Tag: Methods Media

3.3 What choice is there for sequencing the S-R events?

‘Chain’, ‘necklace’, ‘spiral’, ‘network’, ‘hybrid’ — these are the titles we use in the Think Tank workshop for the different methods of sequencing S-R events that a thought-up design can demand. A thought-up design has a ‘route map’ in it; it will tell you the order in which it wants the worked-out design to let the learner meet the content (substance) of the course or lesson. Continue reading 3.3 What choice is there for sequencing the S-R events?

2.4 Referent 2: The nth generation of the specified needs

Think about designing a course for teaching six-year-olds to tell the time. Let digital watches, cuckoo clocks and every other sort of clock chase each other through your mind . . . . Have you ever had to teach a child to tell the time? If so, what were the difficulties? What strategies would you think of using? Continue reading 2.4 Referent 2: The nth generation of the specified needs

2.7 Case study no. 2: Fighting forest fires safely

On repeated occasions in 1964 on the shuttle flight between La Guardia airport New York and National airport Washington DC, I was struggling with a course design problem. It seemed relatively simple and yet the solution (the choice of a plan, structure and strategy of instruction for the course involved) eluded me time and time again.

At the time I was assigned by the consulting company for which I worked in New York to an account in the US Forestry Service (Fire Control Division) in Washington DC. The service was concerned about the loss of life and injury to personnel that had occurred in some large forest fires in the western states of America. A directive on the subject, formulated years earlier, was re-issued for urgent attention.

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The directive was crystal clear. It referred to Ten Safety Orders for strict observance when fighting forest fires. ‘These orders’, the directive ran, ‘are to be committed to memory by all personnel with fire control responsibility’. The directive to me was also unequivocal: to  Washington, work with the US Forestry Service Training Department (Bert Holtby) and with the Fire Control Division (John Pierovich) and make an effective, valued (etc) course to teach the ten orders.’ Continue reading 2.7 Case study no. 2: Fighting forest fires safely

1.8 Case study no. 1: The design of an educational encounter

Here is our first case study. It describes the designing of an educational visit to a doctor and to a patient at home. The substance of the story is from an article (Earl, Everwijn and de Melker, 1980) in Medical Education. It will introduce you step by step to the activities illustrated in Fig. 1. In this way you will have a better idea of where the learning experience design step fits into the whole picture of activities at the micro level of design decision-making. Continue reading 1.8 Case study no. 1: The design of an educational encounter