Episodes

2027 is closer than it feels, and the future of learning is already showing up in the tools we use, the questions learners ask, and the pressure to prove real value in education and training. Jackie is kicking off a new 14-part series, Future-Ready Learning, with a practical challenge for instructional designers and educators: stop treating “the future” like a shiny tech wishlist and start designing learning that helps people grow, adapt, and apply what they know in real contexts. We dig into t...

The fastest way to ruin an adult learning experience is to start with a shiny tool and hope an outcome appears later. Jackie sat down with Dr. Dwayne Wood to get back to the foundations that keep instructional design effective, especially in online and asynchronous learning where motivation, time pressure, and cognitive load can make or break engagement. We dig into adult learning principles through a practical lens: problem-based and application-based outcomes that give learners a clear end st...

Slides are the artifact everyone recognizes, and that’s exactly why the myth survives: if a stakeholder can only see the deck, they assume the work is decoration. Jackie closes out the Myths in Instructional Design and Education series by pushing back on “instructional design is just making slides” and naming what professional instructional designers actually do long before anyone picks a template. We walk through the hidden core of learning experience design: needs analysis, clarifying learnin...

If your learners are exhausted before they even reach the content, the problem might not be motivation. It might be the mode. Jackie welcomes Dr. Dwayne Wood back for part two of the mini-series to unpack multimodal learning for adult learners and what it really means to design with intention instead of stacking more media on top of a course. We dig into cognitive load theory and why the same concept can become easier or harder depending on how you present it. Dwayne shares concrete examples of...

Class size is not a harmless detail; it’s a force that quietly rewrites the learning experience. When a course jumps from 15 learners to 75, the same discussion prompt can turn into noise, feedback timelines can stretch, and learners can feel invisible even when the content is strong. In this episode, Jackie is tackling a stubborn myth in instructional design and education: “Class size doesn’t affect learning quality.” She breaks down why this belief sticks around, including how class size is f...

Generative AI is moving from “helpful tool” to something that can quietly shape how people think, write, and learn, and that changes everything about curriculum design. I sit down with Dr. Dwayne Wood, an experienced educator and curriculum developer with a background in military instruction, to unpack what generative AI in education actually means when you care about real learning outcomes, not just faster content production. We dig into the uncomfortable middle ground between banning AI and l...

Interactivity is one of those words that sounds obvious until you try to design for it. If you’ve ever felt pressure to add branching scenarios, animations, or expensive eLearning interactions to prove a course is “engaging,” we’re calling that myth out directly: interactivity does not require fancy tools. In this episode, Jackie walks you through why this belief has lasted in instructional design and education, especially when stakeholders equate visual polish with learning value. We unpack th...

Shiny training is everywhere right now, and a lot of it still fails the moment learners go back to work. We sit down with e-Learning strategist and Ninja Tropic CEO Erick Prospero to get honest about what “engaging” digital learning actually means when outcomes are on the line. If your organization is adding video, animation, gamification, or AI tools and hoping that fixes attention and performance, this conversation gives you a sharper standard: engagement only counts when it drives a real purp...

AI can generate a course outline, a script, and a quiz in seconds, so it’s easy to wonder if instructional designers are next on the replacement list. We slow that fear down and look at what’s actually happening when AI enters the learning design workflow, and why “fast content” is not the same thing as effective instruction. We unpack the myth “AI will replace instructional designers” and name the reason it sticks: AI outputs are visible, while the real work of instructional design often isn’t...

Your inbox is designed for speed. Attackers know it, and too many training programs pretend we’re all making perfect choices with unlimited time and zero stress. Jackie had a great conversation with Lee Anderson, a cybersecurity professional with 16+ years of experience reducing human risk, to unpack what really drives security decisions and how better learning design can change behavior. We get into the psychology behind social engineering, including how urgency, fear, and even excitement can ...

Clicking, laughing, and “having fun” can look like engagement, but it can also be a mirage. In this episode, Jackie unpacks a stubborn instructional design myth that shows up in classrooms, eLearning, and workplace training: engagement means entertainment. If you’ve ever felt pressure to add games, humor, flashy visuals, music, competition, or constant interaction to keep attention, this conversation will help you slow down and design with more intention. Jackie breaks down why the myth sticks ...

A suffix can look like a tiny detail on paper, but it can carry an entire family story. Jackie sits down with Dr. Tamara Nall to talk about Junia, a formal naming tradition designed to give daughters the kind of visible legacy marker that “Junior” has long given sons. The conversation starts with naming, then opens into something bigger: identity, representation, and what changes in a culture when we finally give language to what has been missing. Dr. Nall shares the personal roots behind the m...

