Developing Instructional Materials

By Raheen Brooks

Background

Developing instructional materials can prove to be a difficult task for teachers. Instructors who focus on developing instructional materials tend to offer advice to their students about judging and justifying instructional materials they have prepared. After a student decides what components of an instructional package they want to use, they then prepare to format the material. The choice of the format depends on the purpose of instruction, the performance objectives, who will use the instructional materials and why.

Objectives

The objectives of this chapter includes the following The Designer’s Role in Material Development and

Instructional Delivery The Delivery System and Media Selections Components of an Instructional Package Existing Instructional Materials Instructional Materials and Formative Evaluation

What is Instructional Materials

After the instructional strategy has been completed, the designer can created the instructional materials.

Instructional materials can be used to help students achieve their goals by being printed or being another type of mediated instruction

Assessment

Most instructional material should be packaged with objective tests or by product or performance assessments. That may include pretest and posttest depending on the circumstances.

The Designer’s Role in Materials Development and Instruction Delivery

The designer’s role consists of several different tasks. Which includes assessing overall curriculum needs, determining course goals and course objectives. Analyzing learners background knowledge and instructional needs. Teaching strategies, conducting formative and summative course evaluations.

The Designer’s Role in Materials Development and Instruction Delivery

There are more functions that the designer’s role is in charge of. It has to make sure material is selected and adapted to their instructional strategy. The instructor has to personally deliver instruction, instruction is generally delivered in one or more methods. The design also has to be delivered independently of the instructor.

The Delivery System and Media Selections

The delivery system is a system that allows a particular instructional system to operate as if it was intended and where it was intended.

Examples are a classroom, television broadcasts, videotaping, video conferenced, web-based, and mobile.

After the delivery system is specified, the media is chosen for instructional deliver and activities.

The Delivery System and Media SelectionsThe second function is the availability of existing

instructional materials.

In this function existing materials can be alternative to developing and producing new materials. They can also be substituted planned materials.

The Delivery System and Media Selections The final function is the production and implementation

constraints.

In this function the media formats and delivery systems are very expensive, but you can utilize techniques to reduce costs that generally does not affect the learning process. The cost associated with duplication and distribution can also prove to be expensive. There are also other methods for example power points or web streaming that can defray some of the costs.

Components of an instructional package

There are three major components of an instructional package. Instructional Materials which are contained in content

that is written, mediated or facilitated by an instructor. Assessments are all instructional material that is

accompanied by objective tests or by product or performance assessments.

Couse Management Information is the general description of the total package, typically called the instructor’s manual.

Course Management Information

Course management information is the general description of a total package, that is usually called the instructor’s manual, which provides the instructor with an overview of the material. The materials usually include grade books, tests, student guidance templates, online testing, and student tracking.

Existing Instructional Materials

There are five different categories Goal Centered Learner Centered Learning Centered Context Centered Technical Centered

Existing Instructional Materials There are other methods that are used that include

active learning, which allows students to answer questions, solve problems, formulate questions of their own, discuss, debate, or brainstorm in class. In cooperative learning the students work as a team to solve problems. Inductive methods are methods that include inquiry-based learning, case-based instruction, problem based learning, project-based learning, discovery learning, and just-in-time teaching.

Instructional Materials and Formative Evaluation

Formative evaluation is a useful too in analyzing learning materials, such as student learning and achievements, and teacher effectiveness. Formative evaluation is primarily a building process which accumulates a series of components of new materials and problems into an ultimate meaningful whole.

Instructional Materials and Formative Evaluation The whole purpose of doing a rough draft of

the materials is to create a quick lower cost version of your design to have something to guide the production and to take formative evaluations.

Instructional Materials and Formative Evaluation

Rapid prototyping is a process that uses prototype approximations of a software design in order to test whether the application meets the design specifications.

Instructional Materials and Formative Evaluation

Material Development Tools and Resources Material production requires a certain skill set. Tools

and resources are used to provide instructions such as how-to guides. The media update frequently includes new developments that make the instructions easier as the technology advances

Summary

As a lifelong learner, one of my main goals is to motivate students. To make sure that I am effective in my career, I will be a facilitator, and assist my students with instructional material that will help them in the classroom. In the current society of technology, instructors should place an emphasis on students as active participants in the process of finding, organizing, analyzing, and applying information to solve problems. As students mature they should become apart of the learning community to collaborate in many different sources with different people.

Conclusion Raheen Brooks