Why Designers cannot be Agnostic about Pedagogy: The Influence of Constructivist Thinking in Design of e-Learning for HE

When instructional designers design online learning environments, they, like all other designers, call on prior knowledge and experience [1]. They call to mind previous solutions and strategies they have used, have experienced, or have seen that fit the particular constraints of the current situation [2]. These previous experiences play a central role in specifying the structure, contents and delivery strategies. Consequently, if the pedagogical component of the design is not consciously considered and planned, the instructional designer tends to incorporate his/her own model of learning into the environment. This may be inappropriate and even conflict with the learning processes which are intended to be supported by Information and Communication Technologies (ICT). Furthermore, the lack of an overall pedagogical strategy implies an absence of a consistent and adequate educational approach throughout the whole online learning environment [3].

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