Initiating an instructional design project can be a complex task.
IDL has developped several tools that help teams and organisations better frame and organise their Learning & Development strategy and products. Our Instructional Design scoping canvas is one of those. This guide will walk you through each section of the canvas to help you kickstart your instructional design project effectively.
The instructional design canvas is divided into five key sections:
Let’s see those sections one by one:
Understanding your target audience is the first and most crucial step in any instructional design project. This section is divided into four components:
Identify the specific needs of your audience. This could include skills they need to acquire, knowledge gaps to fill, or behaviors to change. Conduct surveys, interviews, or focus groups to gather this information.
Understand the expectations of your audience regarding the learning experience. This might include preferred learning styles, types of content they find engaging, and any prior experiences with similar training programs.
Assess the current knowledge level of your audience. This will help you design content that is neither too basic nor too advanced. Pre-assessments, quizzes, and reviewing previous training records can be helpful here.
Define the key takeaways and competencies you want your audience to gain from the instructional program. This should align with both their needs and the overall goals of the project.
Aligning the instructional design project with business needs ensures that it supports organizational goals. This section focuses on two main aspects:
Clearly outline the business objectives that the instructional design project aims to support. This could be improving employee performance, increasing customer satisfaction, reducing errors, or any other measurable outcome.
Identify the KPIs that will be used to measure the success of the project. These indicators should be specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART). Examples might include completion rates, post-training assessment scores, and performance improvements.
Taking stock of existing content is essential to avoid redundancy and leverage available resources. This section includes:
Inventory all existing content that can be used in the instructional design project. This includes training manuals, videos, e-learning modules, and any other relevant materials. Assess the quality and relevance of this content to determine what can be reused or needs updating.
Setting clear learning objectives is fundamental to guiding the design and development of instructional materials. This section involves:
Clearly state what learners should be able to do upon completing the instructional program. Objectives should be specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART). They serve as a roadmap for both instructional designers and learners.
The design challenge section is where you identify the potential obstacles and brainstorm solutions. This includes:
List the potential challenges that could impact the success of the instructional design project. These could be related to technology, engagement, content delivery, assessment, or any other area.
Develop strategies to overcome the identified challenges. This might involve choosing the right technology, creating engaging content, ensuring accessibility, and planning for effective assessments.
