Quick Tips for IDs: Working with Experts
Establish a common goal.
Find and emphasize a common goal between you and the SME. You will work together to meet this challenge or mission.
Frame ideas as suggestions.
Suggestions and recommendations help the SME feel comfort in the fact that they have final approval of the product. You are not telling them what to do or judging their ideas as good or bad.
Support your ideas with evidence.
Be prepared to discuss current academic studies of how well-designed instruction can solve pedagogical challenges.
Explain your strategy.
When making suggestions, be able to explain your rationale or strategy behind the selection of a technology.
Recognize expertise and experience.
Recognize the knowledge and experience of experts and their importance in the design and development process.
Use case studies.
Share case studies of successful past projects (or cases from literature) to illustrate your ideas. Demonstrate to the SME how you idea could work.
Use a common process.
Use a visible, agreed upon process for design and development. All team members know the process, timeline and deliverables and work together to meet milestones.
Demonstrate your expertise.
Explain what you do and how you do it to the SME. Demonstrating your expertise, knowledge, and skills can help to increase your perceived value.
Practice scholarship.
Engage in scholarship through presentation and publication. Co-present or co-author with experts.
Practice iterative design.
Remember that not everything needs to happen at once. Ideas can be prioritized and saved for future iterations. Products can be evaluated and revised.
Bonus Tips for Experts: Working with IDs
Share your passion.
Tell stories about why the subject matters is important to you.
Keep in touch.
Meet with your designer on a regular basis. Raise concerns if you feel you are not getting enough time with your designer.
Teach the team.
Help the team learn more about your subject. Emphasize key points and common trouble spots for learners.
Solicit ideas.
As your team to share design recommendations, learning strategies, and ideas for incorporating technologies or media.
Seek alternate perspectives.
Take advantage of the skills and knowledge of your diverse team by asking them for input and suggestions.
Share your desired outcomes.
Talk over your objectives for the course as a whole as well as each sub-unit or module. What will students be able to know or do at the completion of the course?
Seek targeted recommendations.
Ask for opinions and ideas that specifically relate to your desired outcomes and objectives.
Demonstrate your experience.
Share examples of successful courses and activities you have created. Discuss what you liked about them and how they might apply to the current project.
Be proactive.
Ask how you can help move the project forward.
Recognize others' expertise.
Recognize the expertise of the design team and the value they add in creating a powerful learning experience.
Reference
Aleckson, J. and Ralston-Berg, P. (2011). MindMeld: Micro-Collaboration between eLearning Designers and Instructor Experts, Madison, WI: Atwood Publishing.
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