Confronting recent design challenges, instructional designers have latched onto adaptive procedural techniques from outside the Instructional Systems Design (ISD) field. This discussion of rapid prototyping (RP) examines the perspectives of: (1) the prototype as the designer"s cognitive tool; (2) the designer as co-inquirer; and (3) the…

Computer programming is a domain of knowledge that is generally considered difficult by students, many of whom experience low levels of achievement and become disillusioned. This paper suggests that cognitive load theory needs to be taken into account when designing instructional materials for this domain. The cognitive load that is experienced by…

This paper presents an architecture for creating, retrieving, and adapting materials on the World Wide Web for learning purposes. There are two major components in the architecture: Authoring Server (AS) and Courseware Server (CS). Associated with the architecture for running dynamic courseware, certain mechanisms are also imposed. These…

The aim of this project is to build software development environments for teachers, enabling them to produce their own educational applications for their classrooms as easily as they might produce educational materials using a word processor. As one means of realizing this goal, the authors proposed a componentware methodology, and developed 15…

Argues that consideration of constructivism's epistemological implications suggests that educational technologists need to convince learners of a problem's authenticity rather than to promote environments that deliver "preauthenticated" problems. Proposes guidelines to assist developers of educational technologies in accommodating the essentially…

Presents an overview of a suite of software tools called "Of Course!" that was created for the design and development of interactive multimedia instructional (IMI) programs. Describes the tool's three built-in quality assurance operating modes; the Event Status buttons that handle the quality assurance feature; and the design and…

Discusses when instructional designers, communicators, and learners should use multimedia. Outlines reasons for using sound in multimedia; discusses how to use music, voice, and animation; and describes how to reap the benefits of video for online documentation when the costs of the medium are justified. (AEF)

Discussion of the time needed to create computer-based instruction focuses on descriptive analyses of production data gathered from novice instructional designers and novice authors who used a commercial authoring system to produce computer-based lessons. Production ratios are explained, and future research plans are discussed. (Contains five…

An instructional application consists of a set of resources and activities that implement interacting, interrelated and structured experiences oriented towards achieving specific educational objectives. Computer-based instructional applications have to be looked at as any other development activity following a well defined process. With this…

Many instructors are expected to design and create Web courses. The design of Web courses can be a difficult task for educators who lack experience in interaction and instructional design. Design patterns have emerged as a way to capture design experience and present design solutions to novice designers. Design patterns are a widely accepted…

Discussion of the spread of educational technology and its influence on students focuses on experiences in Hungary. Topics discussed include the design of instructional materials, including software; curriculum development and the use of media; the teaching-learning process; goals of media use; examples from elementary and secondary education; and…

This survey questioned instructional designers about the increasing use of automated instructional design software to develop computer-based training (CBT). While these automated tools compact the complicated production process, educators complain that the resulting software often presents lock-stepped, linear instruction that neglects the…

Instructional designers and researchers are attempting to identify the factors that determine which type of graphic visuals to employ in a specific situation as well as how best to utilize available resources. The use of three-dimensional graphics in a variety of media formats is addressed, including a discussion of specific instructional…

Culture represents the complex of social, emotional, intellectual, physical, and personal factors that individuals use to create meaning. When these are missing from instructional materials, achievement may be imperiled. Examples of how cultural variables can be incorporated into instructional decisions are presented to illustrate the potential…

This paper describes the first stage of a 4-year research project on the design, development and use of Web-based digital learning material for food chemistry education. The paper discusses design guidelines, based on principles that were selected from theories on learning and instruction, and illustrates in detail how these guidelines were used…