Ten Guiding Principles of Instructional Technology and Distance Education

by
Georanda V. Richardson
EDD-7005-OL2
Instructional Media

Nova Southeastern University

August 15, 2010
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Ten Guiding Principles of Instructional Technology and Distance Education

There is so much to learn about how to use media and technology in the classroom.

However, the ten guiding principles that I think are most important in the Instructional

Technology and Distance Educational (ITDE) discipline are as follows: 1. Know Your

Learners; 2. Train Teachers to Use Media; 3. Integrate Instructional Technology with

Computers; 4. Media Should Have an Instructional Purpose; 5. Use Media to Support

Various Learning Styles; 6. Engage the Learners; 6. Media Does Not Replace Teacher

Instruction; 7. Media Does Not Replace Teacher Instruction; 8. Integrate Visual Literacy;

9. Use Instructional Materials; and 10. Evaluate the Learners Often and Provide

Feedback. Each principle is essential in the use of media and technology to enhance

classroom instruction.

Principle 1: Know Your Learners

It is important to know your learners. This will allows the class objectives and targets to

be aligned with the student’s academic skills level. This will give the instructor the ability

to provided effective instruction that will help the students to achieve their highest

learning potential (Smaldino, et al., 2008).

Principle 2: Train Teachers to Use Media

Teachers must be trained to use various types of Medias prior to being charged with the

task of integrating media effectively into their classroom curriculum. This will enable

teachers to provide effective instruction to the students (Smaldino, et al., 2008).

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Principle 3: Integrate Instructional Technology with Computers

Various tools, software applications, and interfaces can be used to enhance the student’s

learning experience in all areas of curriculum if used appropriately (Smaldino, et al.,

2008).

Principle 4: Media Should Have an Instructional Purpose

Media can be used for secondary support during a teacher-centered unit of instruction.

Various instructional strategies may also come into play when teaching certain skills. For

example, electronic whiteboards may be used to display some type of information, while

live video may be used to convey other types of information (Smaldino, et al., 2008).

Principle 5: Use Media to Support Various Learning Styles

Students may have different ways of learning. Some students may learn from what they

see, some may learn better from hands-on, and others may learn from what they hear.

Therefore, various Medias should be used to help each student achieve their highest

potential for learning (Smaldino, et al., 2008).

Principle 6: Engage the Learners

It is highly important to engage the learners in the classroom. Engaging the learners will

keep them motivated and interested in the instruction being taught. This can be done by

simply discussing topics in class and/or creating a hands-on class activity (Smaldino, et

al., 2008).

Principle 7: Media Does Not Replace Teacher Instruction

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Media should not be allowed to distract the teachers from delivering classroom

instruction. Teachers should apply themselves so that they are capable of providing

accurate and informative information to the students without Media or Computers. Media

and technology should only be used as a vehicles to deliver the instruction provided by

the teacher (Clark, R. E., 2001).

Principle 8: Integrate Visual Literacy

Integrating visual Literacy is very important because it is the ability to interpret visual

messages correctly and to create visual messages. Visual literacy can be created by use of

input strategies and output strategies. Visual communications has a critical role in

education (Smaldino, et al., 2008).

Principle 9: Use Instructional Materials

Instructional Materials should be used in the various units of study to aid in influencing

student learning. The interaction of the students with the instructional materials helps to

reinforce and motivate actual learning (Smaldino, et al., 2008).

Principle 10: Evaluate the Learners Often and Provide Feedback

It is imperative that teachers evaluate students frequently throughout each unit of study

during the course. This will enable the teachers to provide immediately feedback to the

students, as to their strengths and weaknesses in the various areas. Feedback plays a very

important part in the development of effective instruction (Simonson, et al., 2009).

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Together, theses ten guiding principles of ITDE create a firm foundation for using

technology and media effectively to meet the learning needs of diverse learners as wells

as to enhance the overall learning environment.

Peer Review: Revisions Made to the Final Project Movie

Base upon the comments and recommendations provided by Melena and Thomas, prior

to the final submission of the final project, I made the following changes: 1. Lower the

volume of the background music audio; 2. Include a digital video clip; 3. Add a defensive

conclusion; and 4. Include my references on a clip at the end.

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References

Clark, R. E. (Ed.). (2001). Learning from media: Arguments, analysis, and evidence.
Greenwich, CT: Information Age.

Simonson, M., Smaldino, S., Albright, M., & Zvacek, S. (2009). Teaching and learning
at a distance: Foundations of distance education (4th ed.). Boston: Allyn &
Bacon.

Smaldino, S., Lowther, D., & Russell, J. (2008). Instructional technology and media for
learning,(9th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.