INSTRUCTIONAL DESIGN

There are several points of view regarding what Instructional Design is. One view posits that it is based on transmission, whereby the teacher decides what is important for students to know. Transmission learning is more or less direct instruction. An "expert system" would be an example of transmisson learning. A different point of view is that of transaction learning, which conforms to a constructivist philosophy of learning. This model is concerned with student learning, not task completion. It looks at how students construct information. This could be project-based learning and interdisciplinary. In this approach the teacher chooses areas that groups of students choose to work on to demonstrate what they know. See my Reading Log Page for examples of this. Constructivism can fit with either transaction learning or transformation learning. Performing in a real-life situation is the essence of transformation learning - taking knowledge outside the classroom. For more information on these various approaches to learning click on the links below.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

  Expert Systems

  Constructivist View

  Microworlds

  Engines for Education

  Links To Examples of Instructional Design

Examples of Transaction Learning:

 (NB: These pages are available but are not functioning properly. They require Microsoft FrontPage 98 server extensions, which my current Internet Service Provider does not provide for personal home pages.)

 RUSSIAN REVOLUTION

 This page has been created as a learning tool for a grade 11 History class.  Learners construct their own knowledge and use this knowledge in an interactive online discussion forum with their peers. By participating in the forum students begin to learn how to function as real historians do. The discussion forum provides students with the opportunity to develop critical thinking skills by engaging their peers in reasoned critical arguments.

 ATHENS VS. SPARTA

 This page has also been created as a learning tool for a grade 11 History class.  Learners construct their own knowledge and use this knowledge in an interactive online discussion forum with their peers. By participating in the forum students begin to learn how to function as real historians do. The discussion forum provides students with the opportunity to develop critical thinking skills by engaging their peers in reasoned critical arguments.