Learning Patterns

History

The idea of a pattern language comes from Christopher Alexander, an architect who wanted to help his clients define the features and functions of a space in their own words, rather than an architect’s. He identified recurring "patterns" that describe those features and functions, reusable across different design problems.

The same concept can be applied to all design disciplines – graphic, web, and of course learning design. The idea behind a pattern language is that it makes design process accessible, allowing co-creation to occur through dialogue and conversation. In combination, the Learning Types and Patterns allow educators to openly engage in conversations with designers, developers, and learners to create engaging learning experiences. Peter Goodyear also wrote about patterns and applying them within an educational context:

Design patterns have a number of qualities which, in combination, give them the potential to be a useful way of sharing experience in the field of networked learning. A pattern is a solution to a recurrent problem in a context.

– Peter Goodyear (AJET, 2005)

This library applies that idea to the seven Learning Types: a pattern language that makes learning design accessible to whoever’s in the room, not just the specialist, so co-design can happen through conversation rather than jargon.

Feel free to use, share and utilise the patterns to aid your design.