A quiz can be quick, clean, and easy to score, but does it actually prove learning? We take on a stubborn myth in instructional design and education: that assessments must be tests to be valid. In this episode, Jackie explains why tests are so often treated as the gold standard, from the comfort of “objectivity” to the pressure for efficiency in schools, certification programs, and workplace training. Then we make the real shift: valid assessment is about the quality of evidence, not the format...

You can feel the moment when a career finally makes sense: you read a course list, something clicks, and you realize there’s a name for the work you’ve wanted to do all along. That’s the energy behind Jackie's conversation with Naomi Allen, who recently completed her master’s in instructional design at Grand Canyon University after starting down a very different path in clinical mental health counseling. We dig into what pulled her toward instructional design and learning and development, espec...

More slides do not equal more learning, and if you have ever felt pressured to “add just one more resource,” you already know how quickly a course can turn into a content dump. We take on a stubborn instructional design myth: the idea that piling on readings, videos, examples, and links automatically improves understanding. It sounds responsible, but it often creates confusion, weak retention, and low transfer because learners cannot see what matters most. We dig into why this belief sticks aro...

AI can hand you a polished outline, a full course draft, and a dozen “best practice” scenarios in seconds. The hard part is deciding whether any of it is worth a learner’s time. Jackie sat down with James Gildrist, founder of Lighthouse L&D Consulting, to talk about the real work behind AI in learning and development: protecting meaning, judgment, and instructional quality when speed is the loudest promise in the room. James brings a simple, memorable framework from his iSpring Days 2026 sessio...

If you’ve ever heard someone say “I’m a visual learner,” you’ve seen how quickly learning style labels can shape training decisions. In this episode, Jackie unpacks a persistent instructional design myth: that learning styles should drive how we build courses, lessons, and eLearning. Learner preferences are real, but treating them like fixed categories can pull us away from what actually improves performance and understanding. Jackie explores why the myth sticks around, from how personal it fee...

The fastest way to become a trusted leader isn’t getting promoted. It’s becoming the person people run to when something hurts, and you can help fix it. Jackie sat down with Darrell Williams, a master certified life coach and longtime military and federal leader, to translate high-pressure leadership into everyday skills for educators and instructional designers. We dig into why rank never guarantees someone’s best work, how culture and connection matter even more on remote teams, and what it l...

Good teaching is powerful, but it can also hide a trap: when a class goes well, we assume the design must be strong. Jackie unpacks a common myth in instructional design and education that shows up everywhere from K-12 to corporate training and higher ed: good teaching equals good instructional design. They’re connected, but they’re not the same job, and confusing them can leave gaps in practice, assessment, accessibility, and real-world performance. We talk through why this belief has lasted s...

Most schools and nonprofits don’t have an “engagement problem” they have a follow-up problem. If you’ve ever gone to a campus event, felt a quick burst of nostalgia, and then never heard anything meaningful again, you’ve seen the gap firsthand. I sit down with alumni engagement and nonprofit consultant Jennifer Cunningham to unpack what actually turns a one-time attendee into a connected community member who mentors, hires, volunteers, advocates, and eventually gives back. Jennifer shares how a...

A shiny new tool can feel like instant progress, but what if it quietly makes your course harder to learn? Jackie is tackling one of the most stubborn myths in instructional design and education: the idea that technology automatically improves learning. Whether you’re rolling out a new LMS, testing an AI content creation tool, or adding interactive features to eLearning, the real question isn’t “Is it modern?” It’s “Does it help learners do something meaningful?” Jackie breaks down why this bel...

Most of us can remember a teacher who noticed us, but we struggle to remember the worksheet, the lecture slide, or the exact content on the exam. That’s where this conversation with Dr. Lou Hirsch lands: the real unit of change in higher education isn’t another tool or another “coverage” strategy, it’s the small, intentional moments of human connection that create trust and make learning stick. We talk about why modern systems built on speed, scale, and deadlines often squeeze out creativity, e...

The fastest way to lock learners out of your course is to wait for them to ask for access. We’re tackling a stubborn myth in instructional design and education: “Accessibility is optional if learners don’t request it.” It sounds reasonable on paper because many organizations have formal accommodation processes, but it breaks down in real life when learners don’t feel safe disclosing, don’t have documentation, or don’t even know what to ask for until they’re already struggling. We unpack why thi...

What if making great learning videos felt like finishing a slide deck—familiar, fast, and oddly satisfying? Jackie sat down with Pictory co‑founder Vikram Chalana to unpack a clear path from messy tools to simple, repeatable workflows that help educators and L&D teams publish short, accessible videos at scale. No timeline acrobatics. No blank‑screen dread. Just practical steps that turn content you already trust into engaging microlearning. Vikram shares the three design choices that shaped Pic...