Principles of Online Design - Schnaider

Instructional and Audience Analysis
The instructional and audience analysis are important to conduct and consider in designing an online course. The instructional analysis is primary since not every course is conducive to being taught at a distance. Any course that teaches skills that will need to be shown or assessed probably will not work at a distance, unless other arrangements can be made. This made me think twice about having the participants in my Train-the-Trainer course be assessed on their course delivery. The program will be taught online, however their courses are taught face-to-face. It is not a good assessment to have them practice online. We will have to make arrangements for a face-to-face class for their assessment, or they will have to be assessed during their actual course.

Also important is the audience analysis in determining if the participants are technologically savvy enough to take a distance course, or if a distance course is conducive to their background, goals, reasons for taking the course, etc. For my Train-the-Trainer course, the participants have access and knowledge of the technology. Also, a distance course is ideal for them since they come from three different counties and all work full-time as engineers. It would be very difficult to have them all attend a face-to-face course.