Yes, a balance is necessary. In my mobile learning class, we discussed how can we use mobile devices to increase engagement, yet keep them focused on how to leverage technology well for academic purposes.

I agree with the Constructivists in allowing individual flexibility, but there also has to be structure, discipline, and an overall plan or process to evaluate learning and ensure that learners are achieving the desired outcomes.

It's important to always retain purpose with learning.

• What is the goal?
• What skills should we have that we didn't have before?
• How can we grow?

"The critics" as the author refers to them as would definitely point to ADDIE as being restrictive and linear in design, but I wonder if they would feel the same way about SAM which is typically more flexible, dynamic, and iterative?

This is really poignant. Even though it's been reiterated several times, it's important to exercise caution when superimposing your experiences and interests on your learners. While appropriate in some instances, sometimes it can translate to instructors vicariously experiencing education in a way that aligns with the instructor's values, beliefs, motivations, etc. without taking into consideration the student's unique skills/abilities or potential.

I think this is a great idea! Having teachers and instructional designers work collaboratively to address learning needs is something that I think could eliminate a disconnect that often occurs in education. Teachers know their students well and can communicate their needs to the designers, and designers can offer insight on instructional practices/strategies that would improve learning in the classroom.

Even though I'm not an educator, I can see the value of having instructional coaches, instructional designers, and teachers work together to achieve the same, collective outcome: to empower students and make learning impactful.

I could see how this is important from a business perspective because businesses are continually analyzing data to see how they can improve their product, expand their market, and increase their overall gains. Sometimes the learner's feedback of the content gets overlooked in favor of the quantitative data. I'm not sure if this is what the author is attempting to say, but this is how I interpreted it.

This is also a key priority for adult learners. Their primary focus is how can I practically use this information in my workplace, my context, etc.? How is this knowledge relevant to me and my role/responsibilities?

Formative evaluation is so important to include, and not just as a means to assess the designer's level of creativity or how the learner perceived the content. It can also be used to evaluate the learner's progress and degree of comprehension of the material.

Furthermore cyclical revisions improve the content for the next cohort of learners, and there's a constant feedback loop that can improver the overall learning experience. It's important not to neglect or overlook the impact that formative evaluations can have.

When I was in school, I often felt like formative evaluation was not a key priority. The summative evaluations had the most emphasis and consequently received the most attention because they impacted final course grades.

I wonder if the ARCS Model reflects Robert M. Gagne's events of instruction? I think I recall 1) "gaining the attention of the learner" as a shared component among the two types of models.

Instructional Strategy

• What is the mode of instruction?
• How is content organized and presented to the learner?

I also think it's important that the instructional strategy complements the instructional content and the goals/objectives that you want the learner to achieve.

For example, for acquiring skill-based knowledge, it's helpful to integrate practice sessions where you can actually apply your newly learned skills. Whereas if the goal is to deliver content to a large population, a lecture-style might serve the purpose better.

So, I think that it's important to ensure that the instructional strategy is tailored to the content as well as to the learner to ensure a successful outcome and a positive learning experience for the individual.

Learner Analysis is consistently a key priority when delivering instruction. Knowing who your learners are means knowing the whole student and leveraging their natural abilities to connect with the content.