Learn on the run: A study of instructional design practices in podcasting

• Main Author: Becher-Young, Lisa C
• Format: Dissertation
• Language: English
• Published: ProQuest Dissertations & Theses 01-01-2009
• Subjects: Educational technology; Instructional Design
• ISBN: 9781109433739; 1109433735

Historically, audio and video instruction has been developed using instructional design practices and models (Chute, A. & Shatzer, L., 1989; Padolina, M., 1997; Sun, X., 2001). The delivery of audio and video media through podcasting has provided an easy way for instructional personnel to create and deliver this media to students (Campbell, G., 2005). It is not known what instructional design processes are being used for the development and integration of podcasts into courses. Nor is it known if the background of instructional personnel impacts the instructional design processes used for creating or enhancing instruction with podcasts. This study sought to determine the answers to three research questions. Namely, the study addressed how podcasts are used in courses, the instructional design processes used while creating podcasts, and whether there is a relationship between instructional personnel's background in instructional design and the instructional design practices they use in developing podcasts. This quantitative study used a survey instrument to determine the answers to these questions. The survey was sent via e-mail to instructors of record on the iTunes® University public site as well as instructional designers and technologists at iTunes University institutions of higher education located in the United States. Survey recipients were encouraged to share the survey with their colleagues in a snowball sampling event. Study participants shared how they use podcasts in their courses and identified the instructional design processes they use in the creation of their podcasts and the development of the lessons and courses containing the podcasts. Using descriptive statistics, including frequency, median, and mode, it was found that instructional personnel employ many instructional design processes in the development of their podcasts as well as when incorporating them into their courses. Additionally, participants identified their background in instructional design. This data were analyzed against the instructional design processes they employed using chi-square analysis to determine if there was a relationship between their background and the instructional design processes they use in developing their podcasts. It was found that there is a significant relationship between one instructional design process and the instructional personnel's background in instructional design.