Instructional Design Professionals Conference
Plenary Sessions
Live: October 21—22, 2025 | On-Demand: through January 23, 2026
Opening Plenary
Divergent Minds, Inspired Designs
Tuesday, October 21, 2025, 10:15–11:15 AM CT
Neurodivergent learners have unique challenges and needs when navigating learning dynamics, from adapting to rigid academic structures to finding a sense of belonging in their classrooms and communities. These needs are often not fully addressed due to a lack of understanding and insufficient resources for educators, which can prevent them from reaching their full potential. While traditional design models and accessibility practices can help, design models and frameworks crafted specifically for supporting neurodivergent learners are still needed.
This plenary explores a new theoretical framework for understanding the impact of academic support, personal belonging, and frequent barriers to a neurodivergent learner’s success. It explores the intersections between different levels of learning support and how they correlate to a learner’s sense of belonging and inclusion. By understanding this multi-tiered approach, higher education professionals can more effectively align their instructional practices with learners’ needs and foster a more inclusive culture within the classroom.
Megan Kohler
Executive Director, Megan Kohler Consulting Assistant Teaching Professor & Learning Designer, The Pennsylvania State University
Megan Kohler is the Executive Director of Megan Kohler Consulting. She is also an Assistant Teaching Professor and Learning Designer at The Pennsylvania State University. With nearly 20 years of experience in higher ed, she specializes in designing innovative online, tech-enhanced, and blended learning experiences. Recognized for her quality design work, she is a recipient of the 2021 Marion G. Mitchell Award for Innovative Teaching. Her research, supported by a Schreyer Institute Scholarship, focuses on supporting neurodivergent learners in higher education. Kohler has held key leadership roles with the Online Learning Consortium’s Accelerate Conference and has contributed to EDUCAUSE’s Courseware Advisory Board, an initiative supported by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. As a 2024 Teach Access Fellow, Megan advocates for inclusive and accessible learning experiences for all learners. Her co-edited book “The Multidisciplinary Instructional Designer,” explores how cross-disciplinary skills can enhance an instructional designer’s abilities.
Closing Plenary
Talk to the Elephant—Designing Learning for Behavior Change
Wednesday October 22, 2025, 1:30–2:30 PM CT
As a learning designer, what do you do when people know they need to wear their safety glasses, or add to their retirement savings, or update their client records, or finish their compliance training, or submit their expense reports on time, but they still aren’t doing it?
This plenary session will explore how to design with principles and models from behavioral science. We will examine behavior change from a number of different angles, using techniques from the fields of neuroscience, behavioral economics, behavioral psychology, persuasive technology, and user experience design. In this session we will look at the top reasons why learning fails to change behavior and what you can do instead. Drawing on current research into behavior change interventions, this session will:
- Help you diagnose the root causes for difficult behavior change challenges
- Identify solutions using comprehensive research-based models
- Consider how to redesign learning materials to be more effective at motivating sustainable behavior change
Julie Dirksen
Learning Strategy Consultant
Julie Dirksen is the author of the books Design For How People Learn and Talk to the Elephant: Design Learning for Behavior Change. She is a learning strategy consultant with a focus on incorporating behavioral science into learning interventions. Her MS degree is in Instructional Systems Technology from Indiana University. She’s been an adjunct faculty member at the Minneapolis College of Art and Design and is a Learning Guild Guildmaster. She is happiest when she gets to learning something new, and you can find her at usablelearning.com.