Category: Blog

The second phase of the hype cycle is where the hype actually comes in and that’s the Peak of Inflated Expectations. This is the phase where excitement and attention and novelty and the fear of missing out all work together to create this disconnect from reality. Skills instructional technologists and instructional designers can see this…

There are five stages to the Hype Cycle, the innovation trigger, the peak of inflated expectations, the trough of disillusionment, the slope of enlightenment, and the plateau of productivity. Today I wanted to continue our talk about the hype cycle with a bit of a discussion about the first stage. The Innovation Trigger. What is…

Today I wanted to share a quick introduction to The Hype Cycle which is an excellent way to explore and describe new innovations and predict their reception (among other traits). It’s also an excellent way to identify if a specific new technology is worth your time and how you should be interacting with it at…

While some of the educational theories and fundamentals of instructional design tend to endure, if not fade in and out of favor depending on your particular circle. The specific technologies tend to change at a faster rate. We’ve moved from Macromedia Flash to immersive VR experiences in a very short time. Heck, we’ve gone from…

I found myself having an interesting instructional design-related discussion today. The discussion surrounded on WHY we are instructional designers. Not the question of why is instructional design important or how we became instructional designers but rather what is the single best part of being an instructional designer? And it’s different for everyone. Some love the…

The first level of the Kirkpatrick model is often the one that is most often done but is also most often done wrong. This is the level most likely to be reduced to “smile sheets” or “vanity measurements” of did my participants “like me”. The reaction level of evaluation is the level where you can…

The second level of the Kirkpatrick model is assessing learning. And this is an area that instructional designers have significant control over and are typically skilled in. So in this video, I share a few ideas on how we can best mix up some of our assessments because no one wants to take a test.

Today as I struggle with the oppressive heat I wanted to talk about the third level of the Kirkpatrick model which is “Behavior” and this level of evaluation has to do with what our participants DO when they return back to work. So it is important for instructional designers to remember to ask what the…

The Kirkpatric model of assessment has four levels, reaction, learning, behavior, and results. Today I’m going to share a common misunderstanding regarding the Results Level. Essentially the results level of the model is asking the question “Do your efforts contribute to the results the organization is trying to achieve?” Not did you get the results…

One key component of eLearning that should be assessed before a project ever sees the light of day is the project’s accessibility compliance. In the United States if your project is touched by federal money chances are it’s covered by Section 508 which outlines accessibility requirements, and if not then there is a good chance…