With our growing dependence on technology, learning, and training methods are also changing. The two primary training methods are Instructional design and Traditional training. Due to technological advancements, these two approaches are being reevaluated regarding their effectiveness. The blog compares the two methods and analyzes their performance and effectiveness.
What is instructional Design
Instructional design is creating efficient training programs, with instructional materials and delivering them for a better experience. It depends on an established framework and principles of learning theory for developing resources, activities, and assessments for specific learning objectives.
Instructional design is also known as instructional systems development (or ISD). The three basic components of instructional design are: learning objectives, instructional activities, and assessments. To ensure a structured design process, professionals follow different models like ADDIE (i.e. analyze, design, develop, implement and evaluate) or SAM (i.e. successive approximation model).
Instructional design follows a learner-centered approach. It defines specific learning outcomes to understand the learners’ backgrounds, needs, and goals. The design encourages active participation through various hands-on activities and multimedia options and constantly assesses the effectiveness of the training.
What is Traditional Training
Traditional training methods are the conventional methods of imparting education. In this method, an expert instructor delivers educational information to the learners through lectures and guided practices, thus following a passive learning approach. It also includes textbooks and standardized tests. It focuses on classroom-based learning, which accounts for the learners’ overall needs. Due to the absence of individual focus, the evaluation happens at the end of the training period.
Traditional training methods are criticized for not adapting to individual preferences and requirements. The material is also designed in a generalized manner, resulting in a less flexible experience for the learners.
Comparison Between Instructional Design And Traditional Training
To conclude which method is more effective, let us compare the two methods for their advantages and disadvantages.
1. Learner Engagement:
Instructional Design: This method focuses on active learning and emphasizes learner engagement through various assessments, interactive modules, and simulations designed for specific learners to allow them to apply their knowledge to real-world contexts. This leads to better engagement, which then results in better outcomes.
Traditional Training: This method focuses on lecture-based learning, which follows a passive learning approach. This may cause the learners to struggle to stay focused on the lesson, thus leading to disengagement.
2. Personalized Learning:
Instructional Design: This method offers a highly personalized and adaptive learning experience that focuses on the needs and background of the learners. This enables learners to go at their own pace and customize the content according to their interests.
Traditional Training: This method focuses on a more generalized approach to learning, limiting the personalization of the content. This may lead to learners finding the content unsuitable for their interests or goals.
3. Learning outcome:
Instructional Design: Personalizing the content and providing simultaneous feedback help refine the learning experience, ensuring better results. The students can perform better with specified learning, producing the desired learning outcomes.
Traditional Training: Since this method focuses on generalized learning, feedback is given at the end of the teaching, making it hard to note the students’ progress and retention of the content. This leads to ambiguity in the learning outcomes.
4. Flexibility:
Instructional Design: instructional design offers more flexible learning. It relies on online platforms or learning models that allow the learners to access the content anytime, anywhere. Also, as the learning takes place through both, the remote and physical modes, it makes the learning flexibility a necessary factor.
Traditional Training: this method relies on in-person lectures, which makes it necessary for the learners to attend them at a specific time and location. This makes learning less flexible, especially for working professionals.
5. Cost And Time Efficiency:
Instructional Design: developing high-quality instructional design programs requires an investment of both time and money. But with the increased productivity in terms of reduced errors and faster, more accessible learning, the cost can be recovered over time. Also, it reduces the time consumption as the learning or training material once generated is saved on the online platforms and can be referred to anytime, without the need for repeated lectures.
Traditional Training: various expenses like the need for instructors, physical materials, and venue make traditional training methods more expensive. Also, in-person lectures can lead to less productivity and more time consumption.
6. Structured Learning Environment:
Instructional Design: learning content is usually available on the online platforms all at the same time which can confuse the learners on which module to pick first and how to manage their time. This can result in the learners not following a fixed schedule or routine.
Traditional Training: with in-person lectures and a fixed curriculum, the learners can follow a set schedule. Also, the structure of the lessons is well-defined, giving an order to the learning. This helps learners with a well-built routine, increasing their productivity.
7. Social Development:
Instructional Design: as this method focuses on online platform-based learning, it isolates learners. This can hinder the growth of their social and teamwork skills.
Traditional Training: traditional learning or in-person lectures promote interaction between learners. This helps in developing the social and teamwork skills of the learners, preparing them for real-world interactions.
Conclusion
After analyzing the advantages and disadvantages of both Instructional Design as well as Traditional Training, it can be concluded that Instructional Design is a more effective approach for learning. It is learner-centric and more adaptable and focuses more on the learning outcome making it a better-suited option emphasizing efficiency and long-term results. The use of technology or online platforms for imparting learning makes instructional design a more flexible and personalized method than traditional training.
Although traditional training has its benefits in terms of structured learning and focus on the social development of the learners, with the advancing technology the instructional design method can prove to be more effective and efficient.
FAQs About Instructional Design & Traditional Training
1. What is instructional design?
Instructional design is a process of creating effective learning and training programs. It focuses on designing content considering the materials and technologies better suited to generate desired results. It mainly follows models like ADDIE or SAM to meet the needs of the learners.
2. What is traditional training?
- Traditional training methods are the conventional methods of imparting knowledge. It focuses on in-person lectures, that follow a one-size-fits-all approach. This ensures a teacher-centric learning process.
3. Which method offers a more effective learning experience:
- Both, instructional design and traditional training have their advantages and disadvantages. On comparing the two, instructional design proves to be more effective than traditional training as it offers better learner engagement with personalized and flexible learning, resulting in better outcomes. It is also a more cost and time-effective approach.
