Comprehensive Instructional Design Plan

Mallorie E. Hyatt

The University of West Georgia

 Client

Name: Terra Brown

Position: 7th Grade Life Science

School: General Ray Davis Middle School

Email: tbrown@rockdale.k12.ga.us

Georgia Certification Number: 397633

Instructional Problem

Mrs. Brown is a 7th grade Life Science teacher at General Ray Davis Middle School in

Conyers, Georgia. I learned in my discussions with Mrs. Brown that students historically

struggle with concepts related to the organization of life. Mrs. Brown felt that visually

enhanced materials would be beneficial in helping students construct meaning and

understanding of the concept of the levels of organization of life.

Instructional Model

I chose to utilize Gagne’s 9 Steps of Instruction in developing this lesson.

Gain attention

The first step of Gagne’s 9 Events of Instruction will be fulfilled by utilizing online

learning, videos and enhanced visual activities to gain and keep the attention of the digital

natives that make up the learners in the classroom.

Inform learners of objectives

Learners will be informed of objectives throughout the lesson in writing and verbal

delivery. Objectives will be included on the website, in writing on the board, and in the

assessment rubric. The teacher will review objectives verbally of objectives as well.

Stimulate recall of prior learning

 This lesson is designed to be implemented after an initial introduction to the concepts.

Present the content

The content will be presented interactively using a self-paced online format utilizing

video and enhanced visuals. These materials were designed with Mayer’s Principles of

Multimedia in careful consideration.

Provide “learning guidance”

The teacher will facilitate students at all stages of this lesson though clear instructions,

monitoring, and one-on-one guidance throughout the entire course of the lesson as

students learn and apply their knowledge of these concepts.

Elicit performance

Students will apply their knowledge of the concepts of the organization of life

interactively through the use of a graphic organizer, practicing their understanding through

Quizlet games, and then later by working in pairs, creating and presenting PowToon

videos demonstrating this knowledge.

Provide feedback

Teacher provided feedback will be given continuously over the course of the lesson,

both formally and informally as well as written and verbally. This feedback will be given

on the graphic organizer, Quizlet activities, and throughout and following the process in

which students work in pairs to create PowToon videos that reflect their understanding

and application of these concepts.

Assess performance

Performance will be assessed through student presentations and a corresponding

rubric. In addition to each of the rubric categories, rubric will also contain a place for
 written feedback from the teacher, specifically in the form of a “Glow”- What the students

did well on the assignment, and a “Grow”- at least one piece of constructive feedback on

what students could improve.

Enhance retention and transfer to the job

The teacher will review and debrief following students’ presentations of their videos.

The teacher will instruct students a reflect on their peers’ presentations and what they

learned about the concepts from their own production as well as the productions of their

peers. In a digital learning environment, these reflections could be recorded by the

students and uploaded as vlogs that could be commented on and viewed by peers (a page

moderated by the teacher, of course), or students could simply write a reflection in their

journals.

Lesson

This lesson is designed to be delivered after initial introduction to both stages of the

organization of life. After being given a corresponding graphic organizer, students will view

the infographic and then the video on both stages of organization of life online in a Weebly

webpage (linked here: https://lifescienceorganizationoflife.weebly.com/) so that they will

have control/ability to pause and rewind the video as well have access to the visual content as

long as needed. Each visual is paired with a corresponding Quizlet game to reinforce concept.

Then, students will work in pairs and choose an organism and create a Powtoon video that

includes images represented that animal at each level of organization from organelle all the

way up to the biome where that animal can be found. Before beginning work on this project,

the teacher will review the expectations and grading protocol with the students by reviewing

the grading rubric designed for this project, as well as providing students with a digital copy
of the rubric for reference while they work. Finally, each pair will present their Powtoon to

the class.

Assessment

The self-paced online learning module contains activities and informal assessments to check

for student learning based on the content in the module. Students will be able to attempt these

assessments as many times as needed to demonstrate mastery. These assessment tools were created

using Quizlet.

The student-created videos will be assessed by a rubric that the teacher will use to

provide feedback as videos are presented. The rubric will contain four areas: Organizational

levels Part I, Organization Levels Part II, Accuracy of Information, and Relevant Images. The

rubric for this assignment is included below.

