Monday, June 17
Online Only. All times Eastern Daylight Time.
Current Eastern Daylight Time (click for more info)
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11:30 - 12:00 | Conference Welcome, Announcements, & Land Acknowledgement
Host: Katy Link to Welcome Slides
12:00 - 1:00 | Keynote
Host: Katy
Speaker | Stephanie Moore
University of New Mexico
Grand Challenges in Instructional Design and Technology: Developing a Strategic Plan for Coordinated Research and Development
Abstract
Other fields have convened meetings and issued reports on “grand challenges” in their disciplines as a way to organize and coordinate research, development, and funding efforts. One such example includes grand challenges for engineering, an effort led by the National Academy of Engineering (2024), through which the field has identified four major themes (sustainability, health, security, and joy of living) and 14 specific goals (such as making solar energy economical, restoring and improving urban infrastructure, providing access to clean water, and providing energy from fusion). These grand challenges and themes in turn inform research and development agendas, including priorities for funding, as a way to motivate and coordinate efforts on challenges that are global in nature. Other fields such as disaster reduction (Committee on Environment and Natural Resources, 2020), mathematics education (NCTM Research Committee, 2015), and social work (Grand Challenges for Social Work, 2024) have similarly convened meetings and sessions to articulate primary themes and specific goals that comprise grand challenges. Grand challenges are major, complex problems in a field that should be solvable within a generation or two and that would have great societal and economic impact depending on how they are addressed or left unaddressed (Mertens & Barbian, 2015). George et al. (2016) defined grand challenges as “global problems that can be plausibly addressed through coordinated and collaborative effort” (p.1880). The field of instructional design and technology has not had such conversations or engaged in such strategic planning to date. In this session, Dr. Moore will discuss the premise of grand challenges, explore some examples from other disciplines, and then open the session for small- and whole-group discussion as a kick-off convening on what grand challenges face the field of instructional design and technology and how we might coordinate efforts – on local and global scales – to move the dial on problems with both social, educational, and other impacts. We will conclude with discussions on implications for OTESSA, possible international collaborations, and next steps.
1:00 - 1:15 | Break
1:15 - 2:45 | Concurrent Session 13
Session 13.1 | Transitions of Online Learning and Teaching
Host: Katy
1:15 - 2:15 | Procurement and Vendor Relations as Leverage Points for Ethics in Ed Tech
Practice
Stephanie Moore & Heather Tillberg-Webb | University of New Mexico
Practitioners are not always in a design role or design-only role but also in roles where technology selection, procurement, and implementation are primary tasks. Procurement and technology selection processes can be significant leverage points for integrating ethical considerations – such as accessibility, data rights, and privacy – into educational technology decision making through selection and purchasing. Doing so often relies on the nature of the relationship that instructional design and academic tech teams have with vendors, and those relationships can vary greatly from one vendor to another.
This session will explore experiences with various vendors and examples of how dialogue and collaboration with a responsive vendor can impact learning and non-learning related outcomes, and can save a project. We will also explore examples where breakdowns in review and procurement processes or communications with a vendor had deleterious outcomes for implementing an ed tech product into the learning ecosystem. These examples and non-examples help to identify particular points in the process of dealing with vendors from standards development to procurement to implementation to on-going partnerships and also discuss multi-party vendor relationships. We will share examples from our own current and previous experiences in various roles across our careers as a VP of academic technology, Director of Instructional Design, and instructional designers (see Appendix A). We will also invite session participants to share examples from their own work.
2:15 - 2:45 | Connecting Threads: Exploring the Link between Academic Helpseeking and Student Sense of Belonging in Online Learning
Research
Lawrence Armo Biney & Mariel Miller | University of Victoria
Students’ sense of belonging and their ability to engage in adaptive help-seeking are key factors to consider when supporting online, post-secondary learning. However, to date, few studies have examined how these factors intertwine to support academic performance in online learning environments. Using a theoretical framework of self-regulated learning, this study explores the relationship between students’ self-reported sense of belonging in an online learning tutorial and their engagement in adaptive and maladaptive help-seeking behaviors in the course. The participants were undergraduate students in a first-year, hybrid course. Sense of belonging was assessed using the sense of belonging subscale in the Perceived Cohesion scale. Academic help-seeking was measured using a scale adapted from Karabenick (2004) and Han (2014). Results are presented using descriptive statistics and a correlation matrix. These preliminary findings are the first steps in a larger MA thesis, which aims to contribute to a broader understanding of the interplay between a sense of belonging and help-seeking in online classrooms, paving the way for the design of supportive online learning.
