• Digital Learning Design

Digital Framework
Learning andFramework
Design Toolkit and Toolkit
Introducing the framework
 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Principles for Planning

Learning your
Design module

Concluding Preparing
your DIGITAL
your
module LEARNING students
DESIGN
FRAMEWORK

Choice and Structuring

Flex in your
Assessments module
Designing
student
engagement

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Authors and Contributors

Dr. Ann Thanaraj is Principal Fellow Paul graduated from Teesside John is a Senior Fellow (AdvanceHE) Archana Chathangoth was a final year
and National Teaching Fellow University with a first class honours and holds a Masters in Online & journalism student at Teesside
(AdvanceHE). At Teesside University, degree in Computer Studies. Paul is a Distance Education from The Open University when she begun working
Ann is Assistant Academic Registrar Senior Fellow (AdvanceHE). Paul’s University. John provides digital with us on this project. As a full time,
leading the digital transformation of experience in digital learning spans transformation services to members & student, Archana has experienced
learning and teaching at institutional over 24 years. Most recently, Paul’s customers of Jisc in the form of student life during the pandemic when
level. Ann led a university-wide work has contributed to Teesside thought leadership, training, guidance the campus was functioning in a
strategic and change transformation gaining recognition as a sector-leader & facilitation as a 'critical friend'. He hybrid system and later completely
project in Online Learning which to- through a mandatory Digital has been a keynote speaker at online. Archana’s student journey
date has achieved 90% retention of Development Programme for all international conferences in the UK, shaped the thinking of this framework
learners. Ann is also founder and host teaching staff which, to date, reports a USA, Germany and South America. and toolkit, adding a unique student
of Lawyering in a Digital Age, an 96% satisfaction rating from John has kindly agreed to support the voice to the project.
international initiative which brings participants, enabling the University development of this work due to its
together a global interdisciplinary to accrue the largest concentration of importance for the sector and to
audience to shape the direction of HE Microsoft Innovative Educator ensure relevant international and
legal education fit for a digital age. Experts (MIEEs) in the UK (2018-19 national perspective are considered.
and 2020).

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Introducing the Digital Learning Design

Framework and Toolkit

Objectives and Ambitions

Designing learning gives us space to challenge ourselves to We have two intended audiences:
think about learning design, the intersection of pedagogy
and digital solutions to map the student learning journey. It 1. Course Leaders: use the toolkit with their Course Team
is an enabler for opportunities to do things differently and to inform the design of their Course.
whatever the approach we take, this will be critical to
student success. 2. Facilitators: who lead a Course Design event, attended
by Course Teams, to inform the design of Courses.
Active and authentic learning afforded by digital solutions
and ecosystems, and importantly through the crafting and
continual development of one’s own digital literacies,
contextualised within subject disciplines and changing
professions is vital to learning designs. To realize these
ambitions, the digital confidence and fluencies of teaching
staff who design and deliver courses needs nurturing and
developing.

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Introducing the Digital Learning Design

Framework and Toolkit

Purpose

The purpose of our collaboration is to share with the sector guidance that we have used at Teesside University and yielded positive
results in transforming course design practices. Drawing on our national and international perspectives, we hope to provide the sector
with a scalable toolkit which enables course designers, course teams and facilitators to contextualise various components of learning
design and key considerations when designing learning. We see this as both an art and a science, contextualised within the
characteristics of subject disciplines.

The Digital Learning Design Framework and Toolkit can be a fundamental action you take to ensure not just one department, not just
one school, but an entire institution can move towards effective and creative learning design in a structured and supportive way,
enabling scaled-up transformative change.

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Introducing the Digital Learning Design

Framework and Toolkit

How the toolkit was developed

Since its launch in 2019, the Teesside University Online learning project, a strategic, change and transformation initiative across the
institution yields a 90% retention rate for learners. The course teams take part in an Academic Transformation Programme which
utilises a very similar version of this toolkit, designed for fully-fledged online learning course design and delivery model, supporting
staff to design courses that offer a rich experience that is based on excellent teaching and learning literature from across the world.

Our collaboration with Jisc brings a wide scale national and international dimension to digital learning design.

The authors of this framework and toolkit have over five decades of combined experience in online education, starting as academics
and learning designers and moving into institutional and sectoral leadership roles. Building on this, Archana, our student on this
collaboration, set out to undertake a global benchmarking project. The aim of undertaking this extensive study was to expand on the
excellence of online teaching and learning by looking globally for examples of how we can measure the quality of what we are seeking
to achieve for our students, to shape the quality of online teaching, the academic experience of online teaching and learning and the
quality of learning designs for online courses.

Archana’s benchmarking findings are presented on the following screen.

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Introducing the Digital Learning Design

Framework and Toolkit

Literature Review
Staff CPD on TEL
towards building
Literature Review of high-impact Online Learning from Canada, enthusiasm and
Australia, Canada, the US and the Commonwealth, conducted by confidence
Archana Chathangoth.
Accessible and interactive
Institutional policy
Benchmarks reviewed: learning supported with
on improvements of
assessment and feedback
TEL, quality and
evaluation
• ACODE Benchmarks for Technology Enhanced Learning
Facilitating outstanding
Intentional
learning experiences
• ELM Quality Assurance checklist learning journey
Instructional content Support for
• Commonwealth of Learning: Quality assurance rubric for blende using best practice
towards course
students learning
and use of
d learning SCALA framework navigation and technology
structure

• State University of New York Online Teaching

• Coherency between services,

National institute for digital learning, Dublin City University
systems, support, bridging tech
with pedagogy

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Introducing the Digital Learning Design

Framework and Toolkit

Using the Digital Learning Design Framework and

toolkit
The Toolkit contains 7 sections, as indicated by the diagram and subsequent slides in this slide deck; 1 section discussing underpinning
principles of learning design and 6 sections framed around the key stages of academic experience.

