Future success for online teaching can be described in terms of competencies, the knowledge, skills, and affect and motivation that as component parts undergird successful performance, or in terms of competence, the behaviors that demonstrate ability to perform in an online setting. Either framing could aid higher education to consider how to…

This scoping review of research explores the use of educational technologies for adult literacy, specifically for those with low literacy skills. The sample explores research published since 2010 across four major databases, yielding 21 relevant peer-reviewed articles published through the end of 2020. Half of the final included studies were…

Inquiry-based representation-focused approaches in science education have shown promising outcomes when students engage in knowledge building via an active process of constructing, coordinating, and evaluating representations. To date, much of the existing research around these approaches has taken place in pre-digital classrooms, but the…

Materialist design is presented as an embodied perspective on educational design that can be applied to redesign of classroom-based learning environments. Materialist design is informed by a framework of materialist epistemology, which positions material innovation on equal placement with symbol-based formal theory. Historical examples of…

Designers of educational modules for conceptual learning often rely on procedural frameworks to chart out interaction mechanics through which users will develop target understandings. To date, however, there has been no systematic comparative evaluation of such frameworks in terms of their consequences for learning. This lack of empirical…

This paper provides a summary account of Activity-Centred Analysis and Design (ACAD). ACAD offers a practical approach to analysing complex learning situations, in a way that can generate knowledge that is reusable in subsequent (re)design work. ACAD has been developed over the last two decades. It has been tested and refined through collaborative…

Class orchestration with technology is gaining attention in managing multiple learning activities at multiple levels in the past decade. However, there is hardly a holistic picture of the research about class orchestration with technology. To understand how class orchestration with technology could help pedagogical practices, this review article…

The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine how learning design and educational technology degree programs prepare students to evaluate in practice. This study involved the curricular mapping of 16 graduate instructional design programs and 29 semi-structured interviews with program faculty and recent postgraduates. Based on information…

Simulation offers unique affordances over traditional training (e.g., remote access, mastery learning experiences, immediate feedback) relevant to teacher training in behavior management. This study describes a user-based evaluation of Interactive Virtual Training for Teachers (IVT-T). The study involved observing representative users (seven…

Cognitive load theory provides instructional recommendations based on our knowledge of human cognition. Evolutionary psychology is used to assume that knowledge should be divided into biologically primary information that we have specifically evolved to acquire and biologically secondary information that we have not specifically evolved to…

Theoretical work is essential to the progress of any discipline. Theories, models, and frameworks are underdetermined representations of a phenomenon that help us understand and take action in a domain. However, the field of learning design and technology (LDT) has traditionally struggled with developing a solid theoretical foundation that is…

This article explores the complex question of how instruction should be "framed" (i.e., contextualized). Reports from the US National Research Council reveal a broad consensus among experts that most instruction should be framed with problems, examples, cases, and illustrations. Such framing is assumed to help learners connect new…

Merrill's (Education Tech Research Dev 50(3):43-59, 2002, First principles of instruction. In: Reigeluth CM, Carr-Chellman A (eds) Instructional-design theories and models: building a common knowledge base, vol III. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Hillsdale, NJ, pp 41-56, 2009) first principles have become ubiquitous in the instructional design…

In this paper we explore the academic productivity of universities in the field of Instructional Design and Technology according to three types of publically available data: (1) publication in 20 leading journals, (2) representation in the "Handbook of Educational Communications Technology," and (3) reception of professional organization…

Massive open online courses (MOOCs) are often examined and evaluated in terms of institutional cost, instructor prestige, number of students enrolled, and completion rates. MOOCs, which are connecting thousands of adult learners from diverse backgrounds, have yet to be viewed from a learning culture perspective. This research used virtual…