Teaching for Learning

In the traditional model of university teaching, curricular design (such as it existed) tended to concentrate on administrative aspects, such as deciding on the number of lectures, frequency of tutorials and scheduling of assessments. By contrast, in those institutions dealing with both adult learners and distance learning, such as the Open University in the UK, a quite different approach took shape which realized the central role of the student as an active learner and much effort was expended in designing and structuring guided learning materials that not only steered a path through content (texts, video, audio), but also allowed scope for the student to self-assess and monitor their own progress. The sub-discipline of instructional design became well established particularly in the early stages of computer-based learning, with structured methodologies for materials development. In more recent times, this has broadened somewhat to encompass a wider range of technologies including those which support peer-group learning, greater communication and provide opportunities for enquiry-based work. Usually now (particularly beyond North America) we speak of learning design to reflect some discomfort with the term instructional.   The methodologies and techniques used in open and distance learning, however, have been slow in being applied to mainstream, on-campus courses, yet they have much to offer and are based on experience and research. In this chapter, we will draw attention to such approaches as we explore approaches to the design of individual teaching sessions such as lectures and workshops, the design of modules and the planning of entire programmes.