundamentals as Learners, Objectives, Methods and Evaluation (P.5).

The ten components are listed below:

Component 1: Introduction

The introduction section of your course is the learner's first exposure to your course. The purpose of the introduction section is to orient the learner as to what he or she can expect from the course, as well as what the course expects from the learner. There are five specific items that could be included in the course introduction:

1. Overall Goal/Learning Objective
2. Required Prior Knowledge
3. Motivation for Participation
4. Summary of Course Content
5. Closing Statement

These key elements give the learner a feel for the overall style, process and content of the course material. The introductory section also sets the tone for the rest of the course. Be sure to be concise, use clear wording, and hold the learner's attention.

Component 2: Syllabus

West, Farmer, & Wolff (1991) had said: " Being oriented or disoriented can determine whether learners will or will not respond to available information in a recommended way".

A syllabus provides organization for the learner. It is important to include what course elements will be grouped together as well as how the learner should proceed through the material. The syllabus provides the student with a map to the course and shows the progress through the material in a clear and logical manner.

Example:

Component 3: Learning Objectives

Course objectives serve to clearly communicate the purpose of the course to the user. Each objective could include the following:

• How the learner will demonstrate proficiency
• How proficiency will be measured
• What level of proficiency is required

The course objectives function differently for the author and the learner. The author utilizes objectives to organize course content. Clearly stated objectives assist the author in dividing up course materials into sections or units, indicating desired outcomes, and transitioning to new material. Objectives also provide the author with specific criteria for evaluating the learner's proficiency of the material. The learner uses objectives to clearly decipher what course material will be covered, as well as the criteria on evaluation of proficiency. Objectives also remind the student of the overall focus of the course.

Example:
When given a recipe, a student will compare unit costs and purchase the least expensive options to obtain all ingredients within the required budget.

Component 4: Course Structure

Course content should be broken down into manageable units. We can also call these overarching units modules. Modules contain lessons and pages. Good organization of content and clear labeling helps the learner to understand and absorb information presented in the course. Modules, lessons and pages are described in more detail below.

Modules:
Modules are learning units that contain several lessons. A module should contain no more than two hours of instructional content.

Lessons:
Lessons are smaller learning units within a module. Each lesson should contain around 30 minutes of material in order to be easily absorbed by the learner. Because it is estimated that a learner can read a page in one minute, lessons typically consist of no more than 30 pages.

Pages:
A page is the smallest unit of delivery, consisting of a single screen or frame of information. The layout of the page is important, and should not be confusing or overwhelm into the learner. Remember, people can only process 7 plus or minus 2 units of information at one time. This general guideline should be considered when determining the length of a page. Pages can contain text, headings, bullets or numbered lists, tables, graphics, and/or illustrations. Being concise can be helpful. (Leshin, C. B., Pollock, J., & Reigeluth, C. M, 1992)

Component 5: Course Strategy

When developing a content strategy it is important to carefully examine the content. The author of the course must clearly define what the learner will learn, how the information will be assessed, and how the information will be organized and presented. The Cognitive Model of Instructional Design incorporated three types of knowledge: declarative, procedural and contextual. Consider these three types of knowledge when defining your course strategy. Important aspects of these three types of knowledge are discussed below.

Declarative Knowledge:
If your course teaches "WHAT", then learners will be introduced to concepts, facts, lists, elements and new materials that links to what the learner already knows. It is best to begin with simpler information, and move to more complex material, adding detail and providing the learner with direct connections to prior knowledge.

Procedural Knowledge:
If your course teaches "HOW", then learners will be doing tasks, such as understanding and processing relationships between items and creating new connections. Illustrations, real-world examples and practice are good means of transmitting this type of knowledge to the learner.

Contextual Knowledge:
If your course teaches "WHEN" and "WHY", the learners will be changing attitudes, making evaluations, determining circumstances or developing new ways of organizing information. Scenarios, role-plays, metaphors and examples are predominant methods for communicating this type of knowledge.

