SEAN WIELUSZ
Converting content to Educational solutions
The Half Hourglass Model of Instructional Design
About
The Half Hourglass model provides a guided framework for designing lessons that address the concerns of learners and focuses on the creation of original content (OC) that meets those needs. The Half Hourglass model is based on the Dick & Carey model, and incorporates the Universal Design Learning (UDL) guidelines. The Half Hourglass model has been developed to assist novice designers working in a private sector design role.
Reflection
Developing the Half Hourglass Model was an excellent exercise with incorporating my personal experiences into a systematic process for developing course materials. Based on my prior experiences doing design work in the business sector, I think that the Dick & Carey model did not emphasize the needs of the learner and limitations facing the instructional designer sufficiently. Likewise, I have found that it is easier to incorporate UDL guidelines while creating instructional materials as opposed to remediating existing materials to align with the guidelines afterwards.
The experience had me thinking critically about I could organize "benchmarks" into the design process and move these considerations early into the design process. It was however, not just thinking about the structure and purpose of the model, but thinking pragmatically with how it would be implemented. This work was selected in particular to demonstrate how I can translate theory into a practical educational solutions.