Designing a Storytelling Course with TNA, FPI, and HTA
There are many approaches to designing a course. You could select different roads to reach the destination, but the path I chose for this project combined Training Needs Analysis (TNA), Merrill’s First Principles of Instruction (FPI), and Hierarchical Task Analysis (HTA). Together, they formed a kind of map: TNA showed me where to go by identifying the purpose and needs, FPI guided how to get there through sound instructional strategies, and HTA broke the journey into clear steps that built toward mastery.
Following this route revealed not just a course but a framework that blends research, theory, and practice into something coherent and engaging. It also highlighted my strengths as an instructional designer, balancing analytical thinking with creativity and moving comfortably between the big picture and the fine detail.
Along the way, I sharpened three important skills:
Needs Assessment & Gap Analysis – learning to clarify requirements and objectives.
Instructional Theory Application – using FPI as a backbone for experiential, learner-centered instruction.
Task Analysis & Sequencing – applying HTA to design lessons that progress naturally and effectively.
The final destination was the Instructional Design & Development (IDD) Blueprint, a one-page synthesis that distills the entire journey into its essentials. It serves as both a record of process and a professional deliverable, showing how thoughtful design can transform an idea into a structured, purposeful learning experience.