Component 6: Testing

West, Farmer, & Wolff (1991) wrote: " Evaluation is the determination of the value of worth of something".
Testing serves the purpose of evaluating the learner's knowledge, as well as verifying that the course itself was effective. Likewise, testing aids in recall of information, indicating what content is important as well as applicability of this content to the "real world." Most importantly, successfully completing a course provides a learner with satisfaction of both their progress and the time they invested in the course was worthwhile.

When developing an assessment, it is important to include the following (Dick & Carey, 1996):

• Clear Directions
• Clearly Stated Items
• Appropriate Information to Solve the Problem
• Realistic Responses and Answer Choices
• Ample Time for Test Completion

The course author must determine a threshold score that indicates mastery of the information, as testing is aimed at assuring that the learner acquired the necessary information from the course. The author can choose this score based on a variety of ways. First, the threshold score could be established according to the estimated number of correct answers the ideal learner should obtain on the test. Second, the threshold score could be obtained using statistical probability. As learner guessing can skew this approach, it is important to include several equivalent test items to assure that the learner has mastered the material.

Component 7: Conferencing

Conferencing can bring a much-needed sense of belonging to your course. Conferencing provides a level of interaction between learners that can help stimulate the learner's motivation as well as provide a collegial atmosphere for sharing ideas and comparing experiences. Learning is significantly enhanced when the learner is able to hear how other learners successfully or unsuccessfully implemented their knowledge in real life situations.

Conferencing can be provided in a variety of modes. The basic communication tools, which you can make use of, include the chat room, the whiteboard, and the bulletin board etc. Choosing the best type of conferencing tool depends on the comfort level of your audience, as well as available hardware and software.

Component 8: Glossary

The glossary helps provide an additional level of confidence and comfort for the learner. Learners can utilize the glossary to become familiar with vocabulary, to refresh their memory of terms, as well as to provide a point of reference for repetition of a definition, which increases the ability for recall. In this way, the glossary is beneficial for all levels of mastery of the material. It is important to delineate clearly to the learner which terms will be found in the glossary (bolded terms, italicized terms, etc.) and how the definitions of these terms can be accessed (the word is click able, a glossary button on every page, etc.).

Component 9: References

West, Farmer, & Wolff (1991) had explained, "The amount of information available today is massive and complex, and stress human capacities in perception, discrimination, comprehension, recall and judgment".

A reference list provides an organized compilation of material to which the learner can refer to at a later date. Appropriate materials to include in a reference section consist of enrichment materials for additional information, resource/remediation materials for assistance with mastery, books, websites, and organizations that could provide related information, and the bibliographic materials utilized in the development of the course.

Component 10: Conclusion

Evaluation of the course is a critical conclusion to instructional design. Dick and Carey (1996) provide a list of guidelines to consider when evaluating the instructional design of a course:

1. Are motivational concerns addressed?
2. Is the appropriate/relevant content included?
3. Is the presentation sequence of the content correct?
4. Is all of the required information available to the student?
5. Do appropriate and ample practice exercises exist?
6. Is adequate feedback included for these exercises?
7. Are appropriate tests provided to assess student progress?
8. Are sufficient follow through activities provided?
9. Is the student presented with a clear path/navigational guide to move them through the course material and components?
10. Are aides to assist the student with memorization and facilitate transfer of learning provided?

Dick and Carey (1996) suggested that an answer of "NO" to any of the questions above should alert the course author that reviewing and revising the content in this area maybe needed, until the answer can become a "YES".

References:

Dick, W., & Carey, L. (1996). The Systematic Design of Instruction (4th Ed.). New York: Haper Collins College Publishers.

Leshin, C. B., Pollock, J., & Reigeluth, C. M. (1992). Instructional Design Strategies and Tactics. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Education Technology Publications.

West, C., Farmer, J., & Wolff, P. (1991). Instructional Design Implications From Cognitive Science. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Pretice Hall.

Kemp, J. E., Morrison, G. R., & Ross, S. M. (1998). Designing Effective Instruction (2nd Ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.