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Journal of Hospital Librarianship

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Instructional Design for E-Learning

a b
Marcy L. Brown
a
Western Pennsylvania Hospital-Forbes Regional Campus,
Monroeville, PA, USA
b
Educational Technology MA Program at San Diego State University,
USA

Version of record first published: 08 Sep 2008

To cite this article: Marcy L. Brown (2007): Instructional Design for E-Learning, Journal of Hospital
Librarianship, 6:4, 109-115

To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1300/J186v06n04_11

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 THE WEB

Instructional Design for E-Learning

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Marcy L. Brown

Many hospital libraries have expanded their services to incorporate

more end user instruction. Even solo-professional libraries with tiny
physical collections find that teaching various information literacy
skills can add great value to parent organizations. Some of our col-
leagues in academic medical centers and large tertiary care centers have
the staff–and the skills–to offer a robust and dynamic program of
face-to-face workshops, CE classes, and shorter lunch and learn ses-
sions. But for many of us in small and community facilities, the ability
to offer online tutorials to our patrons offers a way to extend the reach of
the library and to be in many places at one time.
Creating online tutorials is no easy task. Mastery of the required
technology is one hurdle, but equally important are the knowledge of
sound instructional design and an understanding of research-based
e-learning pedagogy. This collection of Web resources provides a
good overview of instructional design principles needed to create ef-
fective online tutorials.

Marcy L. Brown is Medical Librarian, The Western Pennsylvania Hospital-Forbes

Regional Campus, Monroeville, PA (E-mail: mbrown1@wpahs.org). She is also a grad-
uate student in the Educational Technology MA Program at San Diego State University .
Comments and suggestions should be sent to the Column Editor: Mary Fran
Prottsman (E-mail: mfprotts@yahoo.com).

Journal of Hospital Librarianship, Vol. 6(4) 2006

Available online at http://jhspl.haworthpress.com
© 2006 by The Haworth Press, Inc. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1300/J186v06n04_11 109
 110 JOURNAL OF HOSPITAL LIBRARIANSHIP

E-LEARNING META SITES

Learning Circuits–ASTD’s Source for E-Learning

http://www.learningcircuits.org

Developed by the American Society for Training and Development,

the Learning Circuits site contains feature articles, industry news, discus-
sion boards, product reviews, and other resources devoted to e-learning.
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Recent articles include discussions of course management systems ver-

sus learning management systems; using games and simulations to
teach facts; incorporating new technologies into tried and true learning
methodologies; and evaluating open source platforms. Producers have
grouped some of the Learning Circuit articles by category, including
E-Learning Fundamentals, Design and Development, Management and
Implementation, Tools and Technology, and Case Studies. Registered
users have access to Field Guides, guidebooks providing detailed cov-
erage of e-learning topics like learning objects, educational simulations,
or Web conferencing. Learning Circuits is a great site for background
research on e-learning in general, as well as for detailed information on
specific topics of interest.

GLOSSARIES AND ENCYCLOPEDIAS

A Glossary of e-Learning Terms and Acronyms

www.elearningnetwork.org/articles/article9.doc

The UK’s e-Learning Network sponsors this 8-page glossary in

Microsoft Word which gives basic definitions for many terms found
commonly in distance learning research and publishing. Terms are pri-
marily technology-oriented, rather than pedagogical.

Encyclopedia of Educational Technology

http://coe.sdsu.edu/eet/articles/cdt/index.htm

Brought to you by the Department of Educational Technology at San

Diego State University, this online, multimedia encyclopedia contains
hundreds of short articles on various aspects of instructional design
and development, education and training, and instructional technology.
The encyclopedia can be searched or browsed by topic. The Table of
Contents follows the ADDIE model, with sections on Analysis, Design,
 The Web 111

Development, Implementation, and Evaluation. Articles are further

subdivided in each of these major divisions; the Design section, for in-
stance, contains subsection on data representation, e-learning, message
design, learning objects, and more. Many of the articles use multimedia
and/or link to other Web resources on each topic.

