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Understanding your learners is a foundational element of effective course design. Developing learner profiles allows instructional designers and faculty to create courses that are aligned with the unique backgrounds, goals, and needs of their students. These profiles offer insight into factors such as prior knowledge, motivations, learning preferences, access to technology, and potential barriers—informing decisions about content delivery, interaction strategies, pacing, and assessment. By integrating learner profiles into the design process, courses become more inclusive, engaging, and pedagogically sound, ensuring that learning experiences are both relevant and responsive to the people they are intended to serve.

The instructional design project aims to support graduate-level learners in ENG66XX, an advanced English course, by creating learning experiences that align with their academic goals, intellectual motivations, and professional aspirations.

SME Request/Need:

Learners in ENG66XX face several challenges that can hinder their academic growth and engagement:

Information Overload: The volume and complexity of readings and theoretical frameworks can overwhelm learners, making it difficult to synthesize and prioritize content.

Time Management: Balancing coursework with teaching responsibilities and professional obligations is a persistent struggle.

Imposter Syndrome & Isolation Learners may experience self-doubt and feelings of isolation, especially during independent research phases.

Navigating Interdisciplinary Content: Integrating knowledge from adjacent disciplines requires additional scaffolding and support.

These challenges can impact learners’ ability to fully engage with course materials, contribute meaningfully to scholarly discourse, and achieve their academic and professional goals.

Design Decision/Choice:

We set out to design an instructional experience that:

Scaffolds Complex Content: Break down theoretical concepts and readings into manageable segments with synthesis activities.

Supports Time Management: Integrate planning tools, milestone tracking, and flexible deadlines for long term projects.

Fosters Community: Create opportunities for peer collaboration, discussion forums, and feedback exchanges to reduce isolation and build confidence.

Encourages Interdisciplinary Exploration: Provide guided pathways and resources for integrating interdisciplinary perspectives into literary analysis.

Delivers Just-in-Time Feedback: Implement mechanisms for timely, constructive feedback on writing and research to support continuous improvement.

We then created learner profiles to help frame the outlined design above with the Information below:

The learner profile includes:

Demographics: Ages 22–35+, with backgrounds in literature, English, or humanities.

Experience: Prior teaching, research, or publishing experience.

Motivations: Driven by intellectual curiosity, career advancement, and scholarly contribution.

Skills: Strong foundational knowledge in literary analysis, academic writing, and research.

Preferences: Favor seminar-style discussions, independent research projects, and detailed feedback.

Challenges: Struggle with workload, interdisciplinary integration, and self-doubt.

Technology Use: Proficient with academic tools and open to digital humanities methodologies.

See example below of our General Learner Profile for the course:

General Learner Profile for ENG66XX

Demographics:

• Age Range: Learners in this course are 22-35 years old, with a few older non-traditional students.
• Educational Background: Hold a Bachelor's degree in Literature, English, or a related humanities field. Often with a strong academic record and a passion for reading and critical analysis.
• Prior Experience: Learners have some college teaching, teaching assistant (TA) experience, research experience, or professional experience in publishing, editing, or writing.

Learning Goals & Motivations:

• Deepen Knowledge: Learners seek to gain advanced, specialized knowledge in literary theory, specific literary periods/genres, and critical methodologies.
• Research & Scholarship: Learners are driven to conduct original research, contribute to academic discourse, and potentially pursue doctoral studies or academic careers.
• Analytical & Critical Thinking: They aim to hone advanced analytical, interpretive, and critical thinking skills applicable to complex texts and arguments.
• Communication Skills: Learners desire to refine academic writing, presentation, and argumentation skills for scholarly publication and discourse.
• Career Advancement: Motivated by career goals in academia, research, publishing, education, or other fields requiring advanced analytical and communication abilities
• Intellectual Curiosity: Learners possess a strong intrinsic motivation for intellectual exploration and engagement with complex ideas.

Current Knowledge & Skills:

• Strong Foundational Knowledge: Learners have a solid understanding of literary history, major authors, genres, and basic literary analysis techniques.
• Critical Reading & Analysis: Learners are proficient in prose reading, identifying literary devices, and interpreting complex texts.
• Academic Writing: Learners are competent in writing academic essays, research papers, and constructing arguments.
• Research Skills: Learners are mostly familiar with library resources, academic databases, and citation styles (e.g., APA, MLA, Chicago).
• Discussion & Debate: Learners are comfortable participating in and leading intellectual discussions.
   

Learning Preferences & Challenges:

• Preferred Learning Modalities:
  o    In-depth Reading: Learners value extensive reading of primary texts, scholarly articles, and critical theory.
  o    Seminar-style Discussions: They thrive in environments that encourage rich, nuanced intellectual debate and peer interaction.
  o    Research-based Projects: Prefer assignments that involve independent research, critical inquiry, and the production of original scholarly work (e.g., research papers, annotated bibliographies, conference presentations).
  o    Constructive Feedback: Value detailed and specific feedback on written work and analytical arguments to refine their skills.
  o    Independent Study: Learners are self-directed and capable of managing complex, long-term research projects.
  o    Access to Resources: Require access to academic libraries (physical and digital), specialized databases, and archival materials.
• Potential Learning Challenges:
  o    Information Overload: Learners can sometimes struggle with the sheer volume of reading and theoretical concepts, requiring strategies for synthesis and prioritization.
  o    Time Management: Balancing extensive reading, research, writing, and potential teaching and other professional duties can be demanding.
  o    Navigating Interdisciplinary Studies: While open to new perspectives, integrating highly specialized knowledge from other disciplines might require scaffolding.
  o    "Imposter Syndrome": Learners may experience self-doubt regarding their intellectual capabilities or contributions, especially when entering a highly competitive academic environment.
  o    Isolation: Independent research can sometimes lead to feelings of isolation; opportunities for collaboration and community building are valuable.

Technology & Tools:

• Proficient User: Learners are generally comfortable with common academic technologies (LMS, word processors, presentation software, video conferencing).
• Research Tools: Familiar with tools like Zotero/Mendeley for citation management, JSTOR/Project MUSE for academic journals, and library search engines.
• Digital Humanities (Emerging): May have an interest in or be open to learning digital humanities tools and methodologies for textual analysis or data visualization, though not necessarily proficient.

Contextual Factors:

• Academic Culture: Learners operate within a culture that highly values intellectual rigor, original thought, peer review, and scholarly publication.
• Future Aspirations: Learning experiences should ideally align with and support their academic (e.g., PhD, teaching) or professional (e.g., editing, writing) aspirations.
• Peer Network: Value interactions with peers for intellectual exchange, support, and collaborative learning.