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Educational Technology
Reigeluth, C.M., Watson, W.R., Watson, S.L., Dutta, P., Chen, Z., & Powell, N. (in press). Roles for technology in the information-age paradigm of education: Learning Management Systems. Educational Technology, 48(6).
This article presents a detailed description of the powerful and necessary role which technology can play in the information-age paradigm of education described in the four articles comprising this series. This article calls for a learning management system (LMS), a comprehensive and integrated application of technology to the learning process, which will provide four primary roles for student learning: record keeping, planning, instruction, and assessment. Each of these four major roles is described in terms of the functions it needs to support student learning. Finally, secondary roles such as communication and general data administration are described in order to illustrate the systemic nature of LMS technology necessary to fully support the learner-centered approach needed in the information-age paradigm of education.
Storytelling as Instruction
Watson, W. R. (in press). Once upon a time: The role of stories in educational video games. In P. de Liefde (Ed.), Storytelling as instruction. Rotterdam, Netherlands: Sense Publishers.
This chapter discusses the role of stories in educational video games. Stories and narrative play a substantial role in individual’s conception of and understanding of reality. Contemporary instructional models are utilizing stories as a way to engage, motivate, and present problems to learners. As a highly popular medium, video games are being increasingly touted as powerful tools for creating engaging and effective instruction appropriate for meeting the needs of today’s learners. This chapter will look at the relationship between stories and educational video games. It first examines the use of stories and narrative in instruction, then presents the relationship between stories and entertainment video games, and concludes by synthesizing this knowledge to offer an overview of the role stories can play in educational video games.
Handbook of Research on Educational Communications and Technology
Watson, S.L., Watson, W.R., & Reigeluth, C.M. (2008). Systems design for change in education and training. In J.M. Spector, M.D. Merrill, J.J.G. van Merrienboer & M.P. Driscoll (Eds.), Handbook of Research on Educational Communications and Technology (3rd ed.). London: Routledge.
The purpose of this chapter is to introduce current research and theory on systems design for change, or systemic change, in the fields of education and training. This chapter first presents a description of design theory and systems theory as the foundations for systems design. The second section provides a synthesis of systems design principles. These include systems thinking and design theory approaches to creating an idealized design, broad stakeholder involvement, shifting mindsets and creating a suitable climate, utilizing a participatory model of leadership, creating a shared vision, establishing learning organizations, and using strange attractors and leverage points to build momentum for change. The third and final section presents a number of current systems design models in the literature.
TechTrends
Watson, W.R., & Watson, S.L. (2007). An Argument for clarity: What are Learning Management Systems, what are they not, and what should they become. TechTrends, 51(2).
This article argues that greater attention is needed in using non-standardized terms describing the application of computers to education, particularly in regard to Learning Management Systems (LMS). It presents a definition of LMS as a systemic infrastructure that manages the learning process of an entire organization and contrasts LMS with related but conceptually different terms often confused with LMS: Course Management Systems (CMS) and Learning Content Management Systems (LCMS). Learning Objects (LO) and their relation to LMS are often discussed as is the relationship among these different technologies. LMS is identified as a necessary technology to effectively implement the new approaches to instruction suitable for the Information Age which are required to break away from the inefficient approaches of the Industrial Age. A description of the current trends and future requirements of LMSs are presented as well as recommendations for future research.
Advances in Computer-supported Learning
Watson, W. R., Lee, S., & Reigeluth, C. M. (2007). Learning Management Systems: An overview and roadmap of the systemic application of computers to education. In F. M. M. Neto & F. V. Brasileiro (Eds.), Advances in Computer-supported Learning (pp. 66-96). London: Information Science Publishing.
This chapter discusses Learning Management Systems (LMS) as a technology necessary for supporting the educational needs of the information age. It defines LMS and argues that the move from the mechanistic, sorting-oriented paradigm of the industrial age to the customized, learning-oriented paradigm of the information age requires the application of LMSs to succeed. The history of LMS is presented and the definition further clarified by comparing and contrasting LMS with Course Management Systems (CMS), Learning Content Management Systems (LCMS) and learning objects. Several major K-12 LMSs are presented, evaluated, and their features compared. Finally, the current trends of LMS are discussed and goals for further development are offered. A better understanding of LMS, its role in the new paradigm, and the areas where it needs to improve and continue to grow are essential to improving the effectiveness of education in the information age.
The Journal of Educational Alternatives
Reigeluth, C. M., Carr-Chellman, A. A., Beabout, B. & Watson, W. (2006). Creating shared visions of the future for K-12 education: A systemic transformation process for a learner-centered paradigm. The F. M Duffy Reports, 11 (3), 1 - 1 8. Reprinted in The Journal of Educational Alternatives, 3(1), 34-66.
This article is a reprint of the article originally published in the F.M. Duffy Reports, listed below.
The F.M. Duffy Reports
Reigeluth, C. M., Carr-Chellman, A. A., Beabout, B. & Watson, W. (2006). Creating shared visions of the future for K-12 education: A systemic transformation process for a learner-centered paradigm. The F. M Duffy Reports, 11 (3), 1 - 1 8.
This article compares a number of systemic change approaches to K-12 school innovation. The approaches reviewed in this article range from idealized design to leveraged emergent design, schoolwide to district-wide transformation, and key-leader-directed to broadstakeholder-directed transformation. Definitions of each approach are reviewed, along with key practices of each and comparisons among them. The article does not recommend a particular approach for all or even most cases, but rather is intended to stimulate discussion and understanding of their advantages and disadvantages within the culture and context of any particular school community.
Quarterly Review of Distance Education
Martinez, R., Liu, S., Watson, W., & Bichelmeyer, B. (2006). Evaluation of a Web-based Masters Degree Program: Lessons Learned from an Online Instructional Design and Technology Program. Quarterly Review of Distance Education, 7(3).
The purpose of this study was to evaluate and help improve the quality of the IST distance masters program. It was part of a larger overall program evaluation of the IST program. This particular study focused on how major stakeholders perceive the quality of the DM program.
Data was collected from three groups associated with the program: administrators, faculty, and students. The design of the study was a mixed methods approach using interviews and a survey.
Results showed that all three groups were disatisfied with how teh technology used supports learning. All three groups identified the reputation of the program as its most attractive feature; however, the students commented that some faculty members who attracted them to the program did not teach any of the online courses. Faculty raised some concerns over the copyright of the courses they had adapted from their residential courses and how that might effect their teaching should they ever leave the university. Associate faculty noted the lack of motivation to revise any of the courses. Finally, it became clear that econics had impacted the program, for example, the use of associate faculty and the cessation of a required on-campus orientation progam.
TechTrends
Watson, W. (2006). Systemic change and systems design. TechTrends, 50(2), 24.
This article, part of a larger section providing an introduction to systemic change in education, discusses the emerging knowledge base about how to foster systemic change through systems design.