There is no set order in which these sections need to be addressed but it is important that all are considered throughout the course
design phase. It is intended that Course Leaders or session Facilitators can tailor their use of the Toolkit to suit their needs,
approaching the various sections in the order that works best for their specific scenario.

These slides can be printed to produce physical copies or can be used electronically, with the order of each section rearranged if
necessary.

It is important that the order of slides within each colour-coded section is maintained and that slides are not moved from one section to
another.

Please contact Ann Thanaraj ([email protected]) and Paul Durston ([email protected]) if you would like facilitation of
this Toolkit within your college or university.

Digital Learning Design Framework and

Introducing the toolkit
 Principles for Planning
Learning Design your
module

Concluding Preparing Deciding how you want to teach

your DIGITAL
your
Designing learning opportunities
module LEARNING students
DESIGN
FRAMEWORK Boundary crossing ecosystems of
learning

Choice and Structuring Designing with inclusivity in mind

Flex in your
Assessments module
Designing student
engagement
 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Deciding how you want to teach

Overview

Typically how you want to teach a course or module is your choice, provided the course is designed and delivered as how it has been
approved at validation.

As a course tutor, course leader or module tutor, you are the subject matter expert. You know how best to design and deliver your
course so that it achieves the maximum benefit and optimal learning for your students. You also have the advantage of understanding
your subject to such depths that you will know how best to break down complex information and engage your learners at critical points
of learning.

Determining how you want to teach your course, for maximum and optimal learning is one of the most important learning design
decisions you will make when you begin to put your course together. You will also have detailed knowledge about the needs of your
students and how best students typically learn your subject area, where their typical challenges may be and approaches to mitigate
these. You will also be aware of any academic and professional needs of the discipline.

In considering the different roles you may take between teaching on-campus and online, and the best learning design method for your
modules, our recommendation is to use the learning ecosystem and tools that you have available in the most meaningful ways for
yourself and your students, rather than using digital or face-to-face methodologies if they do not yield the best results.

Constructivism is a learning approach where student discover and construct knowledge and have the opportunity to apply knowledge.
This also has the opportunity to lead students into developing a broad range of creative and critical skills. Constructivism is effective
only if two conditions are met:

1. there is a clearly designed learning path for students that is clear, logical and systematic for students to follow.
2. tutor presence of high-quality teaching, engaging with students and clear steer in the construction of learning.

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Deciding how you want to teach

Considerations

How do you deliver a campus-taught module? What key considerations go into designing a campus session? What different roles do
you take on whilst teaching a campus-based module?

Are there a combination of approaches that are innovative and transformational for your discipline area?

What are the unique features of your module or disciplinary area? Do you teach to bring out these unique features – and how do you do
this?

How does your teaching methods help you and your students meet the learning outcomes?

What factors would you consider are key when pivoting campus courses to be taught online – what are the key challenges students
may face?

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Designing learning opportunities

Overview

The way in which we design our courses and modules contributes to and influences how students experience, engage and consequently
learn. A clear strategy for the seamless integration of digital technologies into our module design is advantageous in allowing the
combination of both synchronous and asynchronous teaching, and of online and face-to-face teaching, into a single experience. It also
helps build up on students’ digital confidence and literacies to navigate different ecosystems of learning.

Alongside how you plan to teach your module, the learning outcomes and assessments will need to drive the identifying, selecting and
adopting of pedagogic practices and its complementing digital solutions effectively. The best learning experiences are designed from a
student journey perspective.

Instead of attempting to replicate all aspects of teaching styles and learning activities which take place in the classroom into the digital
space, which could lead to missed opportunities leveraged by flexibility and collaboration with digital tools, there are a number of key
features that contribute to successful integration of digital technologies in terms of course and module design.

A mixture of synchronous and asynchronous with collaboration and a tutor who is frequently ‘visible’ helps create a successful
learning experience. Clear communication in terms of your expectations of your learners is necessary to make synchronous and
asynchronous learning a meaningful learning process, with students being clear what is expected of them at different points in time,
preferably daily or weekly, or per topic of study.

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Designing learning opportunities

Considerations

Do the classroom learning opportunities and the opportunities online create a coherent approach to how students learn in their module?

Is there an adequate blend of synchronous and asynchronous learning throughout the module? Is this based on pedagogic rationales,
learning outcomes and the assessment strategy for the module?

What risk factors have you identified from synchronous/asynchronous learning and how will this be mitigated and addressed in the
design of your module?

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Boundary crossing ecosystems of learning

Overview

Whilst accessing content is one of the many functions of a VLE, to achieve successful learner engagement before, during and after a
planned activity (whether this is campus based or online), the features and functionalities of a VLE as a space for communication,
engagement and collaboration is pivotal for learning.

Familiarity with other digital tools and platforms supported by the University will help with driving forward deep and active learning
opportunities within the intended design of the course.

Generating significant improvements in the unitization of learning ecosystems, particularly towards delivering outstanding learning
experiences will require some key principles to help teaching staff maximize the affordances of ecosystems of learning, affording
alignment with the professional world where fluencies to work in different ways, expertly using different skills and creativity is key:

 The VLE is an extension of a campus learning experience and environment. It is a boundary-crossing ecosystem of learning and
student engagement.
 The VLE affords the reimagination of the delivery of modules drawing on seamless integration of the best elements of online
and face-to-face practice, considered during course or module design.
 The VLE affords a one-stop hub for the student academic journey which is designed into the heart of a module and course
 The VLE affords space to enable and nurture creativity in learners through collaboration, communication, and construction of
knowledge beyond conventional spaces.
 The VLE, together with the campus delivery of a module brings out the best learning experiences for students based on a
purposeful pedagogical underpinning and systematic learning design principles.

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Boundary crossing ecosystems of learning

Considerations

How do you use your VLE on your campus-taught module?

What are the innovative elements of your use of the VLE which you would like to keep in the design of your module?

What elements of your VLE use would you like to enhance?

