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Why I Teach and Practice Instructional Design (Joel)

1/24/2012

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by Dr. Joel Gardner, EdTech Dojo co-curator
 
I LOVE INSTRUCTIONAL DESIGN. I love thinking, reading, writing about, and doing it. I love talking about it with my designer friends and I have chosen to spend my career as an instructional designer and as a teacher of instructional design. But why is instructional design so important to me? Why am I so excited about it? Here are several reasons:

I believe in human potential.
I believe that people have the power to learn, grow and become better. I believe that every human has the capacity to learn and to contribute to society in meaningful ways. Education gives people the power to contribute to society. We all have within us the “seeds of greatness.” We have the capacity to grow, expand, develop and become something incredible.

I believe in education. 
My experience is that education can absolutely revolutionize an person’s life. Through gaining a high quality education over the last decade of my life, I have come to view the world in totally new ways and I have a sense of personal empowerment that I would likely never have known without that education. Education breaks the bonds of ignorance, stupidity, and narrow-mindedness. It opens opportunities that were never available before.

I believe in self-improvement.
I have spent many hours listening to self-help audio programs by success speakers such as Stephen Covey, Anthony Robbins and Zig Ziglar. This form of education has helped me build a positive attitude, to set and reach difficult goals. This experience has shown that I have the ability to do difficult and rewarding things, and it fuels my belief that education and learning can change lives.

I love to see people succeed.
I have known some personal success, and it has been rewarding. But I receive as much or more gratification when I assist others in their success. I have worked with individuals and classes over the years and find deep satisfaction when I see my students succeed.

Knowledge empowers.
Underlying all of these is the certainty that knowledge gives people power. Knowledge lifts us, ennobles us, and makes us better. Providing an individual with knowledge through effective instruction is a noble, just, good act, and is something that is worthy of my time and energy.

So, this is why I love instructional design. As an instructional designer and an educator, I am participating in work that empowers people, that gives learners the capacity to grow, to succeed, to take control of their lives more fully. I am giving people tools that can totally change their lives. This is why I have devoted my professional life to teaching and instructional design.

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Why Educational Technology? (J. Clark)

1/14/2012

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by J. Clark Gardner, EdTech Dojo co-curator

My brother Joel and are I quite excited to be working on the EdTech Dojo. Joel and I have worked together on many projects over the years, perhaps the most notable being an anti-drug rap opera that we won $1,000 for when we were in college. But why do a media-infused website/blog/podcast on educational technology, of all things? Why is it so important to us? I can’t speak for Joel, but I can speak for myself.

First of all, I believe education is a key to happiness. Not the only key, because there are several and they vary by individual (a staggering number of mine include cats or chocolate milk). But I firmly believe it is one of the most important keys to happiness.

It is crucial that we learn how to learn. That we learn how to analyze and question. The moment a student realizes that a plant is not just a pretty piece of scenery, but a complex organism that our world’s ecosystem relies on, is a moment that can change that student’s life. Suddenly the world is no longer stagnant and definable. It is a place to explore, to ask questions, and to seek knowledge, skills, and insights that will bring fulfillment and happiness.


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I believe learning should be an active and not a passive experience, involving all of our senses. True learning takes place as students touch geological formations, listen to a Bach concerto, discuss the themes of an Austen novel, and even as they smell the pungent scent of butane as their chemistry teacher yells at them for playing with the nozzle.

I believe technology can enhance learning by presenting students with sights, sounds, communication, and instructional capabilities that cannot otherwise be present in a traditional classroom. I also believe that technology is not the solution to everything – it assists with learning only when it is part of a carefully planned instructional program.

This is why I have made the decision to dedicate my professional life to learning. And the EdTech Dojo is going to help me, and soon many others, contribute to the all-important cause of learning.


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Welcome to Your Dojo.

1/9/2012

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The EdTech Dojo is a place where students, educators, and trainers learn about and discuss the the application of educational technology design.

All of the EdTech Dojo blog posts, videos, and podcast episodes carry an open Creative Commons license. You are encouraged to use any part in classes, training sessions, or any other non-commercial venture.

If you would like to be featured on the EdTech Dojo or have questions, contact the dojo's co-creators, brothers J. Clark Gardner and Dr. Joel Gardner.

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