IntroductionSoftware design and related practices and methods have had a significant influence over the Instructional Design field. For example, ADDIE, Dick and Carey, and Rapid Prototyping are heavily influenced by software development methodologies (Rawsthorne, 2005).
Software design methodology is now going through another paradigm shift — Agile Design. And rather than being a methodology, it is more a philosophy or ethos that is best described by its manifesto (Agile Alliance, 2001):
"We are uncovering better ways of developing software by doing it and helping others do it. Through this work, we have come to value:
Individuals and interactions over processes and tools
Working software over comprehensive documentation
Customer collaboration over contract negotiation
Responding to change over following a plan
That is, while there is value in the items on the right, we value the items on the left more." |
Agile ApproachThe Agile approach recognizes the need for collaboration, faster design solutions, feedback, and continuous improvement for producing business value in our ever faster and more networked society. For learning professionals to keep pace with the rest of the organization, Agile Design can be adapted to fit the needs of the learning and training community by providing an ethos for the design of learning:
"We are uncovering better ways of designing learning processes by doing it and helping others do it. Through this work, we have come to value:
Individuals and interactions over processes and tools
Solutions that promote and speed the development of learning processes over comprehensive documentation
Customer collaboration over contract and formal negotiation
Responding to change over following a plan
That is, while there is value in the items on the right, we value the items on the left more." |
| | Values and Principles of Agile DesignAgile is a more of a philosophy, it has values and principles that guide its practices. The Sidky Agile Measurement Index (SAMI), developed by Sidky and Arthur (2008), is probably the most widely used method for guiding Agile principles. It is composed of five values: communication, collaboration, evolutionary, integrated, and encompassing. These three of Malcolm Gladwell’s ideas in The Tipping Point heavily inspired the five values:
People: Communication and collaboration
Message: Evolutionary, integrated, and adaptive
Suitable environment: All encompassing
The five values with their descriptions (descriptions have been adapted to fit learning design rather than software development):
Encompassing: Establishing a vibrant and all-encompassing learning environment to sustain agility
Adaptive: Responding to change through multiple levels of feedback
Integrated: Developing high quality learning solutions in an efficient and integrated manner
Evolutionary: Delivering learning processes and platforms early and continuously
Collaborative: Enhanced communication and collaboration |
Five Tight PrinciplesThe Agile Manifesto outlines twelve principles; however, Sidky and Arthur (2008) discovered they could group them into five tight principles (the descriptions have been adapted to describe learning design rather than software development):
Embrace change to deliver customer value
Plan and deliver learning processes and platforms frequently
Human centric
Technical excellence
Collaboration with business people |
The Four Essences of Agile Design1. Self-organizing teams collaborate to ensure the values and principles of Agile Learning Design are upheld to bring value to the organization or business.
2. An appreciation for adaptability and flexibility that brings small changes over the long term, rather than the uncertainty of prediction that waterfall or linear design methods impose.
3. Iterative design methods that are based on real world experience and research.
4. Customer involvement and collaboration from start to end to ensure their needs are met to the fullest. |
Adaptive vs. Predictive in Agile DesignThese value and principles make Agile more adaptive rather than predictive; and people-oriented rather than process-oriented (Fowler, 2003). However, it is misleading to view it on the opposite end of a spectrum from a plan-driven or disciplined method as it implies that agile methods are unplanned or undisciplined. A more accurate distinction is that methods exist on a continuum from adaptive to predictive and agile methods lie on the adaptive side of this continuum (Boehm, Turner, 2004). |
|
Cheatographer
Metadata
Favourited By
Comments
No comments yet. Add yours below!
Add a Comment
Related Cheat Sheets
More Cheat Sheets by Davidpol