Defining the Instructional Technology Field

My definition of instructional/educational technology has primarily been the idea of media -- computers and the like.  The definitions found in the text, Trends and issues in instructional design and technology, are far more specific and include design, development, implementation, and evaluation of the process of instruction.  My exposure to "educational" technology has been limited to my experience as an occupational therapist and the use of technology in the treatment of patients with environmental controls, communication devices, and the use of a tablet for task specific practice such as visual or memory skills.  With this being my second course in educational technology, I am starting to open my eyes to a new world of technology and its use for more than lecture presentations.  

I have just begun my teaching career, so my skills in developing instruction are in their very early stages; however, I participated in a professional development workshop on my college campus to prepare new/novice professors for teaching.  The information was most certainly student (professors as the students) centered and goal oriented.  The PD specialist was intent on providing the professors in attendance with the tools they would need to become better instructors of their respective subjects.  The performance and skills provided were meaningful and the PD specialist was careful to engage the attendees in the process of learning the skills -- a team effort.  The final two aspects, measurable outcomes and empirical/self-correcting,  were difficult to achieve as the results of the skills learned would not be evident until the students began writing papers and taking tests to determine the effectiveness of the professors' teaching.  The PD specialist was very focused on the professors staying engaged in the process of learning the skills and not being passive learners.  The attendees were asked to form groups of varying sizes, discuss scenarios and reflect knowledge, and provided with task oriented, media rich, and interactive methods to gain the necessary knowledge.  Aside from the inability to assess the professors' ability to self-correct and measure outcomes, the aspects of instructional design were obvious and evident throughout.   

I believe Reiser excluded teachers, chalkboards, and textbooks from his definition of instructional media because they are more part of a "historical" definition of instructional media and they do not take into account the broad nature of the definition of media which has evolved.  The teachers and books are more the support to the delivery of instructional material of the modern educational system.  The prevailing idea of the constructivist theory with problem based learning and flipped classroom models provide the students with a greater opportunity to incorporate technology which is more reflective of the "real world" environment.  I would not say the "purpose" of instructional design is to incorporate media as much as modern instructional design lends itself to the inclusion of media to facilitate the greatest benefit to the learner.  The method of instruction should most closely reflect the environment in which the learner will be functioning after the learning has taken place.  More often than not, the "environment" will be less books and teachers and more interaction with technology for task completion in education or their career.  

Reiser, Robert, A. & Dempsey, John, V. (2012) Trends and issues in instructional design and technology.  (3rd ed.) Boston: Allyn & Bacon.