Discusses diversity in the workplace and offers guidelines for practitioners in designing, developing, and implementing diversity training. Highlights include linking the diversity initiative to the organization's mission, cultural climate assessments, reviewing policies and procedures, needs assessment, learner analysis, establishing objectives,…

Considers cultural diversity in the evaluation of instructional programs and products. Suggests strategies for culturally sensitive evaluation, gives examples of cultural insensitivity and cultural bias, and provides a rating scale for multicultural sensitivity in instructional products. (LRW)

Examines the relationship between gender equity and instructional design. Topics include stereotypes of men's and women's roles, perpetuating old assumptions and practices, inequities from instructional design, differing expectations, gender bias, and how instructional designers can help by being sensitive to these issues. (LRW)

Suggests ways in which the domains of instructional technology (design, development, evaluation, management, and diffusion), the systematic design of instruction, and the nine events of instruction can facilitate intentional learning episodes that are culturally sensitive. Discusses cultural pluralism and explains the use of pluralism rather than…

Discusses the disparity in numbers of girls and boys taking math, science, and computer classes in elementary and secondary schools, and examines steps being taken to better prepare girls, especially minority girls, for an increasingly technical society. A program in Michigan is described that involved a school and business partnership. (LRW)

Discussion of computer-based simulations focuses on the development of a coaching agent as an alternative to traditional feedback for a multimedia simulation that will help change training from traditional instructor-led courses to learn-by-doing simulations for point-of-need training. The limitations of traditional feedback are examined. (LRW)

Provides an update on the standards that are governing digital multimedia technology. Highlights include symmetrical multimedia standards that include a variety of compression and transmission schemes; asymmetrical multimedia standards that includes compressed digital motion video and still images; applications sharing; networks; and the Internet.…

Discussion of changes in classrooms as a result of communication networks focuses on teachers' roles in future educational settings. Topics include teachers as information consultants, as team collaborators, as facilitators, as course developers, and as academic advisors; and the computer and communication skills needed by teachers. (LRW)

Explains the use of instructional design with a mastery learning strategy (IDML) in teaching mathematics. The IDML model, a combination of other theories including Gagne's instructional events, has been used to improve mathematics instruction in Malaysian schools, and includes developing test items, the teachers' development of learning materials,…

The identification and acceptance of discipline-specific research problems and subsequent related theory is not a random process dependent only on the interests of individual theorists. Discusses the nature of agenda building--background and definitions and agenda building processes; and application of principles in instructional…

Better taxonomic classification is a necessary step in developing the theoretical base of instructional technology (IT). Discusses traditional concepts of theory development and application to IT: roles, levels, criteria and types of theory; taxonomic theory: classifications, domains, and taxonomies; taxonomic classification principles, schema,…

Defines theory and the role of theory in envisioning new worlds, making things, and critiquing practice, and discusses theory and practice in information technology (IT). Highlights inappropriate uses of theory (superficiality, elitism, ivory tower syndrome, provincialism, muddled thinking, anti-intellectualism), and emphasizes superficiality and…

The strongly positivist beliefs on which traditional conceptions of instructional design (ID) are based derive from Aristotelian logic and oversimplify the world, reducing human learning and performance to a repertoire of manipulable behaviors. Reviews the cases against deterministic predictability and discusses hermeneutic, fuzzy logic, and chaos…

Discusses the current state of instructional technology programs, highlighting two problems with a prescriptive approach to instructional design (ID): making ID entirely empirical by assuming finite and knowable instructional principles and the ultimate impossibility of using prescriptions in any procedural way. Explores why and what theory is…

Examines issues related to theory and instructional systems design: the utility of theory; differences between descriptive (scientific) and design (goal-oriented) theories; the value of multiple theoretical perspectives; the inadequacy of current instructional design theories; and new directions needed in instructional theory, emphasizing the…