Like many educators in the Canadian post-secondary landscape, I am working within tight time and budget constraints. Creating high-quality learning materials takes significant effort, and I need to balance efficiency with pedagogical integrity. That is why I am choosing to experiment with AI as part of my process for this portfolio and created interactives, which is the final project for the PIDP 2025: Technology for Teaching and Learning at TRU course.
The Rationale Behind Using AI
I think AI could potentially help me accelerate the early stages of design. Instead of spending hours brainstorming topics and activities, I could use AI to generate initial ideas, organize them within frameworks like Bloom’s Taxonomy, and suggest interactive elements. This would allow me to move quickly from concept to draft, giving me more time to refine and customize content for the learners in this course.
AI might also propose approaches that go beyond traditional methods, such as branching scenarios or interactive video formats. Exploring these suggestions could help me consider new ways to make the learning experience more dynamic and engaging. I am interested to see how it compares against chatting and brainstorming with colleagues or other faculty members.
How I Am Using AI in This Project
As part of this project, I am experimenting with generative AI to support the design process in several ways:
- Brainstorming content ideas to overcome the blank page problem
- Drafting scenarios for interactive learning activities
- Generating code for developing the interactives
- Creating accessible text alternatives to ensure inclusivity
For transparency and reflection, I have included a full chat history of AI-assisted development, the outputs generated, and a critical reflection on their effectiveness and limitations. You can find this information detailed in other reflections. This approach allows me to document how AI can enhance instructional design while maintaining academic integrity and accessibility standards.
What I Aim to Learn
This experiment is not just about saving time. I want to evaluate how AI fits into an instructional design workflow and identify its strengths and limitations. Can AI help maintain consistency across modules? Does it support alignment with learning objectives? How much human intervention is required to ensure accuracy and relevance? These are the questions guiding my approach.