Session 13.2 | Addressing Inequities
Host: Mariel
1:15 - 2:15 | Breaking Down Barriers: Using Docsify-This As an Entry Point to Markdown Open Publishing
Workshop
Paul Hibbitts | Hibbitts Design
The open-source project Docsify-This (public instance at https://docsify-this.net) aims to help open educators and publishers overcome barriers to using Markdown content for publishing and sharing open educational resources. With Docsify-This, users can leverage Markdown’s ubiquitous and system-independent format without needing to set up their own website, while keeping full control (including original location) of their source content.
Along with the benefits of using Markdown content for open publishing, significant technical barriers have often existed such as required platform configurations and build processes. And, once content is published, displaying it within other platforms and contexts is not easily accomplished. But with Docsify-This, any publicly available Markdown file can be instantly turned into a responsive standalone web page, and multiple Markdown files can even be linked together to provide a complete website. Individual Docsify-This generated Web pages can also be seamlessly embedded and visually re-styled into other platforms.
Further details about the process used to publish open content with Docsify-This will be shared, along with examples, demonstrations and a range of online activities, for those interested in innovations and educational equity related Open Educational Practices.
Session 13.3 | Transitions of Online Learning and Teaching & Wildcard
Host: Colin
1:15 - 1:45 | Building/Belonging: An Exploration of Digital and Place-Based Belonging Practices at University of Highlands & Islands
Research
Bonnie Stewart | University of Windsor
This presentation overviews a case study of belonging, considered and framed through the lens of both place-based identity and digital education. The case study project under discussion aims to build on the established digital practices of a distributed European higher and further education institution, with multiple regional campuses, which serve to make education accessible and inclusive to a remote population otherwise underserved. The session will present the lit review, design, and goals of the case study project, while exploring ideas of community belonging in traditionally diasporic regions as well as digital belonging in online classrooms. It will explore the affordances and impacts of both, and the ways the two may or may not intersect in this particular context. This project extends the exemplary research and practice being done at this institution with digital technologies, in hopes of making visible the ties between geographic and cultural belonging practices and those that can be amplified and supported digitally. This institution’s inclusive and accessible approaches may be of value to the OTESSA audience in a time when belonging is a need for students in many contexts.
1:15 - 2:15 | Forthcoming
1:45 - 2:45 | Breaking Down Barriers: Using Docsify-This As an Entry Point to Markdown Open Publishing
Moved to Session 13.2 (1:15-2:15)
Workshop
Paul Hibbitts | Hibbitts Design
The open-source project Docsify-This (public instance at https://docsify-this.net) aims to help open educators and publishers overcome barriers to using Markdown content for publishing and sharing open educational resources. With Docsify-This, users can leverage Markdown’s ubiquitous and system-independent format without needing to set up their own website, while keeping full control (including original location) of their source content.
Along with the benefits of using Markdown content for open publishing, significant technical barriers have often existed such as required platform configurations and build processes. And, once content is published, displaying it within other platforms and contexts is not easily accomplished. But with Docsify-This, any publicly available Markdown file can be instantly turned into a responsive standalone web page, and multiple Markdown files can even be linked together to provide a complete website. Individual Docsify-This generated Web pages can also be seamlessly embedded and visually re-styled into other platforms.
Further details about the process used to publish open content with Docsify-This will be shared, along with examples, demonstrations and a range of online activities, for those interested in innovations and educational equity related Open Educational Practices.
2:15 - 2:45 | Sprint to Success: A Journey in Advancing Educators’ Digital Fluency
Practice
Charlotte Delouche & Simon Moll | eCampusOntario
‘Sprint to Success: A Journey in Advancing Educators’ Digital Fluency’ is a dynamic workshop that centers around the transformative impact of the Ontario Extend Sprints within the micro-credential landscape.
