The Need for Instructional Design with Educational Innovations
DOUGLAS A. JOHNSON
Western Michigan University
November 10th, 2013
ABAI Education Conference, Chicago, IL
Correspondence: djohnson@operant-tech.com

Slide 1

Slide 2

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Slide 3

http://www.johnsonresearchlab.com/

Technological advances
allow us to take the very old
principles of behavior andapply them in very new andexciting ways
Using technology to advanceeducation is not a newconcept

Skinner’s teaching machines
as a technological innovation
to efficiently and effectively
educate the large numbers ofpeople demanded for themodern skilled workforce

The Need for Instructional Design with Educational Innovations
DOUGLAS A. JOHNSON
Western Michigan University
November 10th, 2013
ABAI Education Conference, Chicago, IL
Correspondence: djohnson@operant-tech.com

Slide 4Teaching machines are longgone, but the modern
counterpart, computer-based
instruction, remains
Computer-based instruction
is capable of meeting theideals put forth by Skinner

Slide 5An investigation of how wellcomputer-based instruction
fares with normal adultlearners

Slide 6In regards to computerbased instruction, it turns outthat if you investigate morethan simple descriptivearticles or opinion pieces,
you can eliminate most of theliterature
Main restriction that reduced
our 4000 articles down toless than 80 articles

Started with 3,970
articles publishedover a 12-year
period of time
Eventually classified
79 experimental
comparisons

http://www.johnsonresearchlab.com/

The Need for Instructional Design with Educational Innovations
DOUGLAS A. JOHNSON
Western Michigan University
November 10th, 2013
ABAI Education Conference, Chicago, IL
Correspondence: djohnson@operant-tech.com

Slide 7



30

Number of Comparisons252015

10

Still found interesting resultswith the remaining articles
CBI was found to be at least
as good as, if not better, thaninstructional alternatives 95%of the time (Johnson &Rubin, 2011)

50
Favoring interactive CBI

No differences / mixedresults

Slide 8

Favoring instructional
format besides
interactive CBI

Slide 9

http://www.johnsonresearchlab.com/

It is not the equipment;machines aren’t magic
Must conduct an analysis of
the instructional content
Must conduct an analysis of
the learner’s behavior
Must align these twoanalyses

Part of the reason for thepositive outcomes relates tothe parameters weestablished for the review
In the spirit of Skinner’s
teaching machines, we
restricted ourselves to justinteractive forms ofcomputer-based instruction

The Need for Instructional Design with Educational Innovations
DOUGLAS A. JOHNSON
Western Michigan University
November 10th, 2013
ABAI Education Conference, Chicago, IL
Correspondence: djohnson@operant-tech.com

Slide 10
Only included studies thatconsidered variables within
the control of theinstructional designer

Slide 11

Slide 12

http://www.johnsonresearchlab.com/Also, in the spirit of Skinner,
we focused on factors that
could be manipulated (ratherthan traits or cognitions).
When you put the burden oflearning inside the head ofthe learner, you stop making
advances in instruction

The burden must be placedon the environmental
contingencies
Must relate the antecedentand consequent variables todesired learner behavior

Some variables requirecaution; need to not getcaught up in bells andwhistles
Our innovations should be
attractive, slick, and exciting,but never at the expense of
the underlying instructional
designThe Need for Instructional Design with Educational Innovations
DOUGLAS A. JOHNSON
Western Michigan University
November 10th, 2013
ABAI Education Conference, Chicago, IL
Correspondence: djohnson@operant-tech.com

Slide 13

Slide 14Instructional design canhelp us select the best
examples andnonexamples for teaching

Slide 15

Randomly or intuitively selecting teachingitems may not be the best strategy

http://www.johnsonresearchlab.com/

Instructional design is a term
often used loosely
When done properly, it is ananalysis of stimulus control
to evoke desired behavior
If conceptual behavior is thegoal, then conceptual
stimulus control needs to beestablishedExample: If you want toteach the concept of carrot
Instructional design can tell
us if we have enoughvariation to establish theconceptual behavior or toomuch variation (thusneedlessly slowing down theinstruction)

Could be done as an intuitive
process
Obvious that asparagus is abetter nonexample forteaching carrot than pig or
seal
Just cause something isbetter doesn’t mean it is bestThe Need for Instructional Design with Educational Innovations
DOUGLAS A. JOHNSON
Western Michigan University
November 10th, 2013
ABAI Education Conference, Chicago, IL
Correspondence: djohnson@operant-tech.com

Slide 16

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Slide 17Once we better understandthe controlling stimuli withgood instruction design, we
can begin engineeringnovelty, engineering
problem-solving, engineering
creativity, engineering many
desirable behaviors thathave long fascinated thegeneral public

By better understanding thecontrolling variables, we canstop wasting time with
unnecessary examples ornon-examples that don’tquite capture the distinction
We can avoid unnecessary
re-teaching by establishing
the appropriate stimulus
control the first time

While sometimes puzzling, theemergence of novel behavior
remains fertile ground for
behavior analysis

Slide 18

http://www.johnsonresearchlab.com/

Good instructional design
should be systematic
When done properly, we canidentify even better examples
and nonexamples (parsnipvs. asparagus)

The Need for Instructional Design with Educational Innovations
DOUGLAS A. JOHNSON
Western Michigan University
November 10th, 2013
ABAI Education Conference, Chicago, IL
Correspondence: djohnson@operant-tech.com

Slide 19

Slide 20

Douglas A. Johnson, Ph.D.
Western Michigan University
Email: djohnson@operant-tech.com
Website: www.johnsonresearchlab.com

http://www.johnsonresearchlab.com/

Good instructional design
allows us to make a forceful,empirical counterargument totraditional criticisms of ourfield
Data to disprove theoutdated notion that weneglect or are incapable ofdiscussing insight, creativity,problem-solving, etc.
By showing how thesecomplex forms of behavior
arise from the same
principles that account for
simpler forms of behavior, weundercut many of the
traditional criticisms