The offical course description.
Systematic design of products for education and training. Use of cognitive task analysis to determine instructional content. Development of instructional goals and product specifications. Rapid prototyping of instructional products. Prerequisites: EDTEC 540 and 541; satisfactory performance on the department writing exam or completion of Rhetoric and Writing Studies 503W with a B+ or better.

Ok, so what is this course really all about?
We will adopt a simple yet pragmatic approach to designing training and instruction that you will be able to adapt and apply to your instructional design needs in the future. We will also survey different instructional theories and their associated methods, so that you can experience how to leverage each theory’s relative strengths and when/where to apply them appropriately. You will use the instructional design process, learning theories, instructional methods, tools and templates to complete small-group activities and to design an individual semester project of your choice.

What is this "instructional design" stuff?
Instructional design (also commonly called "ID" or "ISD") is a core component of our field and a foundational skill that all educational and performance technologists should have in their repertoire. Born from the US military’s need to rapidly train large numbers of people on complex procedures during World War II, instructional design has been used for the past sixty years to train learners in corporate, education, government, and a host of other settings. Through the careful planning of instructional events, content, and media, ISD can be used as a powerful tool to effectively and efficiently make people proficient in the skills and knowledge that your organization or customer requires.

What will I be able to do after completing this class?
The goal of this course is to provide you with the knowledge, skills and tools you will need to design effective instruction -- be it for the classroom or online; for a local grade school, national non-profit organization or global company. As such, this course will prepare you to analyze instructional problems in a variety of settings, map out learners' needs, establish learning outcomes, design effective instruction using appropriate theories and methods, and create prototypes of varying fidelity. The development, implementation and evaluation of instructional materials for the classroom and online are addressed in subsequent EDTEC courses.

I'd like to take this class, when is it offered?
We recognize that tomorrow's leaders in education and training are today's teachers and working professionals. To help make your personal development easier, this course is offered in a variety of formats to meet your personal needs and schedule:

• On the SDSU main campus for those in the San Diego area
• Online for those in other parts of the country and world
• Online for teachers who are part of the COMET program