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In “The Science of Learning and the Art of Teaching”, Skinner (1954) argued that the shortcomings of the educational system could be repaired by switching from reliance on aversive control, i.e., “the teacher’s displeasure, the criticism or ridicule of his classmates, an ignominious showing in a competition, low marks, a trip to the office ‘toContinue reading “On Behaviorism”

According to Piskurich (2000), instructional design can be defined as “simply a process for helping you create effective training in an efficient manner” and helping “you ask the right questions, make the right decisions, and produce a product that is as useful and useable as your situation requires and allows” (p. 1). Given a situation,Continue reading “First Principles and Instructional Development Process”

In discussing characteristics of instructional design models, Branch (2012) explains how the instructional design (ID) process is comprised of a set of procedures for systematically developing education and training materials. He points out how most of the models of the ID process include five phases of activities: analysis, design, development, implementation, and evaluation, often referredContinue reading “‘A’ is for Analyze”

There is incredible potential for digital technology in and beyond the classroom, but it is vital to rethink how learning is organized if we are to reap the rewards. – Geoff Mulgan quoted in Burns (2012) The COVID-19 pandemic prompted a historic shutdown of U.S. schools in the spring of 2020. With a surge inContinue reading “Design-Based Research: The Research We Need”

The education system is failing. Sound familiar? What reads as a common headline for today’s turbulent times, the same sentiment was held by twentieth century scholar John Dewey (1897). In his well-known article “My Pedagogic Creed”, Dewey (1897) opposed the standard transmission and acquisition model of schooling, or what is referred to by learning scientistsContinue reading “My Pedagogic Creed”