How do you plan to integrate the seamless flow of learning by enabling learning, thinking and conversation across multiple spaces and
over time?

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Designing with inclusivity in mind

Overview

Universal Design for Learning (UDL) provides an effective framework to improve the learning experience of all students and reduce
the barriers to learning. The main way to do this is to prepare a learning environment where students have what they need to flexibly
meet learning goals.

Jisc has produced some excellent resources around designing the academic journey for students with inclusivity in mind:
 https://www.jisc.ac.uk/guides/getting-started-with-accessibility-and-inclusion
 https://www.jisc.ac.uk/guides/creating-an-inclusive-learner-journey
 https://www.jisc.ac.uk/guides/inclusive-digital-practice-and-digital-wellbeing

Key takeaway points include:

 An inclusive approach enables everyone to make the best use of interactive functions and accessibility options on the VLE and
other platforms to support differentiation and personalised learning.
 Use digital versatility to provide choice and improve engagement. Build-in activities to co-create relevant and useful activities
that can deepen learning. You could:
 Make use of interactive functions and access options on the VLE
 Provide guidelines for flexible, inclusive curriculum and course design
 Use accessible document templates, and inclusive guidelines for creating content

Advance HE’s guidance on inclusive curriculum design:

https://www.advance-he.ac.uk/knowledge-hub/inclusive-curriculum-design-higher-education

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Designing with inclusivity in mind

Considerations

Is all written content presented as text, so students using assistive technologies can read it?

What does inclusive practice look like in your course design?

How do you make use of the digital solutions and platforms available to you to bring different learners together?

Do the materials have a clear visual structure including headings, sub-headings, lists, and tables? Are materials properly
formatted/structured so they are accessible to students using screen readers?

Digital divide and digital poverty is a real concern. Consider also how this may impact your students and the support that can be put in
place for inclusive learning including support for health and wellbeing.

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Principles for Planning
Learning Design your
module

Concluding Preparing Designing a sense of belonging and

the student journey
your DIGITAL
your
module LEARNING students
DESIGN
Teacher Presence
FRAMEWORK
Preparing students for learning

Choice and Structuring How do prepare students for the

Flex in your Fourth Industrial Revolution?
Assessments module
Designing student
engagement
 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Designing a sense of belonging

Overview

Creating a sense of reality and belonging is key to bringing students together and helping them feel part of a learning community.
Much of the research into student retention and attainment identifies that being part of an engaging and well-managed online
community has a positive impact on student achievement and retention.

We communicate well with students, helping them understanding complex subject matter, the support on offer and how they will be
engaging with a course or module – when we are delivering on campus.
When delivering online, this poses some challenges. The dispersity of learners and tutors can lead to a sense of isolation and
occasionally students may find themselves navigating the course without a helpful and friendly voice guiding them through their
journey.

An introductory video prepared by the module leader to welcome students to the module is useful to set the scene and build
connections with your learners. It helps them ‘see’ who will be teaching and guiding them through the module. In your video also
provide a general overview of what the module is about, explaining its relevance to the full course and how this module interlinks with
other modules they will study alongside. It is helpful to outline the sorts of topics students will study, what is unique and relevant about
the module, how the module will be delivered, managing expectations, support available, teaching details, learning outcomes,
timescales and assessment.

Frequent check-in videos and videos that help students keep track and engage helps with retention and a sense of belonging and
community.

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Designing a sense of belonging

Considerations

A sense of cohort identity and sense of belonging is vital for student learning and retention. How do you plan to establish an online
community for your learners?

There are a variety of tools that are useful ice breakers and help create an interactive and engaging environment. What sorts of tools
will you use and what purpose will they serve?

Students may be unfamiliar with how to collaborate online and contribute to online discussions. Consider setting expectations from the
outset on this. Be present yourself to respond to and encourage contributions, but be mindful that sometimes tutor presence can also
discourage students from engaging with each other.

In a multi-modal ecosystem of learning, how would you achieve this sense of belonging in the classroom and in the online space?

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Designing the student journey into course design

Overview

Designing the student journey is akin to laying the foundation to build a house. It offers a robust and creative structure to how students
are going to engage in and succeed on your module. Creating space in your module for reflecting on how best to learn is vital including
conceptualising what you want students to achieve from your module.

Bringing to life that vision is challenging and rewarding.

How you use your learning ecosystem – the classroom and the Virtual Learning Environment affords a variety of innovative
opportunities to transform the learning experience.

To communicate an intentionally designed journey for learners, a study planner could be a useful tool to help keep students progressing
and engaging.

The study planner serves to ensure that students always know what they are doing each week with clear signposting to activities
expected of them. This will help students manage their learning journey and work towards the building blocks of their course and
module in a systematic and timely manner. It also helps to develop a solid academic learning journey for students when studying
online. This encourages the learning design to focus on the student journey in its structure, communication, activities and design
approaches which goes beyond shifting content online using learning design to a carefully crafted learning structure.

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Designing the student journey into course design

Considerations

What are the key elements of the student journey for your course/module?

What are the guiding principles which determine how you design the student journey into your course?

How will you communicate through design what the intended journey is for a student?

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Teacher presence

Overview

The role of the tutor is crucial to maintain high-quality teaching and excellent student academic experience.

In particular, teacher presence plays a very significant role in developing and sustaining the success of the online community, in
keeping students engaged and on track with their learning, just as much as if you were teaching face to face.

A key consideration of designing active learning is the need for tutor presence to support students to scaffold their learning and
develop a deep and critical understanding of the subject area. As such, meaningful activities to which adequate time can be afforded to
is a key to the effective teacher presence.

Watch a conversation around the significance of teacher presence:

https://blogs.tees.ac.uk/lteonline/2020/12/15/teacher-presence-and-learning-design/

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Teacher presence

Considerations

Consider the significance of the academic in affording the best in class academic experience when teaching online. What role(s) do
they play in the different elements that make up the learning activities in a module?

