Flowchart note: The above graphic was created by Stephanie Brail to outline the Dick and Carey instructional design model. The ADDIE model is roughly color-coded, with the “Implement” step placed between Dick and Carey steps seven and eight. (This is just an approximation.) The optional “tenth step” of Dick and Carey, “Revise,” is labeled on the left in connection with Formative Evaluation, but can occur at any point during the process. The flowchart is mostly linear in layout, but the steps don’t have to be in actual practice. Click here to view the entire image if viewing on a mobile device.
Overview of the Dick and Carey Model
The Dick and Carey instructional design model is a comprehensive framework to develop robust courses for students. The Dick and Carey model of instructional design was first proposed in the book The Systematic Design of Instruction published in 1978 by Walter Dick and Lou Carey. This model emphasizes a systems view of instruction, as opposed to isolated parts, focusing on the interrelationship between instructional design elements such as context, content, and assessment (Dick & Carey, 1978).
The Dick and Carey model expands the five stages of ADDIE into nine total steps, although implementation is not specifically spelled out in Dick and Carey. In modern primers on Dick and Carey, some identify a tenth step, “Revise,” which is intended to reinforce the iterative nature of the model. (Note: The exact wording used to describe the steps can also have variations but the basic meanings are the same.)
Here are the nine steps of Dick and Carey:
Identify Instructional Goals: The first step is to clearly identify and articulate what learners need to achieve by the end of the instruction - these are the instructional goals.
Conduct Instructional Analysis: Instructional analysis involves breaking down the instructional goals into specific, measurable learning objectives and identifying the knowledge and skills required for learners to achieve those goals. This step often includes analyzing the content, learners, and the context in which learning will occur.
Analyze Learners and Entry Behaviors: Step three can occur in conjunction with step two. The task is to assess the characteristics of the learners, including their existing knowledge, skills, and attitudes, which are also called “entry behaviors.”
Create Performance Objectives: Once the goals are articulated and the learners have been analyzed, the next step is to create clear and measurable objectives that specify what learners will be able to do after instruction.
Develop Criterion-Referenced Tests and Assessment Instruments: A criterion-referenced test is an assessment that measures a student's performance against a specific set of criteria or learning standards. Other assessments can also be created that will measure whether learners have achieved the performance objectives.
Design Instructional Strategy: In this step, which might correlate to the “Design” phase in ADDIE, the designer or team will create the course outline and plan the instructional methods, logistics, and strategies that will be used to facilitate learning.
Develop and Select Instructional Materials: Once the overall course outline and instructional strategy is in place, the team will choose resources and materials that will support the instructional strategy. After this, the course can be launched and “implemented,” although implementation can be ongoing.
Plan and Conduct Formative Evaluation: The formative evaluation happens before and during course launch and involves testing and evaluating the course to make sure everything works properly and the lessons make sense to learners. An optional “Revise” step can follow to make necessary course adjustments. This additional revision step can make the course development iterative and can also happen at any time during the course development process.
Plan and Conduct Summative Evaluation: The summative evaluation happens after the course has been completed to see if it met its goals. Course developers can leverage class surveys, assessments, student test results, and other methods to facilitate class and lesson evaluation. If the course needs to be improved for its next scheduled launch, then the summative evaluation can help guide improvement of the course for future instruction.
Some instructional designers will also call “Revise” the tenth step of the Dick and Carey model. This is an ongoing step to continually improve the course through multiple iterative processes.
Implications of the Dick and Carey Model for Instructional Design
The Dick and Carey model can be extremely helpful in clearly articulating exactly what learners need and how to achieve the end goals of instruction. The model also provides a space to analyze the current knowledge and skills of learners prior to entering a course, in order to better build upon that knowledge (or adjust for lack of knowledge). While this type of analysis can be done under the ADDIE model, it is not specified in the model itself.
Dick and Carey’s in-depth emphasis on upfront analysis and assessment can be very helpful, especially for courses targeting students that may have important needs that must be fulfilled for learning to occur.
For example, if older students are re-entering college after an extended break, they may need refreshers in proper academic writing, as well as in how to properly use library resources. New online learners may also need instruction in how to use the online course platform and submit homework. These needs can be assessed using Dick and Carey (specifically step three) and then addressed in the course design and development.
Dick and Carey also emphasizes the upfront planning and development of specific student assessments and “criterion-referenced tests” to measure course effectiveness.
Dick and Carey’s further focus on course assessments, both formative and summative, greatly enhance the process of revising and improving courses. Thus, Dick and Carey can be used to create responsive, learner-centered courses that fully meet the needs of students.
Strengths and Limitations of the Dick and Carey Model in Adult Online Learning
The adult online learning market encompasses a wide range of potential educational applications, from online certification programs to less formal courses for popular hobbies. The Dick and Carey model can be used for all of these types of courses, but may be more helpful in more formal educational settings where student testing is critical to a course meeting its objectives.
Dick and Carey Strengths
With its strong emphasis on analysis and understanding learners’ needs, Dick and Carey can be a powerful model, especially for educational institutions. As mentioned above, when adults are going back to school online, they may need additional skills to help them succeed in their studies. Dick and Carey’s focus on “entry behaviors” will ensure that such student needs are identified early on and planned for in course development.
Dick and Carey can be particularly helpful in creating robust courses that meet the needs of diverse learners, especially when international student considerations are at play with large MOOCs (Massive Open Online Courses) and similar large, global courses.
Dick and Carey also places testing and assessment of students as a specific and critical step in the process, such that tests should be planned in advance of course design, not created as an afterthought. This also makes the model excellent for higher educational settings where grades are paramount to the course experience.
Dick and Carey Limitations
Some of the very reasons that the Dick and Carey model shine for higher education are the reasons that the model is less helpful for commercial online courses. A student who wants to learn a hobby such as knitting does not need (and probably does not want) to take tests in order to gauge how well they knit.
For solopreneurs, small businesses, and influencers who might be making courses on popular subjects for casual learners, Dick and Carey is probably too formal and structured a model. While it can be made more agile and flexible, the intense amount of effort put into planning and analysis is probably “overkill” for most smaller businesses or even larger startups.
Furthermore, the Dick and Carey model can appear complicated, and it uses a lot of jargon and lingo that business owners might not be aware of, such as “entry behaviors,” “criterion-referenced tests,” “formative evaluation,” and “summative evaluation.” A simpler model like ADDIE is easier to understand, less cumbersome, and potentially less overwhelming.
Overall, Dick and Carey is a strong model for instruction design, but it is strongest when it comes to highly structured, graded learning that requires clear and intelligent planning to deliver well.
References
Dick, W., & Carey, L. (1978). The systematic design of instruction. Scott, Foresman.
Kurt, D. S. (2015, -11-23T20:58:32+00:00). Dick and carey instructional model. Educational Technology. Retrieved Aug 15, 2024, from https://educationaltechnology.net/dick-and-carey-instructional-model/