1. THE LEARNING DESIGNER SOFTWARE GUIDE
This is the user guide for the session; it will
guide you step by step with the use of the
software. The text in bold is used
throughout the document to denote the ∝∝
action points (e.g. double click on folder The Learning Designer software layout
icon); italicised text denotes the labels and consists of two parts - Navigation part, on
items in the interface. the left, and Design part, on the right.
∝∝ Throughout the document we will refer to
these as such to help you locate the
features we refer to in the instructions.
Adopting and interpreting learning designs
Review existing learning designs:
• Expand the Examples folder in the
folder tree (top left)
• Double click on the module design
titled Intriguing Theories.
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2. This opens the design in the design area
and also create a copy of the ‘Intriguing
Theories’ you can see if you expand the
Modules folder (as this is a Module learning
design file)… this is the copy you will be
working with.
∝∝
∝∝
The Learning Designer software allows for
three ‘views’ on the learning design
instance, at both the Module, and the
Session level. These are Properties,
Timeline, and Analysis views. Take some
time to examine each of these three views
by clicking on the buttons at the top of
the design area.
∝∝
To access one of the three sessions within
Intriguing Theories module click on the
Timeline tab at the top of the design area
and then double click one of the session
boxes.
∝∝
∝∝
Double clicking on one of the session boxes
opens that session design in the tab
adjacent to the module tab. Three buttons
are available for accessing the session’s
Properties, Timeline and Analysis. Take
some time to examine each of these three
views by clicking on the buttons at the
top of the design area.
∝∝ ∝∝
For example, try clicking on the Timeline
button to access the timeline view (or the
score) of the Teaching and Learning
Activities (TLAs) for the session. Click on
one of the TLAs to see the properties for
that TLA below the timeline in the design
area.
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3. Adapting learning designs
The Learning Designer software can help
you to redesign the session so that it makes
more and better use of technology.
∝∝
To the right of the design area, in the
Timeline view, you will find the Palette
component. This component contains the
list of the Teaching and Learning Activity
types that you may consider using in your
redesign. Take some time to examine this
list and the categories available.
∝∝
Click on one Teaching Learning Activity
item to inspect its Properties (these are
what’s plotted under the Analysis tab) and
the associated definition available
immediately below the list of TLAs. The TLA
Properties component allows you to inspect
the types of student (cognitive) activities
that a particular TLA type affords.
Search for advice and guidance
Additional support is available to you in the
form of the search facility, at the top right of
the design area. Try typing ‘session’ in
the search box and explore results.
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4. Context sensitive help
The more context sensitive advice, the
advice that takes into the account the
learning design in the Timeline and advises
on the ways to optimize it, can be found in
the ‘Ways to optimize your design’
component at the bottom of the navigation
part. Click to select one TLA in Timeline
and read the Learning Designer’s
recommendation on the ways to optimize
this activity by the use of TEL.
Creating and deleting TLAs
When you have found the candidate TLA in
the Palette to replace a TLA in the original
design, drag and drop the TLA from the
Palette to the Timeline. This will create a
new TLA box in the timeline with default
values.
∝∝ ∝∝
You can delete the newly created TLA, try
the following: click on the newly created
TLA in the Timeline to select it, then click
on the ‘X’ button (at the top of the design
part) to delete it.
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5. Customizing the Learning Designer
‘What if I cannot find the Teaching Learning The Learning Designer can be customised
Activity type in the list on offer in the in several ways. Here we will show how to
Palette?’ – is a common question. The customise the knowledge base that the
simple answer is to make your own. Learning Designer uses to understand your
design.
Customising the existing TLAs
Click to select a TLA item in the list in the
Palette component, then change default
values in the fields in the Properties
component to reflect your design intent
better. Then click on the TLA in the
timeline to update its properties.
Creating a TLA from scratch
In the Palette click on My TLAs category
to expand it. Click on the Create new TLA
to generate new Default TLA item in this
category. Click on the newly created
Default TLA to access its properties in the
Properties panel below the Palette
component.
∝∝ ∝∝
Click on the Session Type field to select
its type from the list. Change other values
in the Properties pane to suit your intent.
When finished drag the newly created
Default TLA and drop it in the Timeline.
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6. Try your hand at redesigning a session to the design-brief
The sessions that you are reusing in this One way to make apparent the
exercise have all been designed for advantages of using the Learning Designer
conventional mode of delivery, that is, their software is to try to work to the following
design makes minimal use of Technology redesign brief:
Enhanced Learning, and maximal use of the
teacher’s time to prepare, present,
‘Due to the volcanic eruption the ash
moderate, and monitor the sessions. cloud is preventing you to travel back to
∝∝ deliver in person the session you are
thinking of reusing. You need to
Here are some suggestions you may redesign the session so that it is solely
consider in responding to the redesign brief: technology mediated. You are not
• Replace Tutor Presentation with a available to present, moderate, and
video resource monitor any part of the session in
• Replace Plenary Discussion with an person. Good luck!’
online tutor-guided discussion
Don’t forget to check the consequences of your redesign by clicking on the Analysis button at
the top of the design pane.
By the way of an example below are two
snapshots of the Analysis screen showing
‘before’ (on the left), and ‘after’ (on the
right) the example redesign. In the
redesign we have substituted Resource-
based Individual activity with its TEL
equivalent - TEL Resource-based
Individual Activity.
Before TEL After TEL
The gains of using TEL in this particular example scenario are in:
• the increase of the Individualised learning experience for students (the stacked bar
chart), as TEL resource adapts to the individual students needs better, and,
• doubling of the reuse time, as TEL resources are reusable
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7. Evaluating and exporting learning design
Click on the Analysis button at the top of The analysis offers several dimensions of
the design area to see the Learning insight, most of which are concerned with
Designer’s analysis of your design. the learning experience but it also breaks
down the estimate of the resourcing of the
learning design.
To save your learning design – click on the
session item in the navigation tree to
We would like to collect your redesigns at
select it, in the application menu click on
the end of the hands-on part of today’s
File item and then click on Export
session, to perhaps look at these in the
learning design option.
plenary part of the session.
Thank you for your time!
The LDSE team
The Learning Designer project website: http://www.ldse.org.uk
Pedagogical Pattern Collector tool: http://tinyurl.com/ldsepatterns
Project contact: Professor Diana Laurillard – d.laurillard@ioe.ac.uk
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