My membership in the Association for Educational Communications and Technology shows that I have sought to grow my instructional design skill set, a vital habit that successful instructional designers must practice developing in the field of learning design and technology. 

Technology changes exponentially. Therefore, designers must know the latest trends to revolutionize their learning experiences. Organizations such as AECT exist for this purpose - to connect professionals to share knowledge and information to improve learning design. I only recently joined AECT, but I have already received several newsletters containing rich opportunities to attend webinars, participate in competitions, and access the latest research about learning. As a result, I listened to a podcast that interviewed Dr. Charles Graham, a Brigham Young University professor specializing in learning engagement. He explained the differences between affective, behavioral, and cognitive engagement during this podcast. He also spoke about other “facilitators” that impact learning, such as the course community, which is specific to the classroom context, and personal community, which is specific to the outside classroom environment. Listening to this discussion activated my curiosity about these applications in the corporate learning environment. It made me consider how I, as an instructional designer, might support personal communities for adult learners who participate in mandatory corporate training. For example, in general, school-age children have parents and friends in their personal communities who help ignite their interests and stoke their motivation to excel (affective engagement). Could the same be said about corporate learners? I would argue that in many environments, the answer is no. This reflection on the podcast’s content will indeed inform my approach to future designs. Meaningful professional development should spark questions to help designers create top-notch curricula based on the most up-to-date research. 

Throughout my career, I have attended numerous professional development opportunities. Some of these have been mandatory and provided by my workplace, while others have been self-driven. The AECT podcast’s topic I listened to primarily applied the concept of engagement to the K-12 and higher education contexts. Although I am moving away from the K-12 setting, I could not help but think about how having access to this membership while teaching would have benefitted me tremendously. However, I had zero knowledge that these types of organizations existed. 

I am actively seeking professional development experiences to help me grow as a designer. I appreciate that they offer many modes of engagement - from webinars to podcasts - so that I can participate and learn regardless of my busy schedule. One takeaway from my experience with AECT is that I missed an excellent opportunity to attend a webinar about creating virtual reality experiences. Although I registered for the workshop, when the time came, I missed it because I did not write it down or add it to a calendar. In the future, I will add an alert to ensure I do not miss out. I would also like to invite a peer to join me to have someone reflect on the experience and hold me accountable for attending. In addition to AECT, I would like to join The Learning Guild, which I became aware of after peer-reviewing a classmate’s work. I am eager to find more opportunities to learn and grow by joining these networking platforms that will give me access to many resources and professional connections.