Guidelines for Informed Instructional Strategy Selection in Online Higher Education: A Design and Development Research

Abstract

Online education has become increasingly popular in recent years. Preparing for online teaching can be a complex process, and some instructors find it challenging to teach effectively due to a lack of preparation and guidance. As part of online teaching planning, selecting the appropriate instructional strategy is crucial to providing a quality online learning experience. Thus, instructional strategies aid in ensuring that students comprehend academic material, facilitate effective teaching and learning, and encourage student engagement. To address this issue, this study has been conducted to provide evidence-based guidelines for instructors in selecting effective instructional strategies for online courses in higher education. These guidelines are designed to assist faculty in choosing the right strategies for online learning, taking into account various factors that can influence this decision-making process. This study employs the design and development research (DDR) methodology to create an instructional strategy selection guide for online courses in higher education. The DDR methodology involves a systematic and empirical approach to developing and evaluating instructional and non-instructional products, tools, and models (Richey & Klein, 2007). The guidelines were created in four phases: analysis, design, development, and evaluation and validation. Each phase had a specific purpose in creating and refining the guidelines. These guidelines have been developed based on a foundation of theoretical concepts, a thorough analysis of relevant literature, and extensive evaluation and validation by experts in the field. By providing well-planned strategies for quality online education, this study contributes to research and content development in the field of online learning.