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Training Design Versus Development by Donald J. Ford, Ph.D., C.P.T.

03/25/2012 10:55 AM | Deleted user

What’s the difference between an instructional designer and a course developer?  This question came up during a recent search for a contractor to help one of my clients with a rush training project.  I had asked which they needed and my question prompted the question above in response.

It made me realize that many learning professionals don’t know the difference between the two.  Although instructional design is generally considered a unified field of practice, it is really divided into two sub-disciplines: instructional design and material development.

So what is the difference?  The instructional designer is the architect of learning, creating a detailed blueprint based on a training needs assessment.  The course developer takes the blueprint and constructs learning materials of all types – print, video, audio and combinations of all three – following the specifications created by the instructional designer, much like a general contractor builds a house following the architect’s detailed plan.

To better understand these two roles, let’s consider the work that typically occurs in each of the “D” phases of ADDIE.

Design Phase
As the name implies, design is the heart of the instructional design process.  Trainers can use the term “design” loosely, sometimes meaning a specific phase of the training process and sometimes using it as a shorthand way of referring to the entire process, we can easily get confused.  It helps to specify what the design phase of training is responsible for creating.  This usually consists of the following:

The instructional track starts by:

1.  Establishing the objectives

  • Based on a needs assessment, which occurs during the analysis phase
  • Instructional designers may or may not be involved in the analysis
  • Needs analysis, especially job task analysis, is the input for objectives

2.  Selecting appropriate strategies and methods that are most likely to produce      learning of the objectives

  • Knowledge objectives are often paired with lectures and paper or group exercises
  • Skill objectives are paired with demonstration and hands-on practice 

3.  Producing a prototype, a small working model of the instruction to illustrate what the final training will look like

  • Useful when e-learning is the delivery media, since it is inherently more complex to envision and develop

On the project management track, designers:

1. Specify the deliverables for the training, including all print, video and audio learning materials, plus any tests, exercises, pre-work and post-work assignments. 

  • Typical classroom deliverables are participant guides, facilitator guides and slides
  • Typical e-learning deliverables are storyboards, video clips, audio narratives, graphics, photos and animations.

2. Develop a budget and schedule for the instructional design and development phases

  • Include work assignments and milestones
  • Manage labor and material costs
  • May also help to prepare the budget and schedule for delivery of the learning

3. Lead project teams or assist in putting together the project organization that will design, develop and deliver the learning.

  • Project management planning and monitoring
  • Project management implementation

All of these six tasks then merge in a training blueprint, a document that summarizes all the decisions made about the training.

Development
Though the training development phase is often lumped together with design, in fact it represents a distinct phase of the training design process with its own unique tasks and characteristics.  Furthermore, it is quite common to have entirely different people working on the development phase. For these reasons, it must be considered its own training phase. The development process consists of four major tasks: 

  • Drafting learning materials
  • Developing tests and exercises
  • Pilot testing materials
  • Full-scale materials production and implementation

Materials Development Process
The development phase of training design is the time to roll up one’s sleeves and begin to produce training materials in volume. It has all the hallmarks of a production environment:

  • Large volumes of material, including text, audio and visuals,
  • Intensive effort by many people
  • Tight deadlines
  • Lots of stress for everyone involved

To get through this phase unscathed, it is essential to have a good plan of attack. This should start with a clear notion about the key components of the development phase of training.  Here’s how they look in the development model below.

  DEVELOPMENT PROCESS MODEL

 

Materials development occupies the most time in the process.  Today, it often involves multiple specialists working together to achieve a common learning aim.  For example, a technical writer may develop written content, a graphic artist may create and capture custom images, a videographer may record and edit video segments, a narrator may record audio tracks and a computer programmer may take all those materials and combine them in an online learning program that relies on an IT technician to load onto a Learning Management System.  With so many different material developers at work, each dependent on the other for input, the detailed training blueprint design is the best way to keep all the moving pieces aligned. 

So, back to the first question – what is the main difference between instructional designers and course developers?  Designers are experts at learning theory and at translating that theory into practical, effective plans for instruction.  They are often also responsible for front-end analysis to ensure training meets business goals and the content is job-related. 

Developers are experts in translating training blueprints into learning objects, whether text, audio or video.  They must be excellent at interpretation, writing, drawing, recording and editing the materials they are working with.  They often use specialized computer software to help them accomplish their work.

So, the next time you need help with a training design project, stop and consider what kind of help you really need.

Donald J. Ford, Ph.D., C.P.T.
President, Training Education Management LLC and
Adjunct Professor of Management, Antioch University Los Angeles

ATD-Los Angeles Chapter
9852 W. Katella Ave. #187
Anaheim, CA 92804
office@atdla.org
562-908-3020
Chapter Code: CH8028

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