8.CONCLUSION & RECOMMENDATION

8.1 Conclusion

8.1.1 Regarding the EDS 199 Special Project

In the contemporary educational and learning context, without an instructional design is like going to a war without an armor and a game plan. Without it, educators and learners alike are left vulnerable, navigating through the complexities of teaching and learning without a structured approach or guiding framework. This absence of instructional design leads to a significant loss and misallocation of valuable resources, including time, energy, and educational materials.

Instructional design plays a pivotal role in effective teaching and learning, serving as the foundation upon which engaging and impactful instructional materials and interventions are crafted to address the diverse array of learning needs and styles. By integrating the principles of pedagogy, learning theories, and technology/media utilization, instructional design ensures that educational content is not only informative but also equitable, engaging, and accessible.

In essence, instructional design provides educators and learning design implementers with a strategic roadmap, guiding them through the rigorous process of planning, designing, implementing, and evaluating instructional mediation. Without the guidance of instructional design, teachers may become overwhelmed by the abundance of resources and methods available for lesson implementation, resulting in inefficiency and a loss of educational impact, such as student disengagement and an inability to achieve learning objectives.

By furnishing educators with structure and support, we empower them to deliver high-caliber instruction that maximizes their professional abilities and equips learners with the necessary skills, knowledge, and attitudes to thrive in a competitive academic and corporate environment. In the modern educational arena, we cannot afford for educators and learners to suffer from the pitfalls of learning and instructional chaos, lost opportunities, and diminished learning outcomes.

The instructional design developed for teaching the fundamentals of news and news writing is a significant advancement in preparing young student journalists for school press conferences. This program fills a critical gap in student development by providing a structured approach to journalism education, which is not commonly found in other schools in the district. The alignment with DepEd mandates further ensures the program’s long-term relevance and impact.

8.2 Recommendations for the EDS 199 Special Project

For those that will adopt this instructional design, I recommend the following points to be taken into consideration to ensure effectiveness and responsiveness of the project.

Be Thorough in Identifying Learning Gaps and Audience Needs: It is crucial to determine which learners are unfamiliar with journalism concepts, particularly news writing. Although many students might be capable of writing a short story, not all possess the skills to write a news report. Institutions adopting this program should identify their learners’ specific needs and unique demographics to modify lessons, technologies, activities, and assessments effectively. Continuous gathering of detailed learner profiles and needs analysis is necessary to ensure the design remains responsive and adaptive to the evolving student population.
- Determine which students need more support with journalism concepts and tailor lessons to their needs (individualized).
Explore Diverse Pedagogical Approaches: Continue exploring various pedagogical approaches, potentially grounded in other educational philosophies. This practice supports reflective teaching, adaptability, and flexibility in instructional design, ensuring it can accommodate diverse educational contexts and learner needs. Aligning instructional activities and assessment tasks with clear learning goals and objectives is essential for achieving desired outcomes.
Implement Structured Communication Protocols: Establish structured communication protocols and regular meetings with all stakeholders involved in the program. Developing a proactive attitude towards addressing potential conflicts and maintaining open communication channels fosters a collaborative environment and ensures that all parties are aligned in achieving the educational objectives.
Re-Pilot and evaluate your program, with feedback and analysis used to refine the design. As mentioned, establish a network of schools using the program will facilitate the sharing of best practices and continuous development, thereby enhancing the quality of campus journalism education across the district.
Adjust Session Duration. Depending on the learners' responsiveness and the understanding of the topics being discussed, the teacher may adjust the duration or timing for each session as required. It may be shorter or longer than estimated. Keep in mind that the main goal of the instruction is to engage the students into the materials and develop a high level of understanding of the content to ensure achievement of the desired learning outcome.
Maintain professional relationships with partner organizations involved in educational programs. This ensures impartiality when providing critiques and advice and allows the project to respond effectively to the needs of both learners and the institution.
Ensure Evidence-Based Instructional Design: The instructional design must be evidence-based to be effective. Materials and assessments should be developed based on accurately gauged needs, ensuring that they address the actual gaps in knowledge. Continuous alignment checks between objectives, activities, and assessments are necessary to maintain their effectiveness and relevance.
- More Formative Assessments: Integrate frequent assessments to monitor progress and adjust instruction as needed.
Regularly evaluate and update the media and technology used in the instructional design to ensure they remain relevant, engaging, and effective for student learning. The use of diverse instructional materials and media resources can significantly enhance learning engagement and understanding.
Continuously Revise Instructional Materials: Instructional materials should be revisited regularly, with a focus on modifying them as trends and updates in campus journalism practices emerge. This will ensure that the materials remain relevant and responsive to current needs and provide students with up-to-date information and skills.
Create a Network of Schools: Once the program is adopted, use the network to share best practice for continuous development.