INSTRUCTIONAL DESIGN–GENERAL
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Instructional Design Models

http://carbon.cudenver.edu/%7Emryder/itc_data/idmodels.html

This is a comprehensive site covering multiple learning theories and

models from the last century of educational thought. Some more com-
monly known models profiled on the site include behaviorist models Cri-
terion Referenced Instruction and Component Display Theory (CDT);
and cognitive models Concept Mapping and Problem-based Learning.
This is a good resource for tutorial developers with little formal educa-
tion in instructional theory or strategies.

Reference Guide for Instructional Design and Development

http://www.ieee.org/organizations/eab/tutorials/refguide/mms01.htm

Created by the Educational Activities Board of the Institute for Elec-

trical and Electronics Engineers, this guide provides an overview of the
instructional design process. The guide follows the ADDIE model, and
each section provides narrative text, worksheets or templates, and links
to relevant Web resources. Sections in the guide include Assess Needs,
Analyze Learners, Write Learning Objectives, Select an Instructional
Strategy, Develop Materials, and Evaluate.

INSTRUCTIONAL DESIGN–E-LEARNING

Creating Computer Programmed Instruction (PI) Course

www.bmodsolutions.com/tutorials/cpi.cfm

As defined by the Center for Programmed Instruction, programmed

instruction (PI) is a process for identifying learning objectives, ordering
topics, and sequencing content into highly interactive frame-by-frame
instructional tutorials. Programmed instruction allows the learner to
work through the material individually at his or her own pace. After
 112 JOURNAL OF HOSPITAL LIBRARIANSHIP

each sequence, learners are tested and given immediate feedback, after
which additional content is offered. This fee-based course uses PI to
teach PI! Although some educational psychologists argue that PI does
not create enough learner-contextualized instruction, most feel there is a
definite role for PI in the trainer’s arsenal. Many library tutorials fall
into this category of instruction. The course costs $40.00.
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Distance Education Primers and Tutorials

www.wisc.edu/depd/html/tutorials3.htm

The University of Wisconsin-Madison has been a leader in distance

education research and services for several decades. This page links to
several tutorials useful to new online learning developers, including
models for both corporate and academic environments, and for both self-
paced and instructor-led learning. Tutorials include Basics of E-Learning;
Developing and Teaching an Online Course; Principles of Online De-
sign; and Web-Based Training Primer. The page links to several e-books,
including Theory and Practice of Online Learning from Canada’s
Athabasca University, and The Instructional Use of Learning Objects.

Illinois Online Network: Online Education Resources

http://www.ion.uillinois.edu/resources/tutorials/id/index.asp

ION has collected and made available several wonderful presenta-

tions on various aspects of instructional design for online learning. Of
particular interest are the presentations entitled Instructional Design for
Online Courses, Distribution of Content in Online Courses, and Using
Storyboards in Online Course Design. The latter contains a simplified
storyboard template available for download in Microsoft Word format.

Using the Web to Design Online Courses

http://www.umuc.edu/virtualteaching/module1/mod1.html

This project, funded in part by Verizon, is an initiative of the Center

for the Virtual University and the Center for Teaching and Learning at
the University of Maryland University College. Two modules were de-
signed to assist faculty interested in appropriately using technology in
teaching. This first module guides instructors and course designers
through the selection and use of various Web-based media, such as text,
 The Web 113

audio, video, still images, animated graphics, applets, and scripts. The
module ties these technologies to different learning strategies, each of
which is linked to various examples. The module can be browsed by the
strategies, which include things like case studies, conceptual learning,
problem solving, lecture presentations, document analysis, data gather-
ing, and others. Users may also browse the module by technology type,
such as animations, PowerPoint, scripts, and streaming media.
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E-LEARNING STANDARDS

SCORM Best Practices Guide for Content Developers

www.lsal.cmu.edu/lsal/expertise/
projects/developersguide/index.html

Developed by the instructional technology experts at Carnegie Mellon’s

Learning Systems Architecture Lab (LSAL), this Best Practices Guide
helps content developers, designers, and subject matter experts shape
new or existing content into a format that is SCORM compliant. The
document includes tips and techniques to create instruction designed for
one user–such as tutorials and asynchronous lessons–rather than collab-
orative learning units. There are also links to presentations made by
LSAL staff about SCORM and how to incorporate the standards into
your e-learning development.