How would you design a module pragmatically where teacher presence, independent learning and creativity and impactful tutor-led
interventions are managed and delivered effectively and in a timely manner?

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Preparing students for learning

Overview

Preparation of students key. This will help them stay engaged during the module, participate, feel confident and empowered to succeed
when they understand the ethos and value of the module and how it has been put together.

Investing time in preparing students with information around expectations and the module design will keep them engaged, retained and
help them progress with understanding of what is expected of them.

Before launching into the content of a module, help your students understand how your module is set out, what elements will be online
and what elements will be face-to-face. Help them understand the rationale and what is expected of them and the learning journey they
will be experiencing through the module.

Help them become familiar and comfortable with the methods and technologies you plan on using by introducing them from the outset
of your module.

Regular, timely communication, particularly in the online space, is extremely important, as is the clarity of these communications to
set expectations.

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Preparing students for learning

Considerations

Are students familiar with how your module/course is structured?

What sorts of initial activities would you develop for your students to become familiar and confident with the learning platform and
other learning tools/technologies that will be used in your module?

When integrating different digital technologies consideration should be given as to how students will be expected to interact and utilise
these, both in terms of access to equipment but also the level of digital competency required.

What are the most effective means of communicating with your students to help them prepare for learning in your module?

Will students know where to turn to for support and advice?

Remind students, in preparation for the start of their formal teaching the value of the study planner to guide them through their module
including expectations and activities.

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 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

How do prepare students for the Fourth

Industrial Revolution?

The World Economic Forum (2016) describes our present era as ‘The Fourth Industrial Revolution’ – the exponential growth of
technology, all-encompassing, shaping, mediating and altering every aspect of our lives. This has given us an opportunity to reimagine
and redraw boundaries of how we are empower our students to deliver impact on a global scale through curriculum and course design
experiences that provide them with the knowledge, skills, and tools to achieve sustainable success in the workplaces of the future.

Our education sector is disrupted by digital transformation and the need to address how we prepare our students to thrive in this
changing landscape. The inculcation of digital literacies into course design and student learning needs to extend beyond the use of tech
tools and software to demonstrate a wide variety of transferable skills contextualised within the professional and disciplinary
knowledge and practice. While different disciplines in higher education may recognise and value different forms of creativity, the
ability to think and work creatively is widely recognised as a catalyst for innovation, adaption, and resilience in modern professional
contexts. For example, confidently and fluently making the choice and using the most appropriate tools for communication, critical
thinking, problem find and solving and working with resilience and adaptability.

Further readings:
 Stuart & Shutt (2019) A manifesto for the 21st Century University. WonkHE blog,
https://wonkhe.com/blogs/a-manifesto-for-the-21st-century-university
 Universities UK (2018) Solving future skills challenges
https://www.universitiesuk.ac.uk/policy-and-analysis/reports/Pages/solving-future-skills-challenges.aspx

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Principles for Planning
Learning Design your
module

Concluding Preparing Designing your learning

your DIGITAL
your
Setting up your module
module LEARNING students
DESIGN
FRAMEWORK

Choice and Structuring

Flex in your
Assessments module
Designing student
engagement
 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Designing your learning

Overview

A learning design framework gives you a step-by-step process to provide a deep, analytical and robust design tool for the design of
learning from a student centeredness perspective as a clearly laid out pathway for students to take and as a tool to develop and maintain
an academic quality offer that is rigorous and high-quality.

This brings out the best digital learning experiences for students:
 a learner journey that is clear, logical, systematic
 rich pedagogic rationale that is relevant to the subject discipline
 fostering a learning environment that encourages active engagement through collaboration and communication, reflection and
knowledge development

A learning design framework encourages the avoidance of practices which resulted in the VLE becoming a ground for simply
transferring what happens on campus to online or as a repository of all things that would be covered on campus to online, without
carefully planning and designing for the student centeredness of a design principle.

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Designing your learning

Considerations

We advise against trying to move your face-to-face teaching online by recording entire lectures or simply shifting all your content
online. Instead a clear learning design framework and intentional student journey plan is needed. It can be as simple as considering
what elements of your module do you think will be best delivered on campus and what elements can be best delivered online?

Have you considered how lessons/topics within modules can be presented to students when studying online?

Throughout each topic we encourage providing appropriate learning activities for online learners, for instance, online discussion
forums, and ensuring communication, assessment and feedback is continuous throughout the course, all the time thinking of the
context in which the online learner is working. How will you create an engaging learning experience across the learning ecosystems –
classroom and VLE?

Have you considered how content and meaningful tasks are scaffolded and interwoven, with clear instructions that help students make
sense of the purpose of the content and consolidate the knowledge and understanding developed during earlier sessions?

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Setting up your module

Overview

At the start of each week/topic, for each module of study, students should be aware of what is expected of them.

Mapping the learning journey in a way where students can understand how one week’s learning experience and activities feeds into the
next.

Expand upon the weekly plan from the study planner. Instead of text based communication, consider creating a video to explain the
synchronous and asynchronous activities across the learning ecosystem which students will undertake during the week/topic. Students
may be able to engage with a video quite easily.

The intention is to make absolutely clear to students how they will study, what they are expected to do in the classroom and on the
VLE, how they are expected to engage with the materials/content created and how this element (and the learning within) relates to the
rest of the module/course.

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Setting up your module

Considerations

A sense of cohort identity and sense of belonging is vital for student learning and retention. How do you plan to establish an online
community for your learners?

Students will need to know which technology to use and how to use them? Consider how your learning technology team at the
institution may be able to support with guidance for students re access and use.

Digital divide and digital poverty is a real concern. Consider also how this may impact your students and the support that can be put in
place for inclusive learning including support for health and wellbeing.

Have a clearly mapped out plan of when key communications are required throughout the module and what information these
communications should contain.

Do students know exactly how the module is structured and what is expected of them to complete each week/theme/topic?

Is there a well-structured learning environment that is an active space for learning?

