Instructional model employed by educationist is instrumental in defining the ability of the learner to grasp a given concepts. In curriculum development, educationists often consider psychological factors and how they affect learning. Today, no one can deny that instructional design has changed incorporating the use of technology. A bid to understand the concept of instructional design technology would expose the learner to various definitions of the concept. In each of these definitions, critics tend to tend to marry the use of technology e.g. computer, projectors, and radio to aid the teachers instructions. The instructional design technology encompasses a complex process of teaching and learning in environment that incorporates the use of technology.
The integration of learning theories and the application of technology has attracted scholarly research on the field of instructional psychology and education. Aspects such as learner participation or concentration have played a considerable role in designing the instructional model. Some authors seem to point of the fact that as the classroom grew larger, the instructor experienced the challenge of effective imparting skills to the large classrooms (Hew, Kale, & Kim 269). The consequent of the challenge created the need for research in instructional psychology and technology.
I learned that studies on behavioral influences seem to set the precedence for the integration of technology in education. The concept of individual psychological differences and the need to manipulate the students into learning a given concept led instructor to employ other instructional methods alongside the common ones in order to influence learners to grasp the concept. For example, the use of graphic technology or computers in a classroom setting enables borders on the use of observation learning. Educational theorists and psychologists contend that learners tend to remember what they saw as opposed to what they heard. This psychological aspect is significant in developing instructional model for the learners.
Scholarship on instructional design seems to support the use of technology in learning. A number of authors suggest that aspects of cognitive psychology influencing learners were central to the instructional design (Kulik 21). For example, the work of renowned scholar Joseph Scandura focused his study on the rule acquisition and the knowledgebase structure. In his view, the instructional model should influence the learner into grasping concepts intended by the instructor. Today, the instructional design that incorporates the use of technology seems to borrow a number of aspects from the Scandura’s work.
Education theorists contend instructional technology should be relevant to the learners. Further, instructional design should go beyond retrieval of information to problem solving. In essence, it should enhance instructional and learning aspects that are not possible without the application of technology, it should enable the learner to exhibit the ability to process ideas deeply, and it should improve the learner’s interaction with the subject matter, promote the enthusiasm of learning or teaching, and enable quality classroom interaction. Various scholars pointing on the need to instructional design technology in schools contend that it does not only improve the learner’s capability to grasp difficult concept, but also encourage the learners to engage in a subject matter (Hew, Kale, & Kim 271). Psychologically, learning depends on cognitive factors influencing human senses. In a class setting for example, some students would grasp concept fast whereas others would require aided instructions to learn the same concept.
In developing a lesson plan, understanding the impacts of the instructional design contributes to the effectiveness of the lesson plan. For example, a factor such as the effectiveness of the intended technology to a given grade of learners should override other factors. Largely, when an instructor employs the right instructional design, students or learners tend to benefit from such a choice. As pointed out by instructional design theorists, many students tend to demonstrate positive outcomes when the instructional methods suites their environmental needs. Studies investigating this concept provide supportive evidence on the need to integrate technology in the present day learning and teaching methods. For example, available evidence shows that the growth of use of computers in school began increasing in 1980s. The shift in instructional model suggests that instructional models which encourage the use of technology lead to improved learning outcomes.
An instructor intending to integrate technology in his instructional plan cannot not avoid considerations which border on effective instructional practice. The while the technology involve the use of tools to deliver a specific content to students, it focus must meet the curriculum and learning requirement. Successful integration of technology should acknowledge the ongoing social environmental changes that affect the ability of the learners. Research on instructional psychology tends to focus on theories related to instructional improvement whereas educational psychology focuses on aspects of human development including learning, motivation and education (Hirsch 23). Thus, the development of instructional design must relate to the educational needs of the students.
The instructional designed for students with special needs tend to apply psychological criticism about human development and instructional psychology. The human development psychology helps in identification needs of learners in various sociological environments whereas instructional psychology helps in designing effective instructions for the learners. As stated by Bandura in his theory of learning, learners tend to grasp concept when they see what they learn (Hirsch 570). I learned that the difference between instructional technologist and instructional designers is that the former use technology when teaching whereas the later is develops technological instruction for learning purposes.
There are various reasons behind the inclusion of instructional design in the curriculum. Arguably, the assumption that all students are the same seems to limit the use of instructional design. Largely, the curriculum developed for students with special concerns tend to embrace the use of the instructional designed as opposed to students categorized as normal. A review of educational curriculum for various groups of students shows that instructional design is effective when dealing with people with special needs (Kulik 20). Further, some studies shows that children with physical impairment tend to utilize the most active sense in learning. For example, a person with hearing difficulties will grasp visual concepts fast as opposed to the non impaired students. Arguably, criticism by curriculum developers bordering on this fact could limit the use of instructional design in teaching students with normal conditions.
In conclusion, the advent of instructional designed has contributed to change in the instructional model used for teaching purposes. The use of technology is intended to improve the learning conditions that are not possible without the aid of the technology. Further, aspects such as psychological development of the learner play a vital role in defining the choice of technology employed by the instructors. In situations where the learners exhibit special concerns, the instructional design would bend towards meeting this need. In essence, the relevance of instructional design technology borders on the human developmental needs as well as environment factors affecting the learning process.
References
Hew, K. F., Kale, U. & Kim, N. Past research in instructional technology: Results of a
content analysis of empirical studies published in three prominent instructional technology journals from the year 2000 through 2004. Journal of Educational Computing Research. 2007. 36(3), 269-300.
Hirsch, J. E. An index to quantify an individual’s scientific research output. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 2005. 102(46), 16569-16572. Available on 23 Jan, 2014 from http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?tool=pubmed&pubmedid=16275915
Kulik, A. James. Effects of Using Instructional Technology in Elementary and Secondary Schools: What Controlled Evaluation Studies Say. 2003. Available on 23 Jan, 2014 from http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?rep=rep1&type=pdf&doi=10.1.1.207.3105
