Activity design template - just start

It is sometimes hard to get started on a project like an e-learning activity/ course. Everything feels chaotic and especially if one is trying to integrate good learning and instructional design theory with technical skills and it forms part of a Master's program then one can quickly become paralysed.
This is completely normal, and part of the creative process (except the Mphil part of course :)) and should be embraced. The skill is to just start doing something, get into motion and the rest will follow.
That is indeed why we have something like the ADDIE model! It gives us structure to start somewhere and cover all the important bases. Just starting with the "A" Analyses already gets our minds in gear. Try and think of a very specific group of potential learners and especially what their specific learning needs are. Here Wilhelm is giving us a good example of describing the Registrars and the particular teaching and learning needs that he became aware of. How to solve the need now becomes writing learning outcomes and objectives. Once one has the outcomes, then follows the design of learning activities that will meet those outcome needs, after which development and implementation follows.
|For this module one should may not think so big (i.e. a whole semester course of 60 credits!) but rather a small Activity (also called e-tivities in some literature) that you can easily think through and also take through the 5 processes of ADDIE. The more specific the learning objective - the easier to design it and reflect on it in the process.

Here is another (maybe simpler) way of structuring an activity (taken from "Fascilitating online: A course leader's guide"[*1]):

Activity title

• Give your activity a clear and relevant title.

Learning outcome(s)

• Decide what you want participants to learn by doing this activity. Take into account participants' prior knowledge and experience and their current contexts.

Purpose

• Identify the purpose of the activity. State the purpose clearly and concisely.

Task

• Outline the task that participants will be requuired to do. The task should be short enough to enable most participants to complete the task with ease in the given time period.
• Provide clear instructions.
• State whether students will be required to work individually or in groups.
  

Tools

• Identify the tools that participants will require to perform the task (e.g. chat, discussion, forums, email, wiki).

Time

• Provide guidelines on when the task should be completed and how much time will be required bu the participants.

[*1] Carr, Jaffer & Smuts 2009. Fascilitating online: A course leader's guide. Centre for educational Technology Sries Number 3. Cape Town: Centre for Educational Technology, University of Cape Town. Download at webaddress: http://www.cet.uct.ac.za/FascilitatingOnline.