In contrast to normative ethics, which emphasizes determining whether a person or action is good or bad and developing codes to govern individual behaviors, applied ethics focuses on the application of ethics to real-world problems and contexts of practice (Ethics Unwrapped, n.d.). In design-oriented disciplines such as instructional design and…

This study examined dynamic decision-making processes at three different levels in the field of instructional design (ID): (a) for managers of instructional designers (IDers) at the institutional level, (b) for Senior IDers at the program level, and (c) for IDers at the course level. This qualitative study utilized collaborative autoethnography…

In this paper, we report findings from a larger study that investigated design failure, as a phenomenon, in instructional design (ID) practice from the perspective of ID practitioners. Following an interpretive phenomenological study design, we interviewed 17 ID practitioners working in diverse settings, seeking their stories of design failure.…

This paper examines design decisions that were written down and enacted by learning design practitioners across 18 projects at a postsecondary institution. Through emergent coding of decisions recorded in a Learning Engineering Evidence and Decision (LEED) tracker in situ, this research answers 3 questions: (1) how do practitioners track and cite…

This exploratory qualitative study examined how instructional designers use data to make decisions during the instructional design process. Participants included full-time instructional designers (n = 9) who were involved in one or more phases of the ADDIE (Analysis, Design, Development, Implementation, Evaluation) across different job sectors,…

This paper explores the use of personas in co-designing learning experiences for students. It reviews existing literature about the use of personas within the design process and then presents a case study of a group of teachers (N = 15) and designers collaboratively designing (co-designing) a term-long learning experience for a group of digital…

Due to the rise of virtual reality and the--at least now--hypothetical construct of the Metaverse, learning processes are increasingly transferred to immersive virtual learning environments. While the literature provides few design guidelines, most papers miss an application and evaluation description of the design and development processes. As a…

Immersive extended reality (XR) technologies, including augmented reality (AR), virtual reality, and mixed reality, are transforming the landscape of education and training through experiences that promote skill acquisition and enhance memory retention. These technologies have notably improved decision making and situational awareness in public…

In this theoretical paper, we advocate for educational researchers to embrace co-design as a means of fostering sustainable solutions in educational settings. While co-design has been increasingly recognized for its collaborative potential, we suggest that its effectiveness can be further enhanced by drawing from three complementary perspectives:…

Who doesn't love a good story? In this article, the authors share how teachers can utilize the idea of mathematical stories to significantly enhance existing lessons. They use a creative framework to reimagine lessons as mathematical stories and make lessons more engaging for students. The authors will first describe how to think about a lesson…

As part of a larger study (Boling et al., 2024a, b), this paper reports on how instructional designers define and use precedent knowledge, including its sources, forms, and role in decision-making. Using a qualitative approach, we conducted semi-structured interviews with instructional designers from higher education and non-profit professional…

The exigencies of teaching during a worldwide public health crisis have led to increased attention to faculty discontent, disengagement, and burnout. For many, teaching has become a much more challenging responsibility. This article describes an effort to provide new programmatic support that proactively and meaningfully addresses instructor…

Gamification, when properly implemented in education and training, can increase the engagement and motivation of learners and inspire them to change aspects of their behaviour to support learning. Although the use of gamification in the learning process might have a positive impact, its potential to strengthen education and training has not yet…

To explore various stakeholders' understanding of student privacy and how protections for it are enacted on their campus, we conducted interviews with 27 faculty, instructional designers, and academic librarians at Very High Research Activity universities across the United States. Although there were no interview questions concerning the pandemic,…

Philosophical stances and design frameworks, such as value-sensitive design, manifest in design praxis through enacting specific design approaches and employing a variety of methods by the designers. Although it could overlap with other frameworks and approaches in the Instructional Design and Technology (IDT) field, value-sensitive design remains…