Using Instructional Design Principles to Amplify Learning on the World Wide Web

Abstract

Many educators have explored the World Wide Web, and some are now publishing their own materials for student access. Throughout the brief history of the Web, the overriding educational principle has been to view this resource as a storehouse of information which provides unparalleled avenues of research. The potential for the Web, however, is greater. This article justifies and describes instructional design principles that can be used to transform Web material from simple informational resources to a powerful instructional medium. When properly structured, web pages can guide users through a series of instructional activities that present information, afford practice, and provide feedback to inform users of their strengths, weaknesses, and suggestions for enrichment or remediation. The paper discusses the rationale for web-based instruction, instruction and the Internet, motivating the learner, identifying the material to be learned, reminding learners of past knowledge, requiring active involvement, providing guidance and feedback, testing, and providing enrichment and remediation. The emergence of the World Wide Web, with its easy-to-use graphical interface, has drastically altered the way in which people access information and think about computers. The new methods of delivering and receiving instruction require thoughtful analysis and investigation of how to use the Web's potential in concert with instructional design principles. (Author/SWC) ******************************************************************************** * Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made * * from the original document. * ******************************************************************************** U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION Office of Educational Research and Improvement EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC) This document has been reproduced as received from the person or organization originating it. Minor changes have been made to improve reproduction quality. Points of view or opinions stated in this document do not necessarily represent official OERI position or policy. Abstract Using Instructional Design Principles To Amplify Learning On The World Wide WebUsing Instructional Design Principles To Amplify Learning On The World Wide Web Donn C. Ritchie San Diego State University Bob Hoffman San Diego State University PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE THIS MATERIAL HAS BEEN GRANTED BY Donn Ritchie Bob Hoffman TO THE EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC). Most educators in this country have heard about the World Wide Web. Many have explored this resource, and some are now publishing their own materials for student access. Throughout the brief history of the Web, the overriding educational principle has been to view this resource as a storehouse of information which provides unparalleled avenues of research. The potential for the Web, however, is greater. This article justifies and describes instructional design principles which can be used to transform Web material from simple informational resources to a powerful, instructional medium. Rationale for Web-Based Instruction The use of the World Wide Web is growing at an exponential rate. Estimates range from an increase of 6% (Wiggins, 1995) to 20% (Lemay, 1995) per month. In addition to user traffic, the creation of Web servers, Home Pages, and other digital resources on the Web is similarly expanding. This increase represents a tremendous potential for educators, but the vast majority of Web sites offer little more than semistructured data. Web pages have the potential to be more than a compendium of information. When properly structured, pages can guide users through a series of instructional activities which present information, afford practice, and provide feedback to inform users of their strengths, weaknesses, and suggestions for enrichment or remediation. Developing methods and media to educate students from a distance is not a new idea, and can be traced in the United States back to 1892 at the University of Wisconsin (Rumble, 1986). Reasons for teaching students at a distance are varied, but stem from both interests of the learners as well as the logistics of operating educational institutions. Most institutes of higher education provide educational courses and resources to an extremely wide audience who have a profusion of needs and backgrounds, with many students taking classes while working full-time or part-time jobs; and/or raising a family. As such, constituents often have competing needs for institutional resources in the form of attention, energy, and time. 2 BEST COPY AVAiLAELE Using Instructional Design 2 Fortunately, many communities and universities are currently undergoing changes in their communication infrastructures which allow them to provide information and instruction to their students beyond traditional means. Allowing students to access course information and instruction on a flexible schedule through telecommunications can help increase the sharing of information and construction of knowledge. If universities value their clients and their needs, it behooves them to offer the best possible instruction, in a highly accessible way, with the maximum flexibility to meet individual needs. In addition to providing students increased access, many colleges and universities view the provision of courses through telecommunications as a way to help conserve limited resources. In many areas, students drive to campus multiple times each week. Problems encountered during this mass migration include traffic congestion and parking limitations, consumption of limited campus and community resources, and increased pollution. Acknowledging these problems, many schools have implemented programs to encourage faculty, staff, and students to reduce their commuting by taking mass transit or joining car pools. Supplying course material and instruction to students at their homes helps reduce the physical and environmental burdens imposed by student travel. Using these justifications, institutes of higher education have explored a variety of methods to offer instruction at a distance. In the past these methods have included satellite broadcast, broad-band broadcasts, home-video courses, two-way compressed video, audioconferencing, text-based correspondence courses, and slow-scan television broadcasts. Some universities have also experimented with the Internet as a source of instruction. With the public's new interest in the World Wide Web as a medium, there will undoubtedly be a rush to offer classes using this format in the near future. Unfortunately, few cogent examples of instruction using Web pages exist today. Instruction and the Internet Instruction can be defined as a purposeful interaction to increase a learner's knowledge or skills in a specific, pre-determined fashion. In this context, simply publishing a World Wide Web page with links to other pages or other digital sources does not constitute instruction. Instructional sequences usually include at least seven common elements: motivating the learner, explaining what is to be learned, helping the learner recall previous knowledge, providing instructional material, providing guidance and feedback, testing comprehension, and providing enrichment or remediation (Dick & Reiser, 1989). With forethought, each of these events can be incorporated in instruction designed to be delivered on the World Wide Web.