Powtoon Presentation Rubric:

Organization of Life
Group: ________________________ Points:
_____________/16
Level IV Level III Level II Level 1
(4 Points) (3 Points) (2 Points) (1 Point)
Organizational Included Included Included Included
Levels I accurate accurate accurate accurate
examples of examples in at examples in at examples in
each of the least five of the least four of the three or less
following areas specified areas. specified areas. of the
of organization specified
pertaining to the areas
selected plant or
animal:
organelle, cell,
tissue, organ,
organ system,
and organism
Organizational Included Included Included Included
Levels II accurate accurate accurate accurate
examples of examples in at examples in at examples in
each of the three or less
 following areas least five of the least five of the of the
of life specified areas specified areas specified
organization areas
pertaining to the
selected plant or
animal:
Organism,
population,
community,
ecosystem,
biome,
biosphere
Accuracy of All of the Most of the Much of the Much or all of
Information information information information the
included in the included in the included in the information
video is video is video is included in
accurate; no accurate; there accurate; there the video is
content are one or two are a few inaccurate
mistakes present mistakes present mistakes
Relevant Images Presentation Presentation Presentation Presentation
includes 10 or includes at least includes at least includes 5 or
more relevant 8 relevant 6 relevant fewer relevant
images images images images

Justification

The artifacts I created for this instruction are the right solution for helping to solve the

instruction problem for multiple reasons. I chose to create a video and an infographic aimed at

increasing understanding of the complex concept of the organization of life to appeal to the

visual nature of today’s digital natives. I incorporated these artifacts in a self-paced learning

module that can be accessed multiple times by the students and included multiple opportunities

for informal assessment through the use of corresponding Quizlet activities and quizzes that I

created. Every component includes visuals related to the concept outlined previously. Both the

video and the infographic were created and designed with Mayer’s Principles of Multimedia in

mind, as well as the elements and principles of design in order to achieve high-impact artifacts

that are well-suited in addressing the instructional problem.

 ACRL Visual and Literacy Competency Standards

The ACRL Visual and Literacy Competency Standards are reflected in the visuals I have

designed. For instance, Standard Five states that “the visually literate student uses images and

visual media effectively” (Ala.org, 2011). The video and infographic I designed and created as

artifacts for this instructional design plan reflects the effective use of images for the purposes of

organizing concepts in both the infographic and the video that I created in such a way that allows

learners to build visual meaning and understanding of these concepts presented in this particular

content pertaining to the organization of life in 7th grade Life Science.

In accordance with the second component of this standard, I effectively utilized

technology to work with these images, including the use of the Easel.ly program, PowerPoint,

and Screencastify to create visually appealing visuals that are easy to follow and understand.

This is also in line with Standard Six, which stated that “The visually literate student designs and

creates meaningful images and visual media” (Ala.org, 2011). By design, the video and the

infographic both demonstrate organization of these concepts and are appropriately designed for

middle school learners. These visuals were carefully constructed, with care taking to ensure use

“design strategies and creativity in image and visual media production” (Ala.org, 2011).

Reflection

This instructional design project was carefully considered and planned based on

numerous discussions with my client, Mrs. Terra Brown. The content was ideal for use in

planning, creating, and designing visual artifacts to address the instructional problem and

enhance student learning. The construction of the self-paced learning module seemed to be an

effective route in organizing the content and materials in a way that appeals to learners as the

digital natives that they are, and this method should provide an opportunity for students to build
understanding of these concepts. I particularly preferred this format because not only did it allow

me to focus on the presentation and organization of the content as well as the artifacts as I

constructed these items, but it also allows students to receive the information as intended in a

way that is clear, concise, and hopefully easy to follow and understand.

Artifact I

Artifact II
 References

Ala.org, A. (2018, March 09). ACRL Visual Literacy Competency Standards for Higher

Education. Retrieved from http://www.ala.org/acrl/standards/visualliteracy

EduTech. (n.d.). Nine events of instruction. Retrieved July 1, 2018, from

http://edutechwiki.unige.ch/en/Nine_events_of_instruction