How does your learning design promote active engagement across all ecosystems of learning?

How will you monitor student engagement with the learning in order to identify where further support or potential interventions are
required?

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Principles for Planning
Learning Design your
module

Concluding Preparing Developing student engagement

your DIGITAL
your
Mapping and managing student
module LEARNING students
DESIGN
expectations
FRAMEWORK
Actively building on learning

Choice and Structuring

Flex in your
Assessments module
Designing
student
engagement
 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Developing student engagement

Overview

Defining ‘student engagement' is as complex as complex as trying to define ‘student success’ or ‘excellence’ within the context of
learning and teaching. When a student is said to be engaged in their course, this could be the time and energy students invest in their
learning and the effort that goes into creating meaningful and effective learning that encourages a student to learn (Kuh, 2001). There
are several dimensions to student learning.

Digital solutions afford learning to be student-centred, supportive, inclusive and accessible and flexible and collaborative through
personalisation and adaptive release of learning materials, assessments and feedback loop that helps each individual student to progress
with their construction of knowledge at pace meaningfully.

Similarly, developing engaging learning experiences also means there is space and time for students to be experimental, curios, active
learners who are open-minded and willing to deal with complex problems that need multi-layered solutions.

Innovative use of digital technology can enable meaningful engagement opportunities for students.

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Developing student engagement

Considerations

What does student engagement look like on your course and module?

How do you keep our students motivated and actively learning?

How do you know they are actually understanding and learning?

What constitutes excellence in student engagement in quality learning?

How can teaching practitioners from various disciplines be supported better to design effective learning experiences?

Participating and collaborating with each other is vital in the construction of learning. How will the module or course encourage online
engagement?

How can you build respect and trust within the student cohort to help them learn from each other? What digital solutions can aid this
process?

To what extent is tutor presence required and motivational? Is there a planned way of providing feed-forward comments at key stages
of the course?

Does the course involve a variety of interactivity? Do students understand what is expected of them in these interactive exercises and
what is the role of the tutor during these exercises?

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Mapping and managing student expectations

Overview

The role of the tutor is crucial to maintain high-quality teaching and excellent student academic experience.

You play a vital role in managing the student experience and supporting students to progress:
 Clarity of instructions for students each step of the way
 Develop a study planner for robust organisation and communication with students:
 To ensure that students always know what they are doing each week with clear signposting of relevant materials and week/topic
content.
 Setting upfront information and schedules around synchronous, asynchronous and collaboration is key to student retention,
student participation and success
Preparing students with the necessary digital literacies will require support around digital learning and proficient use of
technologies for learning, including an awareness around digital identity, digital creation and collaboration and digital wellbeing.
 Make every part of the design of the online module and activity relevant, setting clear expectations of students, explain why
these activities are there for the students
 Don’t focus on attempting to replicate all aspects of teaching styles and learning activities which take place in the classroom into
the digital space. This won’t work.
 Master your technology so that you know the affordances and limits of various digital tools and solutions otherwise it could lead
to missed opportunities leveraged by flexibility and collaboration with digital tools.

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Mapping and managing student expectations

Considerations

What do you envisage your students doing in the classroom? What do you envisage your students doing online? How will you balance
the expected learning and academic experience across the ecosystems?

What questions do students frequently ask in class? Factor these in as you map the student journey and articulate the necessary
instructions for students.

In campus-based courses, students rely on introductions and contextualisation of course content and learning activities and formative
assessments. Have you considered how you will enable this across different ecosystems?

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Actively building on learning

Overview

Adopt an active learning methodology to motivate and keep learners engaged:

For each topic or week, the content may be delivered through:

 Balancing how content is structured meaningfully for delivery across a variety of different methods, whilst balancing the need
for application of learning really matters.
 Make every part of the design of the module and activity relevant, also clearly identifiable for the students including setting
clear expectations of students, explain why these activities are there for the students.
 If you are utilising videos and slides for online engagement, then we advise the need for bite-size learning materials, recorded
using the University’s lecture capture service. Voice-over recording is useful too. Each presentation is short and is kept to no
more than ten to fifteen minutes so that content can be digested in manageable chunks by students.

A key consideration of designing active learning is the need for tutor presence to support students to scaffold their learning and
develop a deep and critical understanding of the subject area.

Less is more. Less activities, spending more time on it with individual or small groups of students is meaningful to coach, mentor and
build students’ learning. It also allows for feedback opportunities and targeted interventions. Being mindful of this will help you
execute your role as a facilitator of learning effectively.

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Actively building on learning

Considerations

What is the purpose of the online space/VLE? How does it differ to a classroom environment? How will you use these learning spaces
most effectively?

If any taught content will be delivered solely online (synchronously or asynchronously), we encourage breaking down the learning into
manageable chunks of time for the students. Have you considered, for each lesson/topic how you would segment the learning so that
students are building from foundational knowledge chunks to more complex analytical and critical thinking?

What will your role be in a multi-modal learning ecosystem (in the classroom and the VLE)? Will you play an active role in
scaffolding and feed-forward in collaboration tasks?

What sorts of active learning initiatives have you used in your campus-only delivery and how do you plan to create a seamless flow
between active learning in the classroom and online?

How well are the online elements integrated with/wrapped around the more conventional teaching materials and learning activities?

Does the course promote high levels of engagement to afford construction of knowledge and learning including the development of
skills?

Is it explicit and clearly communicated how often learners need to contribute to learning activities?

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Principles for Planning
Learning Design your
module

Concluding Preparing Developing higher order thinking and

transferability of learning
your DIGITAL
your
module LEARNING students
DESIGN
Demonstrating individual learning
FRAMEWORK and showcasing abilities

Equity of assessment
Choice and Structuring
Flex in your Actively engaging with feedback
Assessments module
Designing student
engagement
 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Developing higher order thinking and

transferability of learning

Overview

Assessments facilitate the time and space for students to develop original thinking and authenticity, through opportunities that are
sufficiently varied and diverse, allowing students to take a proactive role in their learning, demonstrating autonomy to choose to work
in new and interesting ways. Assessments are a vehicle through which students develop higher order thinking and transferability of
learning and are inspired to use their knowledge and skills to authentically make a difference in the real world.

