Instructional Course Design

Instructional course design is a critical process in much human learning. Human learning occurs from a combination of planned and unplanned educational experiences. Unplanned learning, also called incidental learning, occurs when the learner is focused on objective other than learning and in the process gains unsought insight. For example, a learner's goal might be to watch a play for entertainment and in the midst of the play unexpectedly gain an insight into relationships. Despite the value of such unplanned learning experiences, most human learning occurs within the context of planned, organized educational experiences in which the learner's primary goal is learning. Although formal instructional course design has little or no role in the many incidental learning experiences in life, the value of planned educational experiences ...