Transfer of instructional technology is the last step in the knowledge cycle, preceded by invention, technical and commercial development, and dissemination. Technology includes both equipment and the practical knowledge needed for application. Industrialized nations package technology; however, little practical knowledge is transferred with packages. The knowledge remains with the originator or imported technical staff, maximizing short-term implementation. Without adaptation, however, long-term failure is probable. Instructional development is generally described as a systematic decision-making process. In practice, the process has frequently been an effort to develop a convergent, closed system. Such systems appear clear and unambiguous, appeal to administrators and funding sources, and are efficient in controlled settings. Transferring technology to new settings may require an alternative instructional development process that makes fewer assumptions about outcomes. Such a process would assume that technology will evolve in an open system in a kind of reinvention cycle. Development-as-reinvention appears less exact and is more expensive in implementation. In return, it offers a higher probability for long-term success. Finally, through a gradual socialization of the technology and the recipient, it offers opportunities to examine second-order consequences. Policy implications for funding agencies include recommendations for small pilot projects and long-term developmental funding. (Author/LMM)