D3.1.3

=An explicit plan guides the communication to students of the relationships between course elements. =

Evidence
Pedagogical approach, content, and learning outcomes are complexly interrelated and interdependent. Although there is no single ‘correct’ way to undertake design and development, there are guiding principles and practices (Ragan, 1999). Ragan identifies three educational components: learning objectives and content presentation; interactions; and assessment; and he articulates principles for each category. Learning objectives are the foundation for an educational event that forms a contract between teacher and learner and helps to ensure the selection of instructional strategies for content presentation that successfully delivers defined outcomes. Interactions are the ways teachers and learners engage with each other as geographically distant members of a learning community. Assessment also serves both teachers and learners purposes by monitoring progress that enables the teacher to feedback formative information to the learner, and, the learner to provide feedback on the course design to the teacher.

Resources
Evidence of capability in this area is seen with the use of explicit design processes and plans that link technology decisions with defined student learning outcomes and graduate attributes. This should also include making the underlying design rationale and pedagogy apparent to students when they are introduced to how the technology will be used in the particular course. Teaching staff are provided with templates, examples, training and support in using the range of technologies available to support student learning in a range of contexts and disciplines.