Creating Curriculum Within the Context of an Enterprise
7.3.3 Impact on Members’ Learning
Since day one, being part of Learning Design Solutions has meant experiencing growth grounded in experience and refl ection. Its members are encouraged to refl ect deeply upon their practices and experiences as consultants and entrepreneurs in instructional design and most importantly on their own learning. Refl ective practice serves “as a means by which practitioners can develop a greater level of self- awareness about the nature and impact of their performance, an awareness that creates opportu- nities for professional growth and development” (Osterman & Kottkamp, 1993 , p. 2).
At any point during all projects, members are invited to share their thoughts and feelings about the nature of the project, issues, and challenges, as well as about the enterprise’s daily operations. They are strongly encouraged to gather their refl ec- tions in a journal to be used as a tool for growth and development. For example, members may refl ect on their insights about a project in which they are involved;
how the project is (or is not) impacting their perceptions of their role and develop- ment as an instructional designer; or how their involvement in the project is (or is not) helping them broaden their understanding of the fi eld and enhance their prac- tice as educators. As a result, they are encouraged (and given fi nancial support) to showcase their learning through papers and presentations at national and interna- tional professional meetings. Three short case studies about the impact of Learning Design Solutions ’ work on members’ learning and growth as instructional designers and entrepreneurs are described below. Pseudonyms are used in this chapter to pro- tect the members’ identities.
Being able to interact with real clients was the most signifi cant benefi t that Flora, a female doctoral student in curriculum and instructional technology, reported from being part of Learning Design Solutions . She was a co-founder of the organization and one of its most enthusiastic members. Flora led the creation of Learning Design Solutions ’ business plan and the write-up of its fi rst manual of operations. She explained that her motivation to be part of Learning Design Solutions resided in her determination to “create a workplace in which I would really enjoy my work.
I could be challenged, I could do something meaningful, I could work with great people, and we could all learn together. Creating a community in which we can share our talents with each other, learn new ideas and skills, teach the next genera- tion, and make a difference in the community is very important to me.” She went on to describe that this experience “was important in as much as it helped me to see how great it is to have a group of people with whom you can discuss your project and be able to get productive feedback, yet still maintain creative control over [your]
own project. It was one of the elements of a creative and entrepreneurial work- place… I really liked that!”
Flora’s motivation to join Learning Design Solutions came from “the benefi t of gaining related work experience and being able to interact with real clients. I started to realize that instructional design experiences are crucial for students. However, with the economic situation nowadays, it will be extremely diffi cult for graduate students to fi nd a perfect internship or working opportunities while pursuing gradu- ate degree.”
As an international student from Malaysia, Flora was eager to bring this concept of graduate entrepreneurship to her alma mater . She was very much intrigued by this concept and used part of her experience in the organization to conceptualize her doctoral research study. In her own words, “LearnDS [Learning Design Solutions]
has exposed me to the business side of Instructional Design. I’ve learned a lot about setting up a company, fi nding and negotiating with clients within the context of ID.
What is more meaningful is that the purpose of LearnDS is much more community- oriented—that is to educate community—rather than purely business-oriented. This focus is very much related to my doctoral research.”
Preparing for a complex working environment in academia was reported by Kaya as an important benefi t of joining Learning Design Solutions. Like Flora, Kaya was a female doctoral student in curriculum and instructional technology and one of the organization’s co-founders. She was particularly interested in a career as a university professor and recognized an opportunity in Learning Design Solutions to support her career aspirations in teacher education. She explained that being part of the organization offered her many opportunities to develop entrepreneurial skills
“that would propel me into career paths in teacher education. I am having a chance to practice/perform all kinds of roles in this student-run organization: from manag- ing and budgeting projects (including grant writing) to applying my consulting skills to learning problems within the community. As a future faculty, I believe my active involvement as a LearnDS member is better preparing me for a complex working environment in academia by giving me the opportunities to work with real life problems that I would never work otherwise in my graduate education.”
Kaya had extensive experience as an instructional designer in her home country, Turkey, and was able to share these experiences with the other members of the orga- nization. She was particularly skillful in recruiting clients and closing contracts. Her commitment to research put her in a privileged position to bridge theory and practice, as she explained: “By participating in real world projects, I am able to connect theory with practice and vice-versa and employ my communication and problem solving skills to propose creative solutions to a variety of educational problems. For instance, by participating in the design of a training workshop for a local community, I had a chance to participate in designing instructional solutions by considering many instructional aspects such as clients’ and learners’ needs and contextual factors.”
Kaya always showed determination to have a career as a scholar in higher educa- tion. She took her work at Learning Design Solutions and turned it into a highly valuable learning experience. In her words, “[t]hrough my involvement in LearnDS as a graduate student, I am also more equipped to perform entrepreneurial activities, from writing business plans and budgeting projects to engaging in discussions on
intellectual property and market research, that I will surely use in my future faculty profession. As an example, with my other graduate colleagues I participated in writ- ing a grant to request 2 years of funding to support LearnDS. Finally, my experience as a graduate student entrepreneur in teacher education will help me to better adapt to new academic cultures that value intellectual and entrepreneurial initiative in new faculty members. As a future faculty entrepreneur, I will be able to take an active part in addressing several challenges in teacher education and provide my expertise to various educational contexts.”
Access to new opportunities was described by Clara as the greatest advantage of joining Learning Design Solutions . Clara is currently a female doctoral student in curriculum and instructional technology and an instructional development specialist at the university’s Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching. She joined Learning Design Solutions in 2009 as a collaborator and moved up as a member in 2010. Clara was especially interested in faculty professional development and saw being part of the organization as a way to attain her career goal. This is how Clara explained it: “[j]oining LearnDS was important to my learning because it opens up new possibilities for me. First, I work closely with real-world clients in the com- munity or university-wide to provide consultation and to design products to solve clients’ instructional concerns. A lot of instructional designers may not have the chance to work directly with real-world clients. Therefore, they have to spend time to adjust or adapt when they accept their fi rst job as instructional designer. Second, it is about the knowledge I can learn from LearnDS. I have the opportunity to be involved with all aspects of the project from contracting and negotiations through development and presentation of the fi nal product. These experiences have trained my skills as a future instructional designer.”
Clara was particularly proud of her project when collaborating for the fi rst time with Learning Design Solutions . She worked on the re-design of a sandbagging training for a disaster recovery organization. The new workshop-style training included: (1) an interactive PowerPoint presentation with demonstrations, quizzes, and audience participation; and (2) an outdoor, hands-on competition in sandbag levee construction.
As a doctoral student, Clara was also interested in research and leadership oppor- tunities. Refl ecting back, she wrote: “…LearnDS has also provided me with research opportunities. I can work with peers and advising faculty to develop research agen- das. This has helped me gain experiences in learning about how to write research papers and how to present the fi ndings in professional meetings. In addition, I am also given a vast array of leadership opportunities. All the things I learned above will help me in my professional fi eld. I am very grateful and thankful to be able to join Learning Design Solutions.”
Two of these three individuals currently serve as members of the Learning Design Solutions Advisory Board, who are consulted on an as-needed basis for vari- ous issues, such as: establishing the vision and clarity of Learning Design Solutions as an organization; advice on current challenges that the organization is facing, including recruitment, membership, and client projects; and evaluative feedback of the organization.