Instructional Design vs Learning Design: What's the Difference?
Instructional design is the process of designing educational
software and learning materials to support effective teaching. It involves
considering a broad range of topics and questions, including content alignment,
cognitive psychology, user experience, device compatibility, and more.
Learning design is the idea of designing interactive experiences that help
users learn new things or discover interesting facts about a topic or topic
area. Learning designs can be used in different types of apps and programs and
often focus on how an app can support multiple learning styles and methods for
learners at different stages in their learning journey. These two terms are often
confused. When you see them used interchangeably you know there’s a problem
somewhere – usually because both terms have been used by designers to mean
slightly different things. This article will give you a clearer picture of what
these terms mean, where they overlap, and where they differ.
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Instructional Design
Instructional design is the process of designing educational
software and learning materials to support effective teaching. It involves
considering a broad range of topics and questions, including content alignment,
cognitive psychology, the user experience, device compatibility, and more.
Instructional design is a relatively new field, emerging in the early 2000s
from the rapidly expanding field of digital design. It is an interdisciplinary
field that draws from education, psychology, and computer science, among
others. Instructional designers must be experts in many different academic
disciplines, and have training and experience in all aspects of the educational
process, from content and pedagogy to assessment and technology.
Learning Design
Learning design is the process of creating interactive
experiences that help users learn new things or discover interesting facts
about a topic or topic area. This can be done in a number of ways, including
using quizzes, games, or simulations. When you think about educational apps,
you might imagine a learning experience that helps you learn how to drive, or
learn the basics of accounting. Learning design is a relatively new field,
emerging in the early 2000s from the rapidly expanding field of user experience
design. It is an interdisciplinary field that draws from psychology, cognitive
science, human-computer interaction, and more. Learning designers are experts
in many different academic disciplines, and must have training and experience
in all aspects of the educational process, from content and pedagogy to
assessment and technology.
What’s the difference?
Instructional design vs. learning design is a common
question that often leads to confusion. To help you understand the difference
between the two, we’ll take a look at each of these terms and their
differences. Instructional design: What’s the goal? In order for education to
be successful, it needs to have clear goals. Instructional designers set goals
for the educational process, from understanding the content to acquiring the
skills needed to better participate in society. Learning design: How users learn
It’s important to understand the different ways people learn so that you can
create an experience that best supports individuals’ learning styles. Different
people like different things, so you want to make sure you’re creating an
experience that helps users learn the new things that are most relevant to
their life.
Institutional Context
Institutional context refers to the politics, culture, and
norms of a particular context. In an educational context, this is about what
people expect from education and the values that people have when it comes to
learning. It includes issues like equity and inclusion, as well as questions
like what is the purpose of education and what are the goals of a particular
institution. An institutional context can also include questions like what
types of learners are present in a particular institution or community. For
example, in a school, you might want to consider whether the institution is
co-ed or single-gender. You might also consider the age range of the learners
and the location of the institution.
Content Acquisition and Co-Design
Co-design is the practice of working closely with end-users
to define and create the interactive experience. It’s one of the most important
parts of the educational process. Co-design refers to the process of engaging
with users as they explore and use your app. The goal here is to understand the
needs and problems that your end-users are experiencing, and then use that
feedback to build better products for the future. This process is also often
referred to as co-creation, a term that is gaining popularity because it is
more inclusive of all types of creators, from designers to content authors to
end-users. Co-creation describes a process where stakeholders from different
backgrounds collaborate to develop a product that serves the needs of all
involved parties.
Cognitive Bases of Learning
Cognitive bases of learning describe the underlying reasons
and principles behind why we learn and how we can use technology to best
support those reasons and principles. The four cognitive bases of learning are
i) attention, ii) memory, iii) thinking and problem-solving, and iv) emotional
engagement. They may also be referred to as attention, retrieval, association,
and integration. While there are many factors that can influence learning,
cognitive bases of learning are the underlying reasons behind why we want to
learn and what we want to achieve.
User experience (UX) design for learning apps
User experience design is how a product or service feels and
functions for end-users. In the educational context, it’s about understanding
the needs and problems that learners face, and then using that feedback to
build better products for the future. UX design is an important aspect of
instructional design because it is the design of the entire end-user
experience. UX design focuses on the entire end-user experience, including the
design of the user interface and the design of the process that leads up to and
includes a successful outcome. This includes all aspects of the experience
leading up to the desired outcome for the user and the interface where the
users interact with the app.
Tools of the trade in instructional design
Instructional design software is designed to help people
create and collaborate on instruction, and is often used in education. It can
also be used by non-educators as a guide or planning tool, as it is often an
open-source or web-based software solution. Some examples of popular tools used
in educational settings are: - Google Drive - Google Docs - Google Sheets -
Adobe Creative Cloud - Sketch - Omnigraffle - Microsoft Word - Microsoft
PowerPoint - Microsoft Excel
Conclusion
Instructional design and learning design are often used
interchangeably, but are actually two very different fields of design.
Instructional design is about creating the specific experiences that users have
when using an application, like the user interface and navigation, while
learning design is about creating the experience itself, including the design
of the application and the navigation. In order for an application to be
considered an instructional design, it must have a learning design as part of
it.