How learning design can illuminate teaching practice

The field of learning design holds the promise of providing teachers with a framework that will enable them to design high quality, effective and innovative learning experiences for their students. By creating the possibility of deconstructing their existing teaching strategies; aiding reflection on their own practice; documenting and scaffolding innovative learning activities; and sharing and reusing expert practice, learning design has the potential to improve the quality of teaching throughout the higher education sector. A key challenge for the future of Learning Design is to continue to bridge the gap between rich, descriptive models and technologies (such as IMS-LD), and the everyday practice and understanding of teachers. This paper highlights the distinctions between the central concepts, such as the differences between a formal learning design framework, the active teacher process of creating a learning design, and the requirements for creating, transmitting and adopting effective learning designs with an aim to improve student learning.