The complete project report will be available early in 1997. The 10 elements of the design process proceed logically from aims to actions to supporting structure, culture, and environment. The idea is to insure that the design fits the needs of the situation and that first questions are asked first. Analyzing the learning context produces design criteria to use in guiding and monitoring the accomplishments of the other design process elements. The design process must elicit and understand these hopes and expectations, as a way to give coherence and energy to the enterprise.
Outcomes are a starting point for program improvement.
Students, too, must be able to see what two-year institutions can do for them in terms of their personal development. A partial list of learning outcomes formed by New Designs are shown in the sidebar. If two-year institutions are to address the learning design challenges and opportunities of the future, they must have a working language and knowledge of the learning process, with foundations in adult development. Some of the design specifications for the constructivist approach to learning are shown in the sidebar. It is here that new designs for two-year institutions are most clearly visible.