Foreword to the Proceedings

Professor of Learning, Design, and Technology
University of Georgia, USA

The ADECT AECT 2021 international hybrid conference featured scholarly sessions that were informative, scientific and practical, and relevant to the field of information and communication technology (ICT). The conference theme: The Innovative Educator: Bridging Digital, Technological and Education Divides in a Borderless World, exemplified the mission of the Association for Educational Communications and Technology (AECT), which is to “ Provide international leadership by promoting scholarship and best practices in the creation, use, and management of technologies for effective teaching and learning.” Educational technology professionals study and practice procedures, and develop products that focus on increasing the potential for student success through meaningful learning.

These proceedings represent the academic content from a forum where educational technology professionals convened to exchange ideas about proven strategies for the effective practice of instructional design based on in-depth knowledge and skills about the process, products and designer competencies associated with the systematic design of teaching and learning materials. The content of the proceedings represent empirically supported procedures that are interdependent, synergistic, dynamic, cybernetic, systematic and systemic with regard to maintaining student learning outcomes as the focal point of instructional activities.

The articles included in this publication offer the reader an opportunity to review effective teaching philosophies, criteria for utilizing a preferred instructional technology, and frameworks for establishing course goals and identifying specific learning tasks that underpin most teaching and learning spaces. The content of these proceedings are replete with samples of work, case descriptions and typical instructional design strategies that apply contemporary learning theories, and produce authentic solutions for closing performance gaps that are caused by a lack of knowledge and skills. The ideas contained herein will benefit all education professionals who work with trainers and teachers to create student-centred teaching and learning materials and delivery systems.