Tag: Higher Education

Inside “Learning Designers in Context”: Chapter 3

Lorena in a Global Corporation

Abstract:

Lorena, based in Puebla, Mexico has cultivated a career in graphic design but emphasizing functionality over aesthetics. Her professional journey began in advertising and marketing, designing materials for clothing and sportswear brands. Seeking growth, she transitioned to PROVIDENT, where she leads an instructional design team comprising instructional designers, multimedia specialists, and graphic designers.

My role is focused on revisions. I get to ask: Why don’t we do this differently? I tend to question a lot: Why did you choose this material? Why did you choose this resource? Why a video? Or, did you consider the target audience? So, that’s basically my role right now. The search for the best solutions for the project to meet the learning objective. 

As a team lead, Lorena manages project distribution, quality assurance, and workload balance while revising materials to meet learning objectives. Key competencies highlighted by Lorena in her interview include ADDIE framework expertise, hybrid/online format design, multimedia skills, and e-learning tools proficiency. Cultural adaptability and behavioral traits like humility and courage are also vital for addressing unique instructional design challenges.

I think that also something I look for and we look at a lot in the team is humility. Because humility allows you to know and understand that you don’t know everything, that you should always keep yourself in a constant search for learning. That, not because you already have master’s degrees or diplomas, you already know everything. 

Romero-Hall, E. (2026). Learning Designers in Context: Examining Practices Across the Global South. Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003270591

Congratulations Dr. Afnan Alyanbaawi! #GoVols #GBO

It is defense season!

Congratulations to Dr. Afnan Alyanbaawi, completing a Doctor of Philosophy degree in Education with a concentration in Learning Design and Technology at The University of Tennessee Knoxville, who today defended her dissertation titled “Higher Education Faculty Perceptions and Implementation of Mobile Learning in Graduate Education”! #GoVols

Committee Members: Dr. Enilda Romero-Hall (Chair), Dr. Rachel Wong, Dr. Elizabeth MacTavish, Dr. Miriam Larson

Abstract:

Mobile learning (M-Learning) technology has emerged to enhance teaching and learning experiences, especially in higher education. This research aims to investigate graduate faculty perceptions of M-Learning. Also, the study investigates how faculty implement M-Learning in graduate education. There are three main research questions addressed in this dissertation study: (1) what are the graduate faculty perceptions of using M-Learning in graduate learning experiences? (2) Do the graduate faculty perceptions toward M-Learning differ according to demographic (i.e., age, gender, years of teaching experience, and area of expertise)? (3) How are graduate faculty implementing M-Learning in graduate education?

Data were collected using an electronic survey and individual interviews. One-way ANOVA was used to analyze the data from the electronic survey demographic. Inductive thematic analysis was used to analyze the interview data and the open-ended survey questions. The electronic survey results indicate that there are significant differences in the perceptions of M-Learning among graduate faculty based on their (a) age groups and (b) area of expertise. However, there are no significant differences in the perceptions of M-Learning among graduate faculty based on their (a) gender and (b) years of teaching experience. However, based on the electronic survey results, overall faculty are neutral on their perceptions about the use of M-Learning in graduate education. Faculty interviews indicate a wide range of specific views on M-Learning. Some graduate faculty have prior experience with M-Learning, while others have never considered usingit in their teaching. The research concludes that graduate faculty primarily considers M-Learning as hardware or software that can be used to fulfill basic course requirements such as accessing the learning management system (LMS) and the video conferencing software. The results suggest that graduate faculty members are interested in attending M-Learning professional development to better understand how to use M-Learning in graduate education.

Keywords: mobile learning, faculty perceptions, graduate education, implementation.