The A.D.D.I.E. Framework: How I use it

Thembi Duncan – December 12, 2023

A.D.D.I.E. represents a practical framework in instructional design: Analysis, Design, Development, Implementation, and Evaluation (ELM, 2022). This structured approach helps instructional designers maintain organization, follow a logical progression of steps, and successfully solve learning problems. As an instructional designer, I follow the A.D.D.I.E model to ensure accountability to my clients through a structured process that we can collaborate to design, implement, and revise as necessary. Each step is detailed below.

Analysis: Learning Environment, Learner Preferences, Learning Problem, Learner Characteristics, Learner Expectations

To set myself up for success, I begin every project by asking lots of questions of my clients, various stakeholders, and myself. During this step, it is important for me to gather as much information as possible about the learning problem and the context that surrounds it.

Key questions will focus on the learning environment, details about the learners, and a clear understanding of the problem I’m working to solve. By prioritizing a process of asking questions and setting all the data in front of me, I’m giving myself a broad view of the problem and uncovering information that may have been hidden in the details or obscured by limited early research.

Design: Learning Objectives, Content Details, Timelines, Assessment Methods

This is the step of the process where I begin exercising my creativity by making decisions about learning objectives, content details, timelines, and assessment methods. Decision-making is the key component of this stage of the framework, but I feel confident in being decisive now, knowing that I can make small adjustments in later stages.

Development: Break the learning moments down into digestible modules. Determine the full user experience. Check analysis and design notes for alignment. Get feedback from key stakeholders.

If the design phase produces the skeleton, the development phase is where I begin adding internal systems, muscles, and skin. I break the learning experience into modules that are thematic and digestible. I glance back into the design phase to check my alignment, then continue determining the full user experience. Feedback from clients and key stakeholders serves as a compass and checkpoint to make sure I’m on the right track.

Implementation: Introduce the learning experience to the learners. Observe their experiences, behaviors, and reactions. Combine observation notes with learner feedback.

During this stage of the process, I present the learning experience to the people it was designed for: the learners. I keenly observe their reactions to each part of the experience, taking note of how their behaviors and learning moments align with my expectations. I use a combination of my observation notes and learner feedback to create a profile for the evaluation stage.

Evaluation: Determine effectiveness of the learning experience. Gather evidence that the audience learned what was expected. Present y findings to the client and suggest improvements.

In the evaluation stage, I take the profile I created and make determinations about the effectiveness and appropriateness of the learning experience. I analyze quantitative and qualitative data from my observations and assessment mechanisms.

I gather evidence that the target audience learned what I expected them to learn based on the design of the learning experience. I also take note of unanticipated and unexpected situations that could be implemented to improve the learning model.

This stage is completed when I am able to provide an evidence-based report to the client on the effectiveness of the learning solution, and whether any changes need to be made to maximize learning.

This process has been in use for decades, and while variations of this process have emerged in the field, the

This framework has been in use for decades, and while variations of this process have emerged in the field, the A.D.D.I.E. model remains my choice for setting the course of any learning or training experience.

This is a process that has been in use for decades, and while variatio

Have you ever used the A.D.D.I.E. framework?

Have you ever used the A.D.D.I.E. framework?Have you ever used the A. this process in their own work.hello dtherefore ipson rocess in their own work.hello dtherefore ipson 

If you’ve used this framework before, which aspects of it are the most challenging? 

This is a process that has been in use for decades, and while variations of this process have emerged in the field, the A.D.D.I.E. model remains my choice for setting the course of any learning or training experience. Download this infographic as a learning aid:

Educators, trainers, and project managers may find some of these steps familiar because they’ve used some aspect of this A.D.D.I.E. in their own work.

Educators, trainers, and project managers may find some of these steps familiar because they’ve used some aspect of this process in their own work.

Do you think there are parts of the A.D.D.I.E. framework that can be skipped? Eliminated altogether? 

Educators, trainers, and project managers may find some of these steps familiar because they’ve used some aspect of this process in their own work.

There’s no one way to use the A.D.D.I.E. framework, and you may find that some steps are more useful to you than others. If you’re new to A.D.D.I.E., try using it for a small, low-stakes project and if you find it useful, continue to scale out until you can complete major projects with this organized, efficient approach to experience design. Give it a try!

References

ELM Learning. (2022 July 22). What is ADDIE? Your complete guide to the ADDIE model. eLearning Lab. https://elmlearning.com/blog/instructional-design-addie-model/