Open letter to Mom and Dad
Dear Mom and Dad,
My current assignment in my foundations of instructional technology class is to write a letter explaining to you in layman's terms a little about the field I am entering. I figure that, since you are often faced with questions about the status of my pursuits in life and because my current life pursuit is labeled with a long-winded title of uncertain meaning, it will be of benefit to actually send you the letter rather than just turning it in for credit.
Both of my graduate degrees (first Youth and Family Recreation and now Instructional Psychology and Technology) are a bit unwieldy to the tongue and not immediately clear as to their actual practical value or educational objectives. Although the value and meaning of my YFR degree may be lost in the ether, I hope this letter will at least give you a better idea of what I study now and what will be the likely outcome for my career when I graduate.
The field of my current endeavor started out as instructional technology, which had its origins during World War II. With the massive deployment of new troops, the military needed to get large numbers of people trained quickly in a variety of roles – from pilots to submariners. So there was great impetus for researching and creating ways to instruct people quickly and efficiently using whatever means available. Technological advancements played into this process. Motion pictures and emerging computing technologies helped expand the prior limits of instruction and opened the door to many new instructional ideas.
More recently, some in the field have shifted their focus to the more esoteric side of the learning process rather than on the more practical instruction process. There has been some debate about whether instructional technology and learning science are even really part of the same field. In fact, an entire magazine issue was dedicated to the debate over the nature of learning sciences compared to instructional technology. I don't want to swamp you with the minutiae of the dilemma, so I'll just say this: As far as I am concerned, they are two hands of the same body that can't say to each other “I have no need of thee.” So, I like to think of myself as a learning instructional technological scientist.
To be plain, I would say my interests in this degree program lie primarily in what has become known as the learning sciences. I am interested in how people learn and how to best improve instructional settings to increase both the speed and thoroughness in which people learn. We study a great deal about the psychology of learning, about how the brain functions, and about how people tend to respond to attempts to teach them. We glean knowledge from various fields, including educational psychology, social psychology, and neuroscience. And then we put it all together in instructional designs.
Many are inclined to think of instructional technology as specifically computer-aided instruction, etc. However, over time we have come to conceptualize our whole field as a technology, rather than simply as people using technological devices to aid instruction. A common metaphor I've heard compares instruction to irrigation. Technologists design irrigation systems to get the most water where it needs to go in an efficient and effective manner. They understand principles of gravity and water, of soil and agriculture. They design an overall system based on those principles and then utilize canals and sluice gates and pipes and other tools to get the water where it needs to go. Likewise, we consider ourselves technologists who are trying to guide information into the minds of learners. So we design systems of instruction that are aimed at that goal. We might use computers, or a chalk board. We might use video presentations, or a pad of paper. We think in principles and processes of learning and then utilize available tools to assist in those processes. We examine learning contexts and try to glean insights from our observations. We test and measure. We are always seeking to provide the best way to help teachers teach and to help learners learn. You might say we like to think of ourselves not simply as a bunch of folks who can fix your PowerPoint for you, but as theorists seeking to understand the human learning experience and to improve it. (But, it's also likely we could fix your PowerPoint for you.)
Many people who graduate from this program go on to be instructional design and training specialists for corporate and government institutions. Most large organizations have processes and procedures that they require vast numbers of employees to understand and be able to do. Usually they will have teams of instructional designers who design methods for disseminating important information. Instructional designers are also ofttimes the people who put together learning exhibits at museums, like the science museum we used to go to in Minnesota. They are also the people who develop training and teaching manuals for the church. They are involved in helping design educational television programming. They guide online learning by developing curricula and modes of dissemination for a variety of organizations. There are a lot of instructional designers in a lot of places.
For instance, one of my colleagues worked with Hill Air Force Base to develop training materials for proper use of equipment-inventory-tracking systems. He also worked for a company that developed Internet-based training for medical professionals to help them understand and diagnose medical conditions better. One of my professors was asked by the military to help develop a training concept for helping new recruits learn counter-insurgency tactics so they would be more prepared when they reached the field. Other colleagues help develop curricula for schools. Others still remain in academia, where they continue to evaluate and experiment and observe and theorize to develop new ways of understanding the learning and teaching processes.
I anticipate remaining in academia with possible forays into the field as a consultant. My current plan entails working with BYU Broadcasting to develop educational programming, but that possibility is still germinating. As you know, I tend to shoot from the hip. I don't know precisely where my degree will take me, but I do know that there are a lot of empty tin cans piled up in front of me at the shooting range. Good ones, too. Big family-sized cans with fancy labels. So, as I shoot from the hip, I'm bound to hit something good. Especially if I keep shooting and don't run out of ammo. Or maybe I should work a little more on my aim.
At any rate, scary metaphor aside, I'm optimistic. I'm learning some great material that is valuable as a father as well as a scholar. I feel enlightened already just in this short time in the program. I'm excited for the months to come and trust that God will sustain Val and I while we sojourn a little longer at BYU.
I'll be glad to entertain you with more details of my program and the things I am learning at your leisure. Thanks for your continued love and support.
Love,
Christijan
My current assignment in my foundations of instructional technology class is to write a letter explaining to you in layman's terms a little about the field I am entering. I figure that, since you are often faced with questions about the status of my pursuits in life and because my current life pursuit is labeled with a long-winded title of uncertain meaning, it will be of benefit to actually send you the letter rather than just turning it in for credit.
