IDT
in the healthcare context not only
involves the delivery of health services, but also biomedical research. It
includes the medical profession and its varied subspecialties plus the
professions of veterinary medicine, dentistry, nursing, allied health, and
public health. Government health agencies,
pharmaceutical companies, hospitals, and clinics train staff internally and
often provide training to others. The
health science enterprise is very broad, encompassing more than hospitals,
clinics, and practice of providing health care. Because of this some of
the challenges that designers face are: knowledge and research, costs and
managed care, regulations and standards, and convergence. I have worked both for a state government
healthcare agency and a pharmaceutical company.
In both instances, it was really important to stay abreast and be
up-to-date on trends and issues involving the industry. Trends and standards in medical education often spill over
into other domains as a consequence. But there are additional reasons why
medical education affects other health professions.
In the
military, IDTi s based on an integrated, dedicated, and astute group of
individuals who share camaraderie unmatched in the corporate world. Their
culture is one born of the ever-present threat of war and the necessity to
trust one another with their lives. Among the challenges to instructional
designers working within a military environment are: recognizing that
ineffective instruction can have catastrophic consequences; creating training
that addresses the needs of the military while considering the interests of the
individual. Some of the issues that they face are: funding,
technological range, delivery environment, design constraints, people and
alternative training solutions.
Business & industry in
IDT have established trends that include the growth and expansion of
corporations beyond individual county boundaries; demands for design cycle time
reduction; and at the same time, for increased effectiveness and efficiency of
training itself. There is often a performance
gap caused by constraints between actual and ideal practice in instructional
design. There are three types of constraints that impact the design process:
context constraints, designer-related issues, and project management versus
instructional design.
Similarities
All of the
contexts share a funding commonality.
Just like in any other field teachers want to compete and be up-to-date
with other industries. By keeping cost in mind the designer must be able to come
up with cost effectives tools and resources within the given budget parameters.
I know that in any industry for which I have been employed, funding for
technology has always been at he heart of whether it could be explored or not.
Differences
In the
varying fields they each industry has its share of challenges and issues. In the
healthcare industry, the education of health professionals is serious business,
and that is one reason why clinical problem solving and medical education
programs are subject to ongoing evaluation and research. The field is now
associated with analyzing human performance problems, In the military field, instructional
designers play a significant role in the transformation to accommodate the
needs of today’s service members and move the military of today to the military
of tomorrow. . While the business &
industry field Instructional design
today encompasses much more than simply producing instruction. There are
both differences and similarities in the various contexts to that to which I
work in. Budgets are always a factor but
the environment and clientele is educating students for the future so they are
equipped with the skills necessary to be competitive and successful.
Our current education system in how
curriculum and instructional approaches are laid out is helping learners with
problem-solving abilities. The impact that technology has had on today’s
schools has been quite significant. This widespread adoption of technology has
completely changed how teachers teach and students learn. Teachers are learning
how to teach with emerging technologies (tablets, iPads, Smart Boards, digital
cameras, computers), while students are using advanced technology to shape how
they learn. By embracing and integrating technology in the classroom, we are
setting our students up for a successful life outside of school. Technology
changes by the minute, and as educators we need to keep up with the times in
order to best prepare our students for this ever-changing world that we live
in. The European and Asian
countries have highly sophisticated high-tech industries and highly developed
digital infrastructures. Both highly value education and teachers, human
contact, and both have attempted to reform their education systems for the
twenty-first-century world. Different cultures adapt technology at different
rates, but nearly every culture eventually does. I think it would be a
great idea for the US to be out front and be a leader in technology.
Rieser, R.A, Dempsey, J V.(2002).
Trends and issues in instructional design and technology. Upper
Saddler River, N.J. Merrill Prentice Hall, c2002
Carlisza, I agree that technology has changed the way that students learn and teachers teach. Teachers have to learn how to incorporate technology into their lessons because students are so technology oriented. Students have to be engaged to learn and technology engages a student and its easier for them to learn when they believe they are having fun instead of really learning.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with your comment that funding, no matter what context you are talking about, affects training and by extension IDT. When I first started teaching, school districts all had programs where they would fund or partially fund teachers seeking a masters degree. Today, however, I don't know any district that offers that. This is unfortunate since we do need to have teachers who can bring extensive knowledgeable about education into our classrooms and our schools.
ReplyDeleteCarlisza, I see what you mean in regards to teachers using more and more technology in their classrooms because kids are so into technology. I just worry that sometimes we place too much emphasis on technology and not enough on kids learning the basics. As much as I am in favor of using technology in classrooms, I feel we also need to make sure the kids are using the technology efficiently and not just using a device to say that they "used technology." I think the technology movement can likely get out of hand quickly just because we think kids "know how to use technology" when in fact, they usually only know how to play games and use a cell phone/tablet efficiently. Despite that, we as teachers can focus on that efficiency and work hard to make sure kids getting the basics and doing the deep thinking. Good post!!
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