A name for the field of instructional technology has long been debated. Terms such as learning design, educational technology, instructional systems design and learning systems have been used to describe the field over the past 100 years. With an exploration of the history of the field, this article rebrands the field as Knowledge Systems Design…

The author, a consultant who has worked on projects in the education, training and professional regulation arena for more than three decades, reflects on factors that make for successful interventions and sustainable project outcomes. Seven key factors are identified: (1) intellectual credibility, both in a substantive and methodological sense;…

AHIS equation describes a new model for instructional system design and develops a system based on Merrill's Component Display Theory incorporating appropriate selection of Media, Ergonomics and Navigation Structures to produce learner engaging and effective learning outcome. A significant component of the proposed model is the integration of…

A key notion conveyed by those who advocate for the use of data to enhance instruction is an awareness that learning analytics has the potential to improve instruction and learning but is not currently reaching that potential. Gibbons (2014) suggested that a lack of learning facilitated by current technology-enabled instructional systems may be…

This article is intended as a companion document to the more focused report provided by the author at the 2017 American Education Research Association (AERA) Conference as part of the Technology, Instruction, Cognition & Learning Special Interest Group's Symposium on Intelligent Tutoring Systems (ITSs). Both the AERA talk and this article…

This design case describes an online Ed.D. in Instructional Systems Technology (IST) launched in 2012. We will focus on a key aspect of the design: program advising and students' relationship with their advisors. While the design was responsive in its earliest stages to organizational constraints, legislative requirements and the known…

This article introduces a new international model that focuses on culture while including familiar elements of human performance technology (HPT). HPT adaptation for cultural differences is an essential part of our profession. We must be sensitive and flexible to succeed in an ever-changing global environment. (Contains 1 figure.)

There are few challenges in K-12 education quite as problematic as formative assessment. This process, through which teachers evaluate how well their students are learning while they are teaching them, is almost universally regarded as a best practice. And yet, as researchers Neil T. Heffernan and Kenneth R. Koedinger so eloquently expressed it in…

In this article, we present a dynamic systems approach to instructional systems design (ISD). The fourth generation of ISD represents the attempt to establish a system that can adapt to individual learning and performance problems/needs while also being able to continuously update itself. It is learning-theory-neutral and takes into account the…

This paper first draws on the political philosophy of R.H. Tawney to outline some universal principles for the provision of socially just education. It then moves onto a more pragmatic approach, analysing where the injustices lie in contemporary British education and outlining policies and practices that are socially just, not in an instrumental…

Like seemingly everyone else connected to K12 education, vendors that offer student information systems are being called upon to do more with less. Where past generations of these systems focused on nuts and bolts such as time, attendance and behavioral issues, the latest generation has created--and drawn inspiration from--districts' desires for…

Many researchers trained in Europe leave to work abroad, namely in the USA. This brain-drain phenomenon is the result of a lack of openness and competition in European academic systems. Some aspects relating to the mobility of academic careers could make a difference in attracting--and maintaining--researchers, aside to serious structural reform.…

Cognitive load is a theoretical notion with an increasingly central role in the educational research literature. The basic idea of cognitive load theory is that cognitive capacity in working memory is limited, so that if a learning task requires too much capacity, learning will be hampered. The recommended remedy is to design instructional systems…

This article describes instructional theory that supports post-industrial education and training systems--ones that are customized and learner-centered, in which student progress is based on learning rather than time. The author discusses the importance of problem-based instruction (PBI), identifies some problems with PBI, overviews an…

This paper reports the development of a practical tool that provides expert feedback to students following an extended simulation exercise in cross-country flight planning. In contrast to development for laboratory settings, the development of an expert instructional product for everyday use posed some interesting challenges, including dealing…