ABSTRACT
Instructional design (ID) is a deliberate and orderly, but flexible, process for planning, analyzing, designing, developing, implementing, and evaluating instruction in education or training settings, formal and informal. Design and development are confusing terms because they have both a macro and a micro sense. Instructors often approach the design of instruction from a content perspective – that is, what to teach. In contrast, instructional designers approach the task from a problem-solving perspective that includes what to teach but pays considerable attention to how to teach it in a way that is effective, efficient, and motivational. Considerations about “what to teach” and “how to teach it” have, of course, existed ever since the birth of formal education. The chapter examines several research-based lists of the competencies and skills that have been identified as required to effectively and efficiently perform ID – and also manage the development and implementation phases of ID projects.