To do this, the assessment approach provides students with flexibility and choice in the kinds of work they engage with and produce,
encouraging and valuing their efforts to be creative. To develop higher order thinking and the ability to transfer learning from
controlled environments set out in assessments to the real world, assessments need to engage students in intellectually challenging and
demanding ways, beyond surface learning approaches.

Within the context of choice and flex in designing assessments for learning, a key factor is the sustainability of flexible assessment
formats, ensuring that assessments are aligned to learning outcomes, assessing these in the most effective way at the most effective
time of the learning journey. This allows students to develop familiarity and sophistication in how they attempt similar activities of
learning and what is expected of them in different forms of assessments.

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Developing higher order thinking and

transferability of learning

Considerations

When designing assessments, how do you build in and promote employability skills of learners?

In considering the sustainability of choice and flex in assessments, how do you provide more opportunity for students to grasp
expectations of the assessment and utilize feedback in improving the next assessment?

In considering the sustainability of choice and flex in assessments, is there joint planning across the course of study each year in the
type of assessment and expectations of students?

Within your module, does the assessment assess the ability for students to demonstrate higher order thinking and transferability of
learning and does it take place at the right time of learning within the modules?

How do you design intellectually challenging assessments that allow students the opportunities to demonstrate originality and
creativity both in knowledge and in the demonstration of learning?

To continue to develop core graduate attributes and skills grounded in authentic disciplinary and professional values and identities,
how do you offer choice and flex whilst maintaining core graduate skills such as large research projects and substantive academic
writing pieces?

To what extent are your assessments giving students the opportunity to move away from compartmentalised linear disciplinary
learning, encouraging them to engage with and present new ideas and perspectives, to redefine problems and create new knowledge
and apply these meaningfully in real-world learning situations?

How do your assessments allow students to develop their digital literacies grounded in authentic disciplinary and professional values
and identities?

What guidance/support do course designers and module designers require to create assessments that are both sustainable to their
approaches to teaching and that affords higher order thinking and transferability of learning for students?

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Demonstrating individual learning and

showcasing abilities

Overview

Assessments are designed as a vehicle which affords inclusive opportunities to demonstrate individual learning and development
through choice and flex.

This allows us to assess learning in different ways, allowing students to present their ideas in creative and meaningful ways, showcase
their originality and abilities whilst building their digital capability and fluency.

In order for students to do this, we must ensure that each assessment within a module and all assessments contained within a module
are holistically designed to provide a choice in how students engage with the assessment, develop their work and present their solution.

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Demonstrating individual learning and

showcasing abilities

Considerations

When designing assessments, how do you design learning opportunities within that drive improvement and shapes behaviour,
professional identity and values of learners, pertained to the needs of the subject and profession?
In considering the sustainability of choice and flex in assessments, whilst balancing the assessment of learning in different ways, how
do you:
 Provide more opportunity for students to grasp expectations of the assessment and utilize feedback in improving the next
assessment?
 Determine that the choices of assessment for learning is one that is intellectually challenging and demanding?

How do you design assessments that allow students the opportunities to:
 Present their ideas in creative and authentic ways?
 Showcase their originality and abilities in their individual and authentic ways?
 Build their digital capability and fluency grounded in authentic disciplinary and individual and unique professional values and
identities?
How do you offer choice and flex whilst maintaining core graduate skills such as large research projects and substantive academic
writing pieces?
Can you (with permission) utilise a broad sample of past student work (covering different types of assessments) to guide students in
understanding areas of strengths, improvements and rationale for grading?
Can you develop further opportunities for students to familiarise themselves with their assessment(s) (and assessment criteria) through
additional marking exercises, with the aim of improving their understanding of the assessment(s), subsequent depth of learning as well
as grading achieved?
What guidance support do course designers and module designers require to create assessments that are both sustainable to their
approaches to teaching and that affords inclusive opportunities to demonstrate individual learning and showcasing originality and
abilities?

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Equity of assessment

Overview

In designing assessments which afford choice and flex to learners, the equity of assessment design must be given consideration. Equity
in assessment design relates to:
 The opportunities students have for learning across all modalities of delivery and experience and the parity of learning and
experience of learning each modality offers

and
 The choice and flex through various types of assessments and the effort, rigour, support required, relevance and impact of the
assessed work for each type of assessment.

In designing assessments which are varied, diverse and provide choice to students to develop their original thinking and authenticity,
care must be taken to ensure that the agreed assessment choices:
 Align to intended learning outcomes
 Are equitable in terms of the effort required to produce the work
 Place the emphasis on originality and creativity
 Can be assessed using the established assessment criteria
 Ensure that choices and expectations are negotiated and agreed with students up front.

There is also a need to balance innovative and creative approaches to assessments with students having the opportunity to learn new
ways of showcasing their abilities, alongside their development of core competencies and graduate attributes.

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Equity of assessment

Considerations

In designing assessments, how will you balance variety and diversity of assessments with opportunities for students to develop
confidence in handling one type of assessment using the feedback they receive?
Does choice in assessments allow students to demonstrate higher and deeper learning potential?
When offering choice in assessments, do the different varieties assess the same learning outcomes and learning processes as other forms
of assessments?
How can we ascertain that the learning assessed requires the same level of effort in completing the assessment as well as rigor in
demonstrating and showcasing the learning?
In designing assessments which are varied, diverse and provide choice to students to develop their original thinking and authenticity,
thought should be given to the likely ‘artefact’ that will be submitted by the student.
 What is the impact of this when it comes to marking the work?
 What is the impact when it comes to providing feedback?
 Do both of these things fit with your planned approach for marking and feedback?

