Important “take-away” idea from the multimodal reading.

Important “take-away” idea from the reading for me was learning the importance of including motivational pieces in learning design development.  It included enlightening information regarding the figures and past “perpetuated” (word of the week J) theories, which appear to carry inaccuracies.   To be honest, most of the time what I hear from teachers I automatically assumed to be true and would rarely question any of the material presented to me, until my most recent last several years of college….and quite frankly even now I often presume what I am being ‘told’ or ‘taught’ is true.  So when no one challenges you in an authoritative position as a teacher, then I can see how and where some of the inaccuracies could come into play.  Nonetheless, times change, and sometimes we are playing catch up to include changes in material.  Motivational elements in learning design are not only important in the development process, but I also feel they are just as important in the delivery.  Considering what are the motivators and how to incorporate them.

What missing pieces are not mentioned in this reading relating to lack of motivation in learning designs?

The term motivation itself can have various meanings in the context of a learning design and thus I think identifying clear parameters as a starting point would be useful.   Also relating to this and not mentioned, is that motivation can be internal or external, therefore the learning design approach may want to consider both of those elements and how to best connect to each.  I think lack of motivation in a learning design may also be factored to the facilitator and their own presentation approach.  Even if the facilitator has effectively included motivation in their design, they will still need to successfully deliver this material.  If the delivery falls flat, then the design may not be reached as intended.    Meaning it has been my experience that if the trainer appears to lack their own motivation, then that may affect the way with which learners perceive the material.

What makes a good learning design?  Do you believe that 20 years of research is necessary in order to create an effective learning design?

I think a good learning design probably evolves over time and is continuously updated, adjusted to keep up with ever changing learning environment.  A good learning design would likely need to be clear, concise, understandable, creative/innovative, utilize a variety of teaching modalities, and consider several more elements; i.e. audience, assessment, goals/objectives, etc.  I am not sold on the fact the 20 years of research is necessary in order to create an effective learning design.  I think proficient knowledge, experience, and a fresh/original approach could yield effective results as well.  But it is important to know where we have been so we know where we are going.  Research can be insightful I’m sure…..I think effective learning designs could be developed either way.