hiking safety

Hiking safety on the Michinoku Hiking Trail

Project Overview
This sample was developed as part of an instructional design course and involved conducting research, performing a training needs analysis, developing design plans and a storyboard, and creating a demo of an e-learning training course.

Disclaimer: This is an academic project created for educational and portfolio demonstration purposes only. It was not commissioned, sponsored, or endorsed by Michinoku Trail Club.

Problem Statement
Due to its geographic location, the Michinoku Coastal Trail in the Tohoku region of Japan presents unique challenges for inexperienced foreign hikers unfamiliar with the area and lacking Japanese language skills. While there have been no reported fatalities, neglecting safety precautions has led to avoidable injuries. To reinforce safety protocols and prevent injury, the Michinoku Trail Club has commissioned an English-language training on hiking safety tailored specifically for foreign visitors.   

Learning Objectives

• Outline the scope of hiking safety.

• Identify common hiking risks.

• Apply recommended hiking planning strategies.

• Apply hiking risk prevention strategies.

• Apply safety protocols in response to unsafe situations.

Instructional Design Approach

I structured the course around the key stages of hiking safety, from recognizing common risks and planning a hike to preventing hazards and responding to unsafe situations. Activities were designed to help learners move beyond simply knowing the safety guidelines and practice applying them to realistic situations they may encounter on the trail.

Theoretical Foundations

The course incorporates principles from the following frameworks:

• Bloom's Taxonomy: Used to define measurable learning objectives and align them with the cognitive skills learners need to develop and demonstrate in the final assessments. 

• Merrill’s First Principles of Instruction: Used to structure learning around real-world problems, activate prior knowledge, provide opportunities for practice, and support the application of learning. 

• Assessment Design Principles: Used to align assessments with learning objectives, apply best practices in writing assessment questions and answer options, and provide consequence-based feedback.

Software
Rise 360, Adobe Photoshop, Canva AI