This paper concerns the development and use of learning objects to address a real and urgent educational problem--the teaching and learning of introductory programming. The paper outlines the design principles and development process involved in creating self-contained learning objects that are pedagogically rich. It describes how the objects were…

We present a methodology for designing better learning environments. In Phase 1, 6th-grade students' (n = 223) prior knowledge was assessed using a difficulty factors assessment (DFA). The assessment revealed that scaffolds designed to elicit contextual, conceptual, or procedural knowledge each improved students' ability to add and subtract…

Universities worldwide offer web-based courses distributed by virtual learning environments (VLEs). A common theoretical framework for implementing VLEs is the pedagogical perspective of instructional design. In this paper, three perspectives of implementation from information systems implementation research and organization theory are presented:…

This article explores some specific issues involved in online learning and assessment. It draws on data from a postgraduate course for professional educators, delivered globally online, and highlights the relationship between students' online discussion and their written assessed work, arguing that we need to focus on both of these in terms of the…

This research describes course design elements most valued by adult learners in blended learning environments that combine face-to-face contact with Web-based learning. It identifies the online course features and the instructional design goals selected as most important by a sample of 67 adults and compares the group rankings with those of…

Online courses may not be for everyone. However, when eLearning is the only opportunity to receive education, it will be one of the instructor's responsibilities to ensure the eLearning experience is as compatible and comparable as possible to students' prior experience. Any online program may have to accommodate those who are limited to the…

Lesson and unit plans designed by preservice teachers who developed their plans using the backward design model or a traditional model of curriculum design were compared. Two independent raters scored 153 lesson and unit plans developed by preservice teachers in two different sections of Educational Planning and Management. The plans were…

Development of Web-based learning has started a revolution in instructional design that is providing new opportunities for education. Instructional design for educational purposes is the systematic design of teaching and learning environments as well as instructional systems. Instructional design may include various facets of didactic methods…

History teaching continues to be driven by an overriding emphasis on information coverage. This trend has resulted in a fragmented approach to teaching that privileges the acquisition of facts over in-depth study (Evans 1989; Evans, Avery, and Pederson 1999; Goodlad 1984; Newmann 1988; Onosko 1992, 1996; Onosko and Swenson 1996; Wiggins 1989).…

Edward Thorndike may be counted on to say in few words what amounts to a highly complex idea. He once said that, with learning as with any activity, ability must be supplemented by interest or desire. "If we wish to learn a certain thing, we must arouse adequate interest... we must transmute this general wish into an interest that will carry us to…

Integrating "The West Wing" in public relations courses can effectively dramatize the concrete and abstract dimensions of public relations. In turn, students see public relations in action (albeit fictionally so) and learn much about it through structured lessons. From individual writing assignments about situations in "The West Wing," to the…

A good instructional game, like many good commercial games, should be built around what the author calls "authentic professionalism." In such games, skills, knowledge, and values are distributed between the virtual characters and the real-world player in a way that allows the player to experience first-hand how members of that profession think,…

Rooted in behavioral theory, particularly the radical or selectivist behaviorism of B.F. Skinner (1953, 1954, 1966, 1968, 1974), the direct instruction (DI) approach to teaching is now well into its third decade of influencing curriculum, instruction, and research. It is also in its third decade of controversy. Our purpose is to present the DI…

In the last years, Instructional Design has seen the development of visual notation systems for supporting and enhancing the design process. Some of them concern the definition of learning goals, while others address the definition of learning activities or learning materials. These tools supposedly reduce the cognitive load and enhance design…

Curriculum materials for Grades K-12 that are intended to promote teacher learning in addition to student learning have come to be called "educative curriculum materials." How can K-12 curriculum materials be designed to best promote teacher learning? What might teacher learning with educative curriculum materials look like? The authors…