Do the variety and diversity of assessment choices all cater towards creating opportunities for students to showcase how they may
redefine problems with innovative solutions for real-world impact?
Students appreciate being given autonomy in the assessment process. How will you support students to make an informed decision
about the choices of assessments? What factors should students consider and how will you present the information about each choice of
assessment?
What guidance support do course/module designers require to create assessments that are both sustainable to their approaches to
teaching and allows for epistemic reflections towards the equitability and rigour of different forms of assessments?

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Actively engaging with feedback

Overview

The power of assessment lies in providing timely and actionable feedback that allows students to actively engage with the feedback.

Feedback is effective when:

 Students actively engage with it to improve their learning approaches
 Students understand the feedback which then leads to their own growth and development, awareness of their own abilities and
strengths, growing in confidence through the encouragement they receive, in the awareness of areas that require further work and
how to address these
 Students apply this learning in upcoming pieces of work/activities

Through a continual process of providing feedback, students will have the opportunity to improve and enhance how they address
particular types of assessments where same forms of assessments are embedded as learning activities as part of the module design.

A note for students studying interdisciplinary courses – they require distinct approaches and discourse around research and sources of
information, methodologies, approaches to writing, referencing, presenting of work and levels of creativity and authenticity. Making
sense of feedback in different disciplines can be challenging and will require further discussion and support.

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Actively engaging with feedback

Consideration

What do students actually recognise as feedback? Little changes can make a big difference – clear and deliberate use of language to
help students understand when feedback is being given is vital.

What’s approaches or interventions will you develop to get students to engage with their feedback?

How will you communicate the value and relevance of engaging with feedback, with your students?

In alignment with the type of assessment choice, should students have the choice and flex in the feedback they receive?

In considering the sustainability of choice and flex in assessments, how do you provide more opportunity for students to grasp
expectations of the assessment and utilize feedback in improving the next assessment?

What guidance support do course designers and module designers require to create assessments that are both sustainable to their
approaches to teaching and helping staff to be realistic around the rigour and relevance and impact of the feedback provided to
students?

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Principles for Planning
Learning Design your
module

Concluding Preparing Further learning opportunities and

digital solutions for your learners
your DIGITAL
your
module LEARNING students
DESIGN
FRAMEWORK

Choice and Structuring

Flex in your
Assessments module
Designing student
engagement
 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Further learning opportunities and digital

solutions for your learners

Overview

Wrapping up a module is equally important to introducing a module to help learners consolidate their learning within the module and
across other modules covered that semester.

Readings that may link to next semester modules to help students develop synergies on the course coherently.

At the end of the module, wrap up the online space, just as you would in your final class on campus, drawing on the successes of the
students and how the intended learning outcomes have been met for the course.

Help students articulate how the module covered the intended learning outcomes and the purpose of the assessment and the process of
the assessment which gave them the opportunity to showcase various elements of the ILOs.

Talk about the future, particularly how the module fits with the changing knowledge and skills needed for the professional world of
work.

Ask students to share their experience of the module. Identify areas for future improvement from module surveys and feedback.

Take a break and come back to reviewing your course or module design. Celebrate and showcase your good practices!

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Further learning opportunities and digital

solutions for your learners

Considerations

Reflect on how you have incorporated the principles of learning design recommended in this toolkit.

Given the changing nature of learning and teaching, including the digital transformative potential that innovative digital solutions
offer, how do you plan to enhance your module for the next iteration?

How will you further contextualise digital literacies and digital empowerment into your course design to build in opportunities for
students to develop their digital fluencies?

How will you develop your module so that it can be positioned as a catalyst for preparing students for the changing professional
workplace, and the relevance it plays in the digital transformation of the students’ learning experience?

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Principles for Planning
Learning your
Design module

Concluding Preparing Affordances of authentic and

creative assessments and digital
your DIGITAL
your
solutions
module LEARNING students
DESIGN
FRAMEWORK Future ready and digitally
empowered learners

Choice and Structuring Embedding Digital literacies in

Flex in your course design
Assessments module
Designing student
engagement
 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Affordances of authentic and creative

assessments and digital solutions

Overview

In a technologically rich and constantly evolving knowledge economy, a sense emerges that knowledge cannot, by itself, provide the
core of an authentically future facing higher education. In course and module design, it is necessary to create learning conditions,
opportunities and environments which support the development of each individual learner’s creative capabilities to seek out and face
everyday problems, as well as enhance their capacities for future success.

We must provide a clear reference point for creativity in our learning designs, allowing sufficient space for innovation, for appropriate
risk taking, and for experimentation. We must also find ways of valuing the role of ‘relative failure’ as an integral part of the creative
learning process, since initial mistakes will eventually allow for improved outcomes. The acceptance of failure and experimentation, as
much as the reward for success plays a key part in developing individual resilience and offers an incentive for innovation.

What works depends on the types of thinking and learning we want to encourage at any particular moment in the student learning
journey. It is also heavily dependent on the learner and their progress. Students need sufficient time and space in the curriculum to
allow them to develop their creativity. Providing incremental opportunities for students to develop confidence in their ability to explore
and experiment.

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Affordances of authentic and creative

assessments and digital solutions

Considerations

Students are given the autonomy to choose to work in new and interesting ways enabling all students to be creative in ways appropriate
to their own experience and learning situations.

Supporting students to manage their own learning strategies by providing flexibility and choice in the kinds of work they engage with
and produce and encouraging and valuing their efforts to be creative.

Students are challenged through authentic, demanding, and meaningful work. Encouraging students to embrace unfamiliar tasks and
working practices, be open to new ideas and perspectives, and recognise opportunities to create new and build on existing knowledge
and insight in real-world learning situations.

Assessment is intentionally designed to allow for outcomes which are not narrowly predetermined or fixed, which emphasises
assessment of ‘process’ to draw together and apply their learning throughout a module or course and provide important opportunities
for students to demonstrate their creativity.

