Participate Actively in the Profession

Narrative

For the competency “Participate Actively in the Profession”, I have selected a group project interactive presentation and proof of membership in a professional organization as artifacts to represent my ability to demonstrate the disposition for lifelong learning and continuous professional development. The interactive presentation is “A Journey in Learning Design and Technology” and the proof of membership is “Membership with Learning Guild”.

At the beginning of our project, there was a search on LinkedIn to find professionals in the learning design and technology field that could be good candidates for an informative conversation or interview. Once a few professionals were identified, a professional outreach was sent to the professionals asking if they would be willing to participate in an informative interview that would inform our group of skills and technology in the profession. After receiving their acceptance, preparation was done for the interview, and afterward, the information was compiled into an interactive presentation that provided knowledge on specific skills and technology in the profession. 

As an active networking professional, I value the connections and knowledge shared by peers and I am always open to providing insights into best practices within the field. For this reason, I actively engaged in becoming a member of the Learning Guild which provides access to the current learning technology and learning practices in the field. The Learning Guild can open opportunities to communities of practice, research, publications, and invitations to conferences to learn and meet with other learning professionals. 

As a learning design professional, I was aware of some digital technologies used in the field such as learning management systems. Learning more about their preferences piqued my curiosity to understand their choices for technology better. The professionals interviewed shared the benefits and opportunities of each learning management system. The interviews also gave me a perspective on the segmented instructional design roles in the corporate sector as they tend to have large teams working at an accelerated pace. 
Finally, as I reflect on my active participation in the profession, the field of learning technology continues to evolve, and tapping into my network of learning professionals will continue to expand my awareness and knowledge with experimental and proven practices. It is also equally valuable to connect with learning professionals outside of my sector and connect with professionals in the education and non-profit sectors. As I continue building relationships with learning professionals in the field, I also plan to focus my informative conversations around future technology and skills-building topics. These two areas are critical needs in the workforce and in this profession, it will be important to partner with others to bring the best practices into the industries to help our learners and employers.