8.3 Reflections: As a Student of the BES Progam

While I emphasize the importance of instructional design as a rigorous and standardized practice in providing quality educational opportunities in our society, I also want to acknowledge the invaluable lessons that BES has imparted, both in completing this capstone project and throughout my degree program.

My EDS 199 project would not have been possible without the foundational principles I learned from the Educational Foundations Courses, Instructional Design and Technology Courses, and various elective courses. Initially, I believed that I could easily create an instructional plan for my target audience because I was familiar with the subject matter and understood what the students needed to learn. Essentially, I had a clear goal in mind: by the end of the training, students should be able to write effectively and have the potential to win. However, this initial approach was quite naive.

Through the courses I mentioned, I came to understand just how meticulous and complex instructional design truly is. It's not simply about drafting a lesson plan; it's about crafting a design that genuinely meets the needs of the target audience. This involves a careful process of identifying specific needs and developing instructional strategies that directly address those needs.

Whenever I wrote papers for my courses, I made it a priority to thoroughly review every single resource provided by our professors and instructors. While I could write essays based on "stock" knowledge, I realized that gaining a broader perspective on our lessons and fully achieving each learning objective outlined in the modules required a deeper level of engagement. Instead of merely reading, I started to actively engage with the materials by creating checklists of what I needed to learn and noting significant insights from each resource. This practice enabled me to produce more refined and thoughtful outputs. My examples were informed by educational theories and perspectives, and my claims were substantiated by studies that were rigorously investigated and peer-reviewed.

I vividly remember the meticulous approach of Prof. Cantada, Sir Ley Gripal, Prof. Mona Sasing, Prof. Roja, Prof. Malou, Sir San Buenaventura, Ma’am Malou, and Prof. Yunque when they were reviewing our papers and providing feedback. It would have been a disservice to them—and to myself—to submit anything less than high-quality work.

In EDS 199, supporting my claims or justifying my choices in selecting objectives, strategies, needs, evaluation instruments, and media resources would have been exceedingly difficult without the foundational knowledge I gained from these courses. It would be unfair to our alumni and the field of instructional design to approach these responsibilities with anything less than the utmost seriousness, given the complexity and importance of the instructional designer's role.

Key learnings from BES that I was able to employ in the capstone project.

Understanding Instructional Design (EDS 112) and Assessment Principles (EDS 113). I gained a deep understanding of the core principles of instructional design, including how to conduct learner needs assessments and analyze data to identify learning gaps. These courses emphasized the importance of aligning learning activities with clearly defined objectives and using various assessment methods (diagnostic, formative, summative) to ensure instruction meets the needs of diverse learners.
Integration of Technology and Media Resources in Educational Materials (EDS 151, EDS 153). I learned how to effectively integrate media and technology into instructional planning to create engaging and inclusive learning experiences. These courses taught me how to design educational multimedia materials that cater to diverse learner backgrounds and learning styles, enhancing engagement and comprehension.
Application of Learning Theories and Instruction. EDS 112 and EDS 100 taught me on applying learning theories, such as cognitivism and constructivism, to ensure instructional designs are learner-centered and meet specific learning needs. The MRK instructional design model was particularly emphasized, guiding you to create structured and effective educational experiences.
Reflecting Thinking (EDS 112) and Critical Analysis (EDS 103, EDS 157, EDS 113). These courses helped me develop reflective thinking and self-evaluation skills, enabling continuous improvement in instructional design. I also learned to critically analyze teaching practices to ensure they are effective and responsive to learners' needs.
Professional Skills (EDS 110), Effective Communication (EDS 112, Wika 1, ENG 157), and Organizational and Management Skills (EDS 140, EDS 110). I developed essential professional skills, including effective communication, project management, and organizational abilities. These skills are crucial for fostering collaboration and trust among stakeholders in educational projects.

Sure, my project is still far from perfect. However, I have taken the time to reflect on it and identify areas for improvement. This ongoing process of reflection and evaluation is crucial for refining both my approach and the outcomes of my work, ensuring that the instructional design effectively enhances the learning experience.

The BES program is indeed true to its objectives: to develop among students critical perspective on the role of education in the challenges faced by educational systems in modern developing society; a strong foundation in the key concepts and disciplines of education; skills in the design and delivery of educational programs; skills of systematic study of educational policy and practice; and, a holistic, integrative, reflexive, and research-based approach to learning and education.