Fostering a learning environment that encourages active engagement, reflection and personal development, supporting students to
collaborate with others, communicate their ideas, showcase their abilities and make the cognitive, relational and cultural connections.

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Future ready and digitally empowered learners

Overview

Nurturing creativity and resilience, two core attributes of future-ready learners, requires curriculum and learning designs that move
beyond an emphasis on the ‘acquisition’ of knowledge and understanding, to favour more engaged, creative, authentic, collaborative
learning. Enabling creative learning in this way helps students to appreciate new insights and confidently put their learning to work in
ways that enable them to adapt to and thrive in different situations and scenarios.

It is important to acknowledge that different disciplines will recognise and value different forms and combinations of these attributes.

 Authenticity: taking ownership of initiatives and tasks by actively constructing and making judgements on their own knowledge
and understanding of concepts and relationships relevant to real-world contexts.
 Curiosity: analyse, refine and evaluate existing knowledge to create unique and cogent ideas and artefacts.
 Receptivity: openness to new and different knowledge, ideas and perspectives and the ability to connect and work with others, to
communicate ideas and to pursue novel perspectives on and solutions to problems.
 Personal Flexibility: evidenced through accountable and evaluative behaviour.
 Resilience: evidenced through self-regulated and adaptive behaviour.

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Future ready and digitally empowered learners

Considerations

To what extent are you providing opportunities for students to confidently practise, and apply their learning in creative ways that
reflect and respond to their changing learning needs, motivations, and preferences?

To what extent are you providing flexibility and choice in the kinds of approaches and work students can engage with and produce
throughout your module or course?

To what extent does your course/module provide students with opportunities to create new and build on existing knowledge and insight
in real-world learning situations?

To what extent does your course/module require students to put forward and showcase their own ideas about and solutions to problems
they themselves have researched and defined in meaningful ways?

To what extent is your course/module providing students a variety of opportunities for meaningful and productive disciplinary,
interdisciplinary and professional collaborations?

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Embedding digital literacies in course design

Overview

We define digital literacies to mean the awareness and ability to skilfully use digital solutions to find problems, solve problems,
communicate in a variety of ways meaningfully, collaborate with others, create new ideas and develop deep thinking through the
active, confident and fluent choice and use of digital solutions for intended outcomes.

It is a core component of the knowledge and skills students need to thrive in the fourth industrial revolution, particularly where
professions, industries and sectors are evolving through automation, requiring creative skills that cannot be automated.

Designing digital literacies into your module or course design requires you to ground digital literacies into the disciplinary and
professional needs of the course, making the digital literacies relevant to the nature of what and how students are studying and the
intended outcomes of their studies. To incrementally develop students’ digital literacies from awareness to fluency requires incremental
steps to experiment and building opportunities to confidently articulate their creativity. The use of tools gives students the opportunity
to be impactful in their future readiness.

Therefore, the main question here is – what does digital literacies mean for your subject discipline and the likely range of professions
students on your course are likely to go into? How will you equip your students with the knowledge, skills and future readiness to
thrive in these professions – and what how does digital solutions enable you to achieve this?

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

Embedding digital literacies in course design

Considerations

What does digital literacies for learning mean to you?

What does digital literacies mean to your subject discipline and the professions?

How are the professions and industries changing and what is expected of graduates?

How do digital solutions and attributes contribute to students becoming creative individuals with the capability to thrive in the
changing landscape?

Crafting and embedding digital literacies into your course and module design requires going beyond the technical use of tools – so,
what are the other dimensions of learning that you would like your students to be able to articulate and showcase?

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Planning Preparing Structuring Engagement Assessments Concluding Principles

“Digital Learning is much more than using digital “Designing your learning for students is a humanly
“Good Digital Learning Design has always tools to produce ‘materials’ or ‘content’. It’s creative and iterative process – a multifaceted
been a requirement of our students. However, about supporting your learners through a logical, process which interweaves disciplinary norms and
in reality, the creation and delivery of good inclusive, high-quality experience, providing the values, the changing profession that students may
learning design has been limited to those framework within which they can learn and enter after their studies, cognitive and behavioral
institutions that recognised the importance and develop not just their subject-specific skills and knowledge and actions, all steered through a
dedication required to fulfil the student's knowledge, but their wider skillset they will need journey that is carefully crafted for your students”
requirements” - John to thrive in an uncertain future in terms of - Ann
creativity, adaptability, confidence and resilience”
- Paul “Embrace the opportunities digital learning and
“As a student I believe that capturing student
digital technologies provides you and your learners
journey is the heart of learning design. When
but absolutely do not feel like you need to be the
courses are designed taking into account these “However, times have changed, and all students at expert and know every tool, platform, technology
students choices makes the learning design stand all institutions need and should be provided with inside out – you don’t – there are people at your
out, this is exactly what I’ve tried contribute good digital learning design. This framework and institution who can help you with this. Work with
towards this project, to incorporate my unique the associated tool is just one fundamental your Learning Technologists/Instructional
student voice” - Archana approach you can take to ensure your students Designers who can help you choose the most
receive the best digital learning experience.“ - appropriate technologies to use for your learning
John design and also support you as you develop your
knowledge and understanding” - Paul
“Digital Learning Design is more than tech tools
and digital solutions; its more than making
“Learning is integral for Student success and
things look colorful and pretty. Its more about
whether or not learners retain the content depend
the impactful partnership between the subject “Don’t be afraid to deviate from how you always
on the lesson design. This is why a good learning
expert and the learning design expert creating do things, always ask yourself – what motivates
design is important so that students can create
something that truly reaches your learners” - Ann you in your role – the power of education and
memorable learning experience without cognitive
overload” - Archana carefully crafted opportunities for learning
motivates me the most” - Ann

Digital Learning Design Framework and

 Supported by

Please contact Ann Thanaraj ([email protected]) and Paul Durston ([email protected]) if you would like
support around digital learning design transformation within your college or university.

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