My Learner's Journey
As an instructional designer with over six years in the field, the Learning Technologies and Design (LTD) program and User Experience and Usability (UXU) graduate certificate at the University of Missouri provides deeper context, and the courses in my program of study enhances my work experience.
Program of Study Reflection
Applying to the LTD program allowed me to choose meaningful career goals. When I originally applied to the program, I described how it could help me reach my career goals as follows:
- Improve my design and development skills
- Find useful solutions to learning challenges
- Mentor others on their learning journeys
I recently added the UXU graduate certificate to my program of study enhance these goals. The UXU provides real-world application of user experience and usability best practices; allows me to work with interdisciplinary groups focused on providing innovative learning solutions and user experiences; and teaches me to use user experience and usability choices to support the learner experience. I am looking forward to completing the LTD program and UXU graduate certificate to enrich my learning journey.
As of May 2023, I will need to complete three more classes before graduation. The courses I’ve chosen have help me learn theory and the immediate practical application—and it has helped me on numerous work projects. One of the most meaningful of the courses I’ve taken so far includes ISLT 9461: Interaction Design, which allowed me to apply interaction design practices within a multidisciplinary team. Similarly, ISLT 9450: Research Methods in ISLT allowed me to research storytelling heuristics, and how instructional designers can use storytelling to improve the learning experience. With all of the courses in my program of study (Table 1), I use what I am learning in my designs and developments.
| Course Number | Course Title | Semester |
|---|---|---|
| IS_LT 9471 | Instructional Systems Design | Fall 2021 |
| IS_LT 9474 | Front End Analysis of Systems* | Fall 2021 |
| IS_LT 9450 | Research Methods in ISLT | Spring 2022 |
| IS_LT 9421 | Usability of Information Systems and Services* | Spring 2022 |
| IS_LT 9461 | Interaction Design* | Fall 2022 |
| IS_LT 9473 | Project Management | Spring 2023 |
| IS_LT 7355 | Web Design and Development | Spring 2023 |
| IS_LT 7361 | Introduction to Digital Media | Summer 2023 |
| IS_LT 7384 | Designing Games for Learning | Fall 2023 |
| IS_LT 9840 | UX Internship* | Spring 2024 |
| * Counts toward the User Experience and Usability (UXU) graduate certificate. | ||