Both of my graduate degrees (first Youth and Family Recreation and now Instructional Psychology and Technology) are a bit unwieldy to the tongue and not immediately clear as to their actual practical value or educational objectives. Although the value and meaning of my YFR degree may be lost in the ether, I hope this letter will at least give you a better idea of what I study now and what will be the likely outcome for my career when I graduate.
The field of my current endeavor started out as instructional technology, which had its origins during World War II. With the massive deployment of new troops, the military needed to get large numbers of people trained quickly in a variety of roles – from pilots to submariners. So there was great impetus for researching and creating ways to instruct people quickly and efficiently using whatever means available. Technological advancements played into this process. Motion pictures and emerging computing technologies helped expand the prior limits of instruction and opened the door to many new instructional ideas.
More recently, some in the field have shifted their focus to the more esoteric side of the learning process rather than on the more practical instruction process. There has been some debate about whether instructional technology and learning science are even really part of the same field. In fact, an entire magazine issue was dedicated to the debate over the nature of learning sciences compared to instructional technology. I don't want to swamp you with the minutiae of the dilemma, so I'll just say this: As far as I am concerned, they are two hands of the same body that can't say to each other “I have no need of thee.” So, I like to think of myself as a learning instructional technological scientist.
To be plain, I would say my interests in this degree program lie primarily in what has become known as the learning sciences. I am interested in how people learn and how to best improve instructional settings to increase both the speed and thoroughness in which people learn. We study a great deal about the psychology of learning, about how the brain functions, and about how people tend to respond to attempts to teach them. We glean knowledge from various fields, including educational psychology, social psychology, and neuroscience. And then we put it all together in instructional designs.
Many are inclined to think of instructional technology as specifically computer-aided instruction, etc. However, over time we have come to conceptualize our whole field as a technology, rather than simply as people using technological devices to aid instruction. A common metaphor I've heard compares instruction to irrigation. Technologists design irrigation systems to get the most water where it needs to go in an efficient and effective manner. They understand principles of gravity and water, of soil and agriculture. They design an overall system based on those principles and then utilize canals and sluice gates and pipes and other tools to get the water where it needs to go. Likewise, we consider ourselves technologists who are trying to guide information into the minds of learners. So we design systems of instruction that are aimed at that goal. We might use computers, or a chalk board. We might use video presentations, or a pad of paper. We think in principles and processes of learning and then utilize available tools to assist in those processes. We examine learning contexts and try to glean insights from our observations. We test and measure. We are always seeking to provide the best way to help teachers teach and to help learners learn. You might say we like to think of ourselves not simply as a bunch of folks who can fix your PowerPoint for you, but as theorists seeking to understand the human learning experience and to improve it. (But, it's also likely we could fix your PowerPoint for you.)
Many people who graduate from this program go on to be instructional design and training specialists for corporate and government institutions. Most large organizations have processes and procedures that they require vast numbers of employees to understand and be able to do. Usually they will have teams of instructional designers who design methods for disseminating important information. Instructional designers are also ofttimes the people who put together learning exhibits at museums, like the science museum we used to go to in Minnesota. They are also the people who develop training and teaching manuals for the church. They are involved in helping design educational television programming. They guide online learning by developing curricula and modes of dissemination for a variety of organizations. There are a lot of instructional designers in a lot of places.
For instance, one of my colleagues worked with Hill Air Force Base to develop training materials for proper use of equipment-inventory-tracking systems. He also worked for a company that developed Internet-based training for medical professionals to help them understand and diagnose medical conditions better. One of my professors was asked by the military to help develop a training concept for helping new recruits learn counter-insurgency tactics so they would be more prepared when they reached the field. Other colleagues help develop curricula for schools. Others still remain in academia, where they continue to evaluate and experiment and observe and theorize to develop new ways of understanding the learning and teaching processes.
I anticipate remaining in academia with possible forays into the field as a consultant. My current plan entails working with BYU Broadcasting to develop educational programming, but that possibility is still germinating. As you know, I tend to shoot from the hip. I don't know precisely where my degree will take me, but I do know that there are a lot of empty tin cans piled up in front of me at the shooting range. Good ones, too. Big family-sized cans with fancy labels. So, as I shoot from the hip, I'm bound to hit something good. Especially if I keep shooting and don't run out of ammo. Or maybe I should work a little more on my aim.
At any rate, scary metaphor aside, I'm optimistic. I'm learning some great material that is valuable as a father as well as a scholar. I feel enlightened already just in this short time in the program. I'm excited for the months to come and trust that God will sustain Val and I while we sojourn a little longer at BYU.
I'll be glad to entertain you with more details of my program and the things I am learning at your leisure. Thanks for your continued love and support.
Love,
Christijan
Comments
I felt a little strange reading a letter that you wrote to your mom but I am glad I did. Your writing is a hairnet, it takes the sometimes tangled and messy field of IP&T and pulls it all together (admittedly not as good as your hairnet metaphor but I thought that I would try).
Seriously though, you write incredibly well. I love reading things that make me feel smarter and your writing does that.
Thank you,
Jered