Ontario Extend is a bilingual professional learning program that empowers educators to engage with emerging technologies and pedagogical practices for effective online teaching and learning. Over 1400 educators have completed the program since 2017, earning digital badges and enhancing their digital fluency.
Central to our discussion are the Sprints – concentrated, three-week sessions that have attracted more than 400 educators from 53 varied institutions in Ontario, all aiming to gain digital skills and the Empowered Educator micro-credential.
In the workshop, we will examine the core of these Sprints, revealing a story of collaboration and shared goals in digital literacy. Mirroring the collaborative nature of the Sprints, participants will engage in scenarios inspired by challenges faced during the Sprints, drawn from experiences of Sprint participants, facilitators, and organizers alike.
The evolving nature of the Sprints is a focal point, showcasing the importance of collaborative learning and ongoing development in digital education.
Join us to experience and contribute to the ongoing story of digital literacy in education. This workshop is your opportunity to engage with the narrative, add your perspective, and become part of this vibrant community.
2:45 - 3:00 | Break
3:00 - 4:00 | Ethics in Design Showcase 14
Showcase 14.1 | Sustaining Positive Change
Host: Meo Link to Post
Design of Learning Experiences for Cyranoids & Echoborgs
Amanda Tkaczyk | Independent Scholar
Cyranoids are individuals whose communication is determined by another person in real time (Milgram S., 1992). Echoborgs, a subset of Cyranoids, are individuals whose communication is determined by artificial intelligent agents (Corti, K., & Gillespie, A., 2015). With the widespread adoption of generative artificial intelligence tools that will enable the next generation of Echoborgs with highly sophisticated tools to mediate their human-to-human interactions, we are thrilled to explore the design of educational experiences for Cyranoid and Echborg learners. This project will include instructional materials and tools to support the learning and professional development of Echoborgs in your classroom, community, and workplaces. Online attendees can review materials and interact with chatbots. In-person attendees will have the opportunity to engage with a kiosk of learning materials and practice their interactions with a live Echborg learner.
This critical design project will present an exploration of how the future of education might adapt in response to AI-augmented & AI-dependent learners. We will explore themes of technology adoption, responsibility, ethics, equity, and care in this speculative educational design project.
Showcase 14.2 | Addressing Inequities
Host: Katy Link to Post
Cultural Dimensions of Ethics in Design: Indigenous Knowledge & Online Course Media
Brian Lorraine | Simon Fraser University
This session delves into the intricate design process of an online Indigenous Ethnozoology course, exploring the tensions, challenges, and ethical considerations encountered during an 8-month redesign and development period. Originally authored by a Squamish knowledge holder, the course featured recorded lectures intertwining oral histories with western scientific perspectives. The transition to a new instructor, a professor of white settler descent, prompted critical reflection on retaining Indigenous knowledge while improving instructional effectiveness. Drawing on cognitive load theory and empirical studies on video engagement, the design team navigated the complexities of honoring oral traditions while enhancing student learning experiences. This case study highlights the necessity for robust frameworks addressing Indigenous knowledge protocols in educational design, underscored by ongoing critical reflection to confront colonial legacies and promote ethical practices.
Showcase 14.3 | Addressing Inequities
Host: Colin Link to Post
Moving Towards Design Justice through Multivocal Design in Health Education
Danielle Dilkes | University of Western Ontario
This Design Case features an interprofessional stroke care case for health and medical education that was developed through a participatory design process. The objectives of the case were to highlight the complexities of interprofessional care and prepare learners for interprofessional practice. The approach to developing this case draws on key Design Justice principles: those most impacted by a design should be central in the design process and that various types of expertise exist and have value. The stroke care case was co-developed with patients, or Lived Experience Experts (LEEs), and all members of an interdisciplinary stroke care team, or Subject Matter Experts (SMEs). Patients were invited to share their real experience of stroke care, which became the basis of the case. Each health care professional was given full control over how their roles were portrayed, and invited to craft and star in their scenes within the case. This process resulted in a multivocal media rich case that more accurately reflects real patient experience and the real scope of practice for different health professionals. In our Design Case Exhibit, we will share multimedia components of the final case, but we will also share design knowledge in support of a more general framework for participatory design that could account for some of the complications of co-design across institutional roles.
4:00 - 4:15 | Discussion/Networking Pod Drop-In
Host: Meo