This theoretical paper utilizes cybernetic-­based approaches (Bopry, 1999; Wiener, 1954) and communications theory (Habermas, 1984, 1990; Krippendorff, 1994) to advance knowledge of constructivist learning. I argue that past educational research literature on constructivist learning is partly responsible for limiting how educational designers…

The in-service design described here was developed by a public school-university planning team whose mission was to develop and direct a training effort that could support participants through a full year of skill development and actual skill practice in their own schools. (Author/JM)

Strategic planning is a critical part of sustaining distance education. Through such planning, the organization can solve business problems that involve training and education in an effective and often cost savings manner compared to in-person training efforts. This paper examines the strategic planning process as it relates to sustaining distance…

Transactional Analysis (TA) of teaching and learning process reveals actions and reactions triggered from the ego-states of teacher and learner. The teacher has to switch between these ego-states to achieve effective communication and learning results. Ego-states of teacher and learners are worth studying in the context of e-learning, as the…

An evaluation of application of the conceptual mapping technique (Inglis, 2003) to the team-based design of fourteen courses in an Engineering undergraduate program is described. The evaluation employed a method of scoring each conceptual map against criteria tied to the objectives of the design process. The evaluation method was found to be…

This report proposes a role for Educational Radio and Television of Iran (ERTI) in the national literacy campaign. Joint planning activities are proposed between ERTI and the National World Literacy Campaign (NWLC) to develop long range media support of the campaign. Key findings and recommendations are summarized. Subsequent sections give…

A project dealing with the development of computer-assisted instructional materials to teach new vocabulary words to college students is discussed in this paper. Seven different instructional modules for teaching new words are being developed at the University of Pittsburgh; they are entitled: define, word relations, classify, words in context,…

Goals of learning institutions in impairing knowledge and skills are analyzed. Role of the teacher is evaluated in relation to the articulatory goal. Teacher's productivity is considered in relation to a behavioral definition of learning. Six recommendations are made for facilitating the improvement of students' performance. (Author)

Discusses the empirical analysis of experimental and non-experimental foreign language teaching methods and materials, based on the view of the teaching/learning process as a set of causative relationships among psychological, linguistic, and educational phenomena. (AM)

Current energy shortages have created the need for educational programs to prepare tomorrow's consumers and workers for occupations that are more responsive to the realities of the energy situation. Particularly needed is an energy program stressing productive conservation. (Productive conservation emphasizes using less energy to perform the same…

As a means of providing suggestions for improving the quality of the courseware used in computer based education (CBE), this report reviews and evaluates current thought and research on the origins, characteristics, and effectiveness of existing approaches to courseware design. After a brief summary of some of the general problems encountered in…

This paper argues that the information processing model provides a promising basis on which to build a comprehensive theory of instruction. Characteristics of the major information processing constructs are outlined including attention, encoding and rehearsal, working memory, long term memory, retrieval, and metacognitive processes, and a unifying…

The objectives of this project were (1) to determine whether or not adapting instruction to student characteristics will improve the effectiveness and efficiency of training, (2) to identify the learner attributes that interact best with specific instructional treatments, and (3) to establish what must be done to create and implement a useful…

The Individualization Project at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE) was organized on a cooperative basis with a federal agency and several community colleges. The main design goals were to produce needed courseware, move smoothly from research and development to a production mode of operation, and to emphasize dissemination of…