Over the past three and a half years, I have been working through the Master’s of Distance Education program. The program has prepared me in many ways to take on the duties of a College instructor. However, in many ways, I have sometimes felt a bit disappointed by the inability to apply some of what I have learned in the MDDE program to the actual practice of teaching adult learners at the College I work for. This is particularly true for instructional design skills.

Instructional Design

I have gained skills in instructional design thanks to the MDDE program, and applied these skills to the development of three literacy courses, two in English, and one in Computers. I have developed a template for course proposals for the BC English articulation committee which was approved and adopted. I have contributed over the past few years to reviewing and revising course materials for Northwest Community College. The application of systems design theory has really helped me to define and analyze problems and challenges faced while working as a field instructor in a First Nations community.

I have realized that proposing changes to the structure of current courses is a challenge. I have faced even more challenges when I tried to apply instructional design theory to the development of new courses. In both of these cases, I needed to develop and revise courses according to stringent, articulated outcomes. One important skill not addressed sufficiently (I believe) in the MDDE603 or 604 courses was the ability to revise course outlines and develop new courses according to articulated outcomes. In addition, I would suggest that a discussion activity within 603 or 604 be created to give examples in which students practice matching competencies to learning activities. Given its crucial importance for the portfolio, more practice should be provided. This skill of matching outcomes to instructional strategies and activities is absolutely critical for instructional designers seeking to successfully develop new courses to meet articulated outcomes. I had certainly needed to demonstrate this skill to successfully convince the provincial articulation committee to adopt the ENGL053 course.