Blog Post #5: Principles of Learning Design and Active Learning

What authentic problem would you use to design a lesson using Merrill’s principles?

Authentic Problem
I am currently working as a junior business analyst at a startup SaaS company. Two current projects I am actively involved in include updating the customer health index. While updating the customer health index for February, I noticed an increasing number of unhealthy customers compared to January, resulting in higher churn rates. As a junior BA, I aim to analyze the factors contributing to this issue and develop actionable strategies to improve user engagement and reduce churn. 

Activation and Demonstration
All team members have access to and have prior knowledge of measuring healthy customers, commonly used in tech companies. These metrics include engagement rates, churn rates, expansion rates, NPS scores, and customer effort scores. Therefore, this information can be used to visualize to identify patterns and trends. This process enables me to formulate data-driven insights and recommendations. Once I draw meaningful insights, I can create an infographic of 3 – 4 main factors contributing to higher churn rates so that the audience can absorb new information more effectively. 

Application & Integration
Once I present new information/knowledge, I could provide opportunities for learners to apply their analytical skills and knowledge to the problem. This could involve analyzing real data sets from the company’s software platform and user surveys or interviews. To integrate into the ‘real world’, I could facilitate discussions and team activities where learners can integrate their findings and insights into a comprehensive action plan.

Here is the learning template! – simpler version than the above

What media or multimedia (interactive or not) would you create to support it?

I believe that creating an interactive video is most useful in this scenario as the problem requires active learning. I aim to create a safe learning environment where learners can practice analytical and data-compiling skills as they progress through my video. I could develop an interactive video where I demonstrate the analysis of a dataset, explaining how to transform datasets into various visualizations such as pivot tables, infographics, and real-time data visualizations. Throughout the video, I will incorporate elements like quizzes and Cornell notes to ensure that the audience absorbs the information effectively, gaining a thorough understanding of key concepts and enhancing their ability to apply analytical skills to real-world problems. At the end of the interactive video, I could incorporate features such as questionnaires and discussion forums to collect feedback on the video and address any questions or uncertainties that may arise.

How have you found the balance of passive and active learning in this course for your learning? How does it compare to your experience in other courses?

I find the balance between passive and active learning well-executed. Mary provides ample learning materials to achieve the objectives for each module, along with reflection questions and practical exercises for students to explore and ensure their understanding of the materials. As a BCOM student, many courses are primarily lecture-based. Unfortunately, the balance between active and passive learning is often overlooked. Courses tend to be more one-directional, with most ‘active’ learning occurring through bi-monthly group projects. While these projects encourage students to apply what they’ve learned in class, they are not as thoughtfully designed as this course.

What was your experience of trying out H5P? Which of the activities do you think you would make the most use of in your teaching context and what would you use them to do?

I am impressed with H5P. It offers numerous features that can be incorporated into creating teaching materials, making learning more interactive and enjoyable! I tried creating interactive videos using the video from Screencastify exercises, 360° virtual videos of Seoul, and a graph. Creating the interactive video was fairly straightforward and fun; adding quizzes, text, multiple-choice, etc., made the process enjoyable. I believed these elements could greatly enhance the learning experience and ensure that the audience absorbed new information well. However, creating the 360° virtual video was quite challenging, and I am not entirely satisfied with the outcome. I did my best to explore its features and see how far I could go. I thought the virtual video feature could be extremely useful in geography or international study courses, providing a sense of real imagery through essentially a virtual tour. 

Here are some of the examples of H5P activities I tried!

360° virtual video

Population by countries (in millions)

Which ones do you think require the most resources to create?

From what I have observed, I believe that features such as Game Map, Timeline, Branching Scenario, and Impressive Presentation would require the most resources to create. Unlike interactive videos, quizzes, accordions, Cornell notes, etc., the four mentioned features often require gathering information and images from multiple sources, as well as complex and well-considered planning, scripting, and execution. 

In the reading, Students Need to DO Something, do any of the author’s experiences with passive learning in K-12 classrooms resonate with your own?

I highly resonated with the entire article. Even though I am in my fourth year, I still experience many of the same issues with passive learning that the authors described in K-12 classrooms. Lectures heavily rely on PowerPoint slides, and students are expected to simply write notes. However, most PowerPoint slides are so condensed that I understand only 20% of the content. They are typically in bullet point format, and sometimes it takes professors a long time to explain them, even though they created the slides themselves. I strongly agree that transitioning directly from direct instruction to independent practice to assessment is ineffective; it often intimidates students and makes them feel like failures. This experience is still very relevant and evident at the university level as well.

Why do you think active learning is not more prevalent in K-12?

I think active learning is less prevalent in K-12 education due to the emphasis on achieving high grades and gaining admission to universities. Therefore, K-12 institutions often use traditional teaching styles and standardized testing, focusing on the memorization of facts over the development of critical thinking and problem-solving skills. As a result, teachers frequently concentrate on preparing students for these tests rather than implementing active learning strategies. Moreover, there could be a time constraint. With a fixed curriculum, it may be challenging to allocate enough time for practicing active learning, which typically demands a more extensive amount of time compared to passive learning. 

Have you tried using any of these activities in a classroom? Which one looks most appealing to you?

One of my BCOM courses during my third year incorporated many mini-projects and weekly discussions, which greatly enhanced students’ ability to absorb, understand, and apply knowledge through collaboration. These mini-projects encompassed various types, such as research, visualization, and presentations. I found transforming system-thinking designs into visual drawings particularly enjoyable. This process not only allowed me to grasp the interconnectedness of each component but also enabled me to understand why a specific design was effective. The thoughtful design of the course and the interactive nature of the mini-projects made the learning experience engaging and memorable!