What's The ASSURE Instructional Design Model?
Heinrich and Molenda created the ASSURE model in 1999. It is a well-known Instructional Design guide incorporating multimedia and technology to improve the learning environment from a constructivist perspective. Its name is an acronym for its components, which we'll see below. Let's dive deeper into the model and see how it can be applied in eLearning and how it benefits the overall learning experience.
The Model's 6 Components
1. Analyze Learners
The ASSURE model relies heavily on the learners, and its core is designed based on their needs. This is why the first step involves identifying the characteristics of the learners. Those can be their age, existing knowledge, education level, learning specificities, and a variety of other key details that are usually gathered through surveys and assessments. Once you've collected all the important info, you can start designing your lessons based on your learners' needs and preferences.
2. State Objectives
In the second step, you identify what learners should be able to do after completing the instructional materials. You can set the objectives based on the SMART method, so they should be specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound. This means that you should be able to know precisely what skills and knowledge the learners are going to acquire during a specific period. Additionally, you should set realistic goals relevant to the lessons to achieve the best learning outcome.
3. Select Methods
Decide which instruction methods you'll use to deliver the content. For example, if your lessons are more instructor-led, choosing lectures, presentations, and other demonstrations are ideal options. On the other hand, if they're more learner-centered, you should opt for group discussions and group activities. Once you've figured that out, you must choose the technology that will facilitate your teaching method.
4. Utilize Media And Materials
Now it's time to plan how you'll utilize the methods you've chosen in the previous step. More specifically, you should review the technology and other media to make sure they'll run smoothly during your lessons and prepare them accordingly. In addition, you need to prepare the teaching environment. Lastly, inform the learners about the entire process, including the material, objectives, and assessment type.
5. Require Learner Participation
Determine how you're going to actively engage your learners in the teaching process. For instance, you can establish mandatory participation in class discussions or ask them to guide the lesson themselves by asking questions or presenting themes for further analysis. You also need to consider how they're going to absorb the material.
6. Evaluate And Revise
In this final step, you have to decide whether your material is effective and make revisions if necessary. Evaluate your teaching strategies, the media, the technology you used, and how you implemented them. Also, you should determine if the lessons and learners met your objectives and if the overall experience catered to their individual needs. Feedback from your learners is important in this step to help you with your analysis. You can prompt them to take surveys on how the lesson has impacted them, whether they're satisfied with the experience, and if they've achieved their personal goals. Lastly, give them the results of their assessments and feedback based on their performance.
How You Can Apply ASSURE To eLearning
The ASSURE model can be used when designing eLearning courses, as it ensures personalized and engaging learning experiences for every member of your audience. First of all, analyze learners to design lessons that fit their needs and preferences. Then, use your preferred LMS to state the objectives of the lessons, and deliver the chosen multimedia and support resources like videos, interactive quizzes, discussion forums, or even Virtual and Augmented Reality (VR/AR) activities. You can also leverage your LMS to collect user data from learner participation, log-in information, time spent on the platform, etc. This, in addition to the online assessments and feedback from your learners, will allow you to evaluate the process holistically.
The Benefits Of ASSURE
Focus On Learners
The ASSURE model provides a systematic approach to designing lessons. This means that it ensures that instructional materials focus on achieving specific learning outcomes and that learners are actively engaged in the learning process. Also, learners always know what they're expected to learn and how.
Varied Instructional Methods
The model encourages the use of a variety of instructional methods. Technology and media offer virtually endless options to choose from. This optimizes the learning process, making it more individualized and relevant. This freedom of choice allows designers to create lessons catering to different learning needs and preferences.
Importance Of Evaluation
By emphasizing evaluation and revision, the model gives you the opportunity to constantly improve and update your content. Input from learners, as well as assessments, help designers create experiences that stick and monitor learner performance as they progress.
Conclusion
The ASSURE model gives Instructional Designers the power to create materials that are effective, engaging, and tailored to the needs of learners. Using this approach, you can create high-quality content that promotes active learning and maps out the entire process so that learners know where they're heading and how far they've come. You can also explore other ID strategies in our comprehensive list of Instructional Design models and theories.