ADDING INTERACTIVITY

IACTIVE: Enhancing Interactivity in Online Learning

http://learnwebct.vetonline.vic.edu.au/
IACTIVE/project/index.html

This site is hosted by Swinburne University of Technology in Victoria,

Australia, and is funded by the Victoria training initiative TAFE Fron-
tiers. It provides a guide to adding interactive components to online ed-
ucation, including methodology and a database of interactive media.
The Guide Background describes interactivity within the context of
e-learning, regardless of specific software tools. This section briefly
discusses cognitive theories, active learning, and constructivism, and
provides a full reference list with links to further information about
 114 JOURNAL OF HOSPITAL LIBRARIANSHIP

these educational theories and constructs. The Developer’s Guide allows

the user to download a design proforma to use while working through
each step in the Guide: plan, design, implement, and evaluate. Case
studies are included, as well as examples on the Web. The site also con-
tains a database of tools used to add interactivity.

Using Macromedia Flash MX Learning Interactions

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www.macromedia.com/support/flash/applications/
learning_ interactions/

Many instructional designers and developers use Flash to create

learning objects and instructional animations. Flash can also be used to
create learning interactions, or quizzes. This paper-based tutorial is a
few years old and refers to the previous version of Flash (Flash MX),
but since many organizations are still running MX this remains a rele-
vant tutorial. It covers any part of a Flash movie in which a user is
expected to provide a response: true or false or multiple choice ques-
tion, drag and drop lists, fill in the blank questions, or other possible
interactions. Flash includes quiz templates for instances when learner
assessment tracking is needed, and standalone interactions that fit into
a single Flash file. The tutorial covers configuring learning interactions,
setting feedback options, setting navigation options, modifying the de-
sign or changing the appearance of an interaction, and tracking to a
learning management system.

E-LEARNING IN HEALTH CARE

MELD: MedBiquitous E-Learning Discourse

http://meld.medbiq.org

MELD is an online community of practice composed of individuals

involved in various aspects of online healthcare education. Information
on the site is intended for instructional designers, medical educators,
standards developers, IT staff, and health care administrators. While the
online threaded discussions are virtually inactive, there are several use-
ful areas of the site including Primers (brief introduction to topics such
as writing instructional objectives, e-learning standards, or SCORM);
Best Approaches (selecting a learning management system; implement-
ing SCORM); Standards; and Healthcare E-Learning Collaborations.
 The Web 115

Partnerships for Training-Online Education Resources

for the Health Professions
http://www.pftweb.org

Partnerships for Training (PFT), an initiative of the Association of

Academic Health Centers, provides many excellent resources for using
distance education to reach health care students and workers in rural and
underserved areas. If you’re at the design stage for your tutorial, take the
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free online course entitled Raising the Bar: Standards and Strategies
for Learner-Centered Online Instruction. Learner-centered instruction,
closely related to constructivist education, is more relevant to instructor-
led online courses but has some implication for self-paced tutorials. The
PFT site also contains a collection of learning objects, links to online
education in The Best of PFT section, and an extensive list of online re-
sources for distance education.

CONCLUSION

While the importance of technology in new educational models can-

not be underestimated, truly critical is use of the appropriate technol-
ogy aligned with the best possible instructional strategy for the type of
content being taught. The above resources should help designers and
developers of online tutorials make good decisions about effective in-
structional strategies, and the technologies to supplement them.