For those unfamiliar, traditionally at the Provincial and Territorial Distance Education Association annual meetings there are representatives from each of the provinces and territories – sometimes from the Ministry of Education and sometimes from individual programs – provide a short (i.e., 15-20 minutes) presentation on what is happening within their realm. The first of these provincial/territorial update sessions was from Lise Pethybridge of the Alberta Distance Learning Centre (ADLC), who are an institutional member of the Canadian E-Learning Network.
The ADLC presentation focused on their instructional design model. Their model is a structured, systematic process that begins with a proposal that – if accepted – moves to a blueprinting stage. The blueprint stage goes through the following steps:
- rationale
- prioritizing outcomes
- initiatives
- assessment plan
- student learning plan
- resources
- project management plan
Following the overview of the blueprint stage, Lise discussed the specific standards and framework that ADLC uses as a part of their instructional design model. In terms of standards, the ADLC has adopted the Quality Matters standards. Additionally, they have developed their own Writer’s Guide for Learning Resources, Writer’s Guide for the Web, and Editorial Guide, as well as several templates, style guides and conformance testing.