WGU - D291 Pre-Assessment Review questions and answers 2026-2027

What is the goal of conducting a needs analysis in instructional design?

To understand the knowledge and skills that learners need to develop to reach instructional goals.

What is a characteristic of instructional design?

It is a consultative process.

What is the goal of instructional design?

Solve problems related to the learner experience.

What is a characteristic of learning experience design?

It helps users learn in a human-centered and goal-oriented way.

A designer is using the learning experience design process to design and develop a learning solution. The designer has launched the learning solution.

What is the next step based on the learning experience design process?

Evaluate and revise the learning solution if needed.

What is considered the last step of the learning experience design process?

Evaluate and revise as needed.

What defines human-centered design?

The belief that the key to a problem's solution is a deep understanding of the individuals facing the problem.

What is the goal of the implementation phase of human-centered learning design?

To provide an engaging experience that learners can relate to and that works for them.

Which question would be appropriate in guiding a designer during the implementation phase of the human-centered learning design process?

How will I measure the success of my solution?

A designer creates technical support documentation to ensure students are comfortable using the software in the course. Which step of ADDIE is this designer on?

Develop

A designer discusses with the design team that only multiple-choice questions should be used for a foundations course. Which step of ADDIE is the designer on?

Design

A designer reviews feedback and data from learners who completed a course. Which step of ADDIE is this designer on?

Evaluate

What is a key difference between the Successive Approximation Model (SAM) and the ADDIE approach?

The SAM approach is a more iterative process than the ADDIE approach.

What is a key difference between the Successive Approximation Model (SAM) and the Understanding by Design (UbD) approach?

SAM uses feedback and repetitive prototype improvement to drive the process, whereas the UbD approach uses the desired learning outcomes.

What is a key characteristic that distinguishes the Successive Approximation Model (SAM) from both ADDIE and the Understanding of Design (UbD) approach?

Constant iterative process

Which scenario demonstrates the identify desired results stage of Understanding by Design?

The designer establishes instructional goals to clarify what students should understand and be able to do with what they learn.

A new teacher seeks advice from a more experienced educator about how to achieve the desired results from instruction. The experienced educator recommends the Understanding by Design (UbD) framework to the new teacher.

What will the UbD framework help this new teacher do?

Teach and assess with a goal in mind.

An instructor has planned an instructional unit following the Understanding by Design framework and is ready to implement the plan.

What is the primary role of this instructor during the implementation of this instructional unit?

Facilitate learner understanding.

A designer conducts a focus group with instructors who recently delivered a training to better understand the issues they encountered. After hearing their responses, the designer expresses appreciation to the instructors for their honesty and explains that other instructors have also experienced the same challenges.

Which phase of the Design Thinking Process is this designer in?

Empathize

A designer interviews an instructor who just finished teaching a course. The instructor says that the course excited learners and that the provided resources assisted students in learning the required information. The designer says, "That's wonderful!" and asks questions to further understand the successes of the course.

Which phase of the Design Thinking Process is this designer in?

Empathize

A team of designers knows that a recent training received poor feedback in the past. After determining the underlaying issue, the team brainstorms ways to resolve the issue.

Which phase of the Design Thinking Process is this team of designers in?

Ideate

A designer uses the Design Thinking Process to identify a problem and define users' needs.

Which phase of the ADDIE model does this step align with?

Analyze

A designer conducts a focus group with potential learners and subject matter experts to review an e-learning product and provide feedback.

Which step of ADDIE and stage of Design Thinking is this designer applying?

The evaluate step of ADDIE and the test stage of Design Thinking.

Which step in the ADDIE process is similar to the ideate stage of the Design Thinking Process?

Design

Which grammar activity aligns with the behaviorist approach?

Learners edit sample sentences and then correct them using an answer key.

A workplace training and development team is tasked with enhancing safety across the organization.

Which approach for increasing safe behaviors in the workplace aligns with the behaviorist approach?

Trainers use a checklist of safe practices for each job category to praise employees' safe practices and give corrective feedback on unsafe practices.

Which learning activity aligns with the cognitivist approach?

Reflecting on prior experiences with a topic.

Which learning activity aligns with the cognitivist approach?

Learners create a poster to visually organize information about a novel and how the novel relates to their prior life experiences.

How can a designer apply the principles of constructivism to develop a learning activity?

Offer opportunities for student-to-student interaction and knowledge sharing.

How can a designer apply the principles of constructivism to develop a learning activity?

Promote real-world problems requiring learners to use their previous knowledge, experiences, and beliefs to build continuous learning.

An online course instructor would like to enhance the current course design by incorporating elements of connectivism.

What should the instructor add to the course to align with the connectivist approach?

A blogging platform where learners post weekly and are encouraged to comment on others' posts.

What is the primary role of an instructor using a connectivist approach?

To facilitate a learning environment and context that brings learners together.

An instructor wants to implement the mastery approach in their classroom.

How should the instructor determine which students are experiencing a learning gap?

Have students take a quiz to see which questions they answer incorrectly.

An instructor finds that learners are struggling with different topics of a unit of instruction and wants to better understand how the mastery approach could help the learners.

What is a benefit this instructor should see for the learners by implementing the mastery approach?

Learners can work on a topic they are having difficulty with instead of moving forward with the next topic.

What makes competency-based education (CBE) different than traditional education?

CBE measures a learner's mastery of learning rather than learning time.

How is competency-based education different from traditional education?

It increases opportunities for choice and flexibility in how students learn.

What is an effective strategy for teaching adult learners?

Leveraging learners' life experiences to make connections and maximize learning outcomes.

What is an approach an online instructor can take to encourage adult learner participation?

Offer choices in how learners can engage with course content.

A new instructor is seeking support from a designer on how to create an activity that will engage a young learner.

Which instructional strategy should this instructor implement?

Teaching the activity through play.

An instructor asks young learners to write a story about what they think daily life will be like in 50 years.

Why did the instructor use this task?

Young learners are imaginative.

Which learning activity aligns with the remember level in Bloom's taxonomy?

Students participate in a game to memorize new Spanish vocabulary.

Which learning activity aligns with the evaluate level in Bloom's taxonomy?

Students assess whether their websites run properly.

A learning activity provides an opportunity for learners to write reflections about how the course content helps them learn more about themselves and others.

Which aspect of learning from Fink's taxonomy is demonstrated by this learning activity?

Human dimension

Beginning medical students identify the equipment used during a standard health assessment.

Which aspect of learning from Fink's taxonomy is demonstrated by this learning activity?

Foundational knowledge

A learning activity begins with an instructor leading learners through an icebreaker activity.

Which event from Gagne's Nine Events of Instruction is being demonstrated?

Gain attention of the students.

After learners finish reading an assigned chapter in an online textbook, they engage deeper with the content by using a variety of media resources included in the textbook.

Which event from Gagne's Nine Events of Instruction is being demonstrated?

Present the content

A learning experience requires learners to complete basic algebra practice activities before watching video tutorials on advanced algebra concepts.

Which of Merrill's First Principles of Instruction aligns with this learning activity?

Activation

Learners are asked to review French vocabulary words they already know before learning a new set of more complex vocabulary words derived from that basic vocabulary.

Which of Merrill's First Principles of Instruction aligns with this learning activity?

Activation

Which teacher action demonstrates the "provide multiple means of action and expression" principle of Universal Design for Learning?

Offering choices to learners regarding how they want to demonstrate their learning.

Which learning activity demonstrates the "provide multiple means of action and expression" principle of Universal Design for Learning?

Students may write their personal narratives using a storyboard, comic strip, or video animation.