So here’s the main finding:&nbsp;<u>no significant differences were found in terms of item difficulty</u>.&nbsp;There were also <u>no differences found in terms of test reliability</u>. Thus, Baghaei and Amrahi (2011) concluded that three answer options are all you need.&nbsp;If the test characteristics are essentially the same, there doesn’t seem to be any reason to spend our time developing additional answer options.

&nbsp;Rodriguez (2005) argues that shifting to three answer options also increases the amount of content that can be tested.&nbsp;Because students don’t have to spend as much time reading four or five answer options, there will be more time during the test for students to read additional questions on different course content.&nbsp;Instead of spending your time on identifying more answer options, spend your time developing additional test questions.

Directly observing the behaviors of these folks gave me the insights I needed to tailor the solution. The same applies in a learning setting. Go watch that customer service agent <strong>IN PERSON </strong>and see for yourself what they are doing well, what they are not doing well, and what they might be totally missing.

<a href="https://learningsolutionsmag.com/articles/1108/how-to-engage-learners-with-scenario-based-learning-/?utm_campaign=lspub&amp;utm_medium=link&amp;utm_source=link">Scenario-based learning</a> (SBL) and the inclusion of practice with feedback are much more effective approaches to the development of skill and competence.

In First Principles of Instruction, Merrill identifies five core instructional design principles which he has synthesised from his review of all of these theories, frameworks, and models. He then sets out ways in which these principles can be systematically used to inform the design and development of learning activities, (both online and in a face-to-face context). Merrill then makes a case that following these principles should lead to effective, efficient and engaging learning experiences.

<h2>Problem-centred</h2> <p><strong>Learning is promoted when learners acquire knowledge and skill in the context of real-world problems or tasks.</strong></p>

<h2>Activation</h2> <p><strong>Learning is promoted when learners recall or apply existing knowledge and skill as a foundation for new skills.</strong></p>

<h2>Demonstration</h2> <p><strong>Learning is promoted when learners observe a demonstration of the knowledge and skill to be learned.</strong></p>

<h2>Application</h2> <p><strong>Learning is promoted when learners use their newly acquired knowledge and skill to solve new problems or carry out tasks.</strong></p>

<h2>Integration</h2> <p><strong>Learning is promoted when learners reflect on, discuss and defend their newly acquired skill or integrate the skill into a real-world activity.</strong></p>

As instructors and designers, we need to keep in mind that there can be other reasons to use objectives <em>and </em>we need to clearly distinguish between objectives that we use as instructional/learning designers versus the ones we might use for learners.

Using the preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses (PRISMA) organizational framework as our method of reviewing job postings, we found that instructional design, talent delivery and facilitation, technology application, communication, and collaboration and leadership capabilities appeared the most frequently.

For corporate settings, more jobs than expected require bachelor’s degrees and fewer jobs than expected require a master’s degree or higher. On the contrary, for higher education settings, more jobs than expected required master’s degrees or higher and fewer jobs than expected required bachelor’s degrees. While this may not be surprising to some job seekers, it does indicate that job applicants with bachelor’s degrees already possess the educational requirements for a corporate role.

Ultimately, adult learners and their organizations expect learning experiences to establish behaviors that make their lives or work more efficient and effective.

So how much does it cost to start as a freelance instructional designer? My estimate is between $3000 and $5000.