This article by Brown and Voltz is in the March 2005 issue of the Int. Rev. of Research and Distance Learning. I especially appreciate that the authors speak of "elements" rather than "the elements" of design because too many approaches to instructional design speak authoritatively and dogmatically as though "the principles" of the field had been discovered and reified many years ago. In fact there is as much (or more) design and art in the field of instructional design as there is in the architectural design of homes and office buildings. At best instructional design artfully applies some ideas and findings from cognitive research, from learning theory, from computing, and from other fields; at worst, instructional design dutifully follows a pseudo-scientific formula (usually expressed as an acronym) in the construction of learning materials. __JH
(Thanks to Stephen Downes' OLDaily for this citation.)
Abstract. Preparing and developing e-learning materials is a costly and time consuming enterprise. This paper highlights the elements of effective design that we consider assist in the development of high quality materials in a cost efficient way. We introduce six elements of design and discuss each in some detail. These elements focus on paying attention to the provision of a rich learning activity, situating this activity within an interesting story line, providing meaningful opportunities for student reflection and third party criticism, considering appropriate technologies for delivery, ensuring that the design is suitable for the context in which it will be used, and bearing in mind the personal, social, and environmental impact of the designed activities. Along the way, we describe how these design elements can be effectively utilized by contextualizing them with examples from an e-learning initiative.
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