In redesigning a prior activity, a few difficulties arose and also tackled with confidence. As this degree program is concluding and more knowledge attained, the determining of principles, theories, and technological tools becomes more difficult as many useful options can be incorporated and employed successfully.  More education does not necessarily equate to an easier process for designing. With the understanding of a plethora of possibilities that can enhance the teaching and learning process, it is important to maintain restraint and resort the core elements of instructional design. In overcoming this challenge and refrain from the over designing of the lesson plan, it is important to refer to design principles that have been studied and focus on the learner.

In reflecting on prior knowledge acquired throughout this program, design principles became crucial for updating the PowerPoint presentation. It is critical to align the on-screen texts and images in a manner that is easy for the learner to decipher, process and comprehend.  The learning environment should be distraction free, and therefore will avoid using extraneous sounds and visual by remembering less is always more (Clark & Mayer, 2011). In failing to apply multimedia principles in practice, interactions can result in detracting from the learning process and causing a cognitive overload for the learner. The contiguity principle states that text is in close alignment to graphics, this is to curtail cognitive overload due to an unnecessary or extraneous material. This principle is critical in designing various learning activities (Clark & Mayer, 2011).

 

Conclusion

        The integration of technology and online tools offers students with various learning styles the opportunity to personalize the learning process. Incorporating technological tools into learning activities can help maintain student engagement, allow for collaboration with peers, and promotes critical thinking and creativity. Utilizing technology in the classroom also benefits students for preparing and developing twenty-first-century skills necessary to for a productive future.  The tools chosen for this assignment allow students to experience and demonstrate a deeper understanding of their knowledge.  The process of redesigning a prior learning activity was enlightening in recognizing how much growth and expertise that has occurred over the period of this master’s degree.

 

 

References

 

Boss, S. (2011, September 11). Technology Integration: What Experts Say. Retrieved April 18, 2015, from http://www.edutopia.org/article/technology-integration-what-experts-say

 

Butler, R. (2014, March 21). Rainforest Information for Kids. Retrieved July 5, 2015, from http://kids.mongabay.com/

 

Clark, R. C. & Mayer, R. E. (2011). E-Learning and the science of instruction (3rd ed). San Francisco. Pfeiffer.

 

Hall, T., Strangman, N., & Meyer, A. (2003). Differentiated instruction and implications for UDL implementation. Wakefield, MA: National Center on Accessing the General Curriculum. Retrieved from http://aim.cast.org/sites/aim.cast.org/files/DI_UDL.1.14.11.pdf

 

Horton, W. (2012). E-Learning by design (2nd ed.). San Francisco, CA: Wiley.

 

Lever-Duffy, J. & McDonald, J. B. (2015). Teaching and learning with technology (5th ed.).    Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education.

 

Li, Y. W. (2016). Transforming conventional teaching classroom to learner-centered teaching        classroom using multimedia-mediated learning module. International Journal of          Information and Education Technology, 6(2), 105-112.     doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.7763/IJIET.2016.V6.667

 

Moallem, M. (2007). Accommodating Individual Differences in the Design of Online Learning Environments: A Comparative Study. Journal Of Research On Technology In Education (International Society For Technology In Education), 40(2), 217.

 

Rainforests. (n.d.). Retrieved July 7, 2015, from http://www.stri.si.edu/sites/rainforest/canopy.html

 

Vaughan, N. (2007). Perspectives on blended learning in higher education. International Journal on ELearning, 6(1), 81-94. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/210364938?accountid=32521