Are We Designing for Sensory Immersion or Sensory Fidelity?

Iv'e just learnt that in learning experience design, the moment we equate sensory decoration i.e immersion to Sensory fidelity, our learners are up for some cognitive load.

And here's why

So Imagine you're designing a flight simulator.

Please tell me if adding a realistic engine sounds, cockpit vibrations, visual scenery, etc. might make it feel immersive.

Yes, but will it help the learner perform in the real world ?

Probably not

And this is we may often end up asking the wrong question in the pursuit of making learning engaging for our learners by asking

“How many senses can I engage ?”

where as the real question should be

“Which sensory information will the learner actually need to perceive and act on in the real task?”

Or, likeRuben Opstalshared in one of my post where he said "The Real Question is : Does this sensory input help learners understand and apply what matters ?

And that's sensory fidelity.

If a learner needs to detect a particular engine sound → reproduce that sound.

If vibration is critical to operating the aircraft → reproduce the vibration.

If smell has nothing to do with competent performance → don't spend thousands trying to make the simulator smell like jet fuel.

In other words i've learnt thatClark Quinn’s isn't saying we should design for more senses by telling us how they work, rather he is saying we should design for the senses the performance requires.

So the question isn't “Can I use a smell, taste, sight, sound, or touch sensory channel?”

But

“Does using this sense help me achieve the learning objective reliably?”

Because as instructional designers, we're not trying to use every tool available to us.

We're trying to choose the right tool for the job.


Clark Quinnalso made mention of something i had to sit with and found interestingly amazing when he said "of course , if the skill is complex, maybe support mastering it first, then gradually add in the complexity of noise and chaos"

That makes the application of spiral curriculum particularly interesting to me here.

Because perhaps the goal isn't to reproduce reality from the beginning.

It's to progressively build the learner's ability to perceive, interpret, and act within the reality of the task.

And that brings me back to the principle I want to carry forward:

First establish what competent performance requires.

That's sensory fidelity.

Day 39 of Instructional Design

#InstructionalDesign#InstructionalDesigner#LearningAndDevelopment#LearningDesign#LearningExperienceDesign#LXD#Elearning#ELearningDesign#CurriculumDesign#CurriculumDeveloper#LearningJourney#Day1#Day2#LearningInPublic#BuildInPublic#SenseMakingNotes#MentalModels#TAWIQM

In case you missed the Quinn Seed articles 👇

Quinn Seed #1- CLICK ME