Functions of the Financial Manager

The important role of financial manager in modern business is as follows:

 

1.Provision Capital: How to create and implement programs for Provision of capital required by the Company.

2.Investor relations: the creation and maintenance of a sufficient market for company with the Securities and maintaining a sufficient connection with the investment Bankers, analysts and shareholders.

3.Short long-term financing: To the appropriate sources for the company current loans from commercial banks and other lending institutions.

4.Banking and storage: agreement with the bank, consider a given depots.

5. Credit and collections: the direct lending and collection accounts for the company, including oversight of the necessary sales financing arrangements, such as the payment of time and Leasing plans.

6. Investment: To raise money from the company as needed and get create and coordinate measures for investments in pension and other similar trust funds.

7.Insurance: Providing insurance protection as needed.

8. Planning Control: Develop, coordinate and manage an appropriate plan for monitoring the measures.

9.Reporting and Interpretation: To compare the information with business plans and standards and to report and interpret the results of operations for all Levels of management and owners of the company.

10. Evaluation and Consulting: For all segments management is responsible for policy or action on any stage
Operation of the company in achieving the objectives and effectiveness of policies, organizational structure and procedures.

11. Tax Administration: the administration of tax policy and procedures.

12. Government Reporting: monitor or coordinate the preparation of the reports from government agencies.

13. Asset Protection: Protect company assets through internal controls, internal audit and the appropriate insurance Cover.

Profit Maximization vs Wealth Maximization

Profits - It is a fundamental objective of financial management. Profit maximization is intended to improve efficiency, maintain stability and reduce losses and inefficiencies.

Benefit may be seen in both directions in this context.
1. Maximizing profits for the owner.
2. Maximization of profit for others.

1. They are generally available with efficiency and it is the test of effectiveness.But this approach has limitations as the ambiguity of the term is not clearly how he has never been defined, varies from person to person.

2. Quality of earnings - profits are generally calculated in terms of cash. Normally referred to as the official profits, but ignored some basic ideas like waste, efficiency, skill requirements of workers, employees, sales, product mix, production processes, administrative installation.

3. Moment of the time value / benefit of profits - in inflationary conditions reduce the value of the gain and thus the benefits should not extend over a longer period comparable.

4. Some economists argue that profit maximization leads to some unhealthy tendencies and harmful to society and can not use, unhealthy competition and lead to abuse of position.

Maximization of wealth - one of the traditional

Approaches to financial management by maximizing the wealth we create and accumulation of wealth, property and assets on average over a longer period of time to take care when to maximize profits, its limitations, it is run wealth maximization in the true sense of the search, this is a long-term cash flows that the profits were so it may be a

Situation where a company is losing money every year, but there are cash prizes for the severe impairment, which indirectly suggests high levels of investment in fixed capital and is the real wealth, and takes into account the time value money and it is generally accepted.

Systems of formal education

Education is the process by which people learn:

    * Instruction refers to the facilitating of learning, usually by a teacher.
    * Teaching refers to the actions of a real live instructor to impart learning to the student.
    * Learning refers to learning with a view toward preparing learners with specific knowledge, skills, or abilities that can be applied immediately upon completion. 

Primary education
Primary (or elementary) education consists of the first 5–7 years of formal, structured education. In general, primary education consists of six or eight years of schooling starting at the age of five or six, although this varies between, and sometimes within, countries. Globally, around 89% of primary-age children are enrolled in primary education, and this proportion is rising. Under the Education for All programs driven by UNESCO, most countries have committed to achieving universal enrollment in primary education by 2015, and in many countries, it is compulsory for children to receive primary education. The division between primary and secondary education is somewhat arbitrary, but it generally occurs at about eleven or twelve years of age. Some education systems have separate middle schools, with the transition to the final stage of secondary education taking place at around the age of fourteen. Schools that provide primary education, are mostly referred to as primary schools. Primary schools in these countries are often subdivided into infant schools and junior school.
Secondary education
Main article: Secondary education
In most contemporary educational systems of the world, secondary education comprises the formal education that occurs during adolescence. It is characterized by transition from the typically compulsory, comprehensive primary education for minors, to the optional, selective tertiary, "post-secondary", or "higher" education (e.g., university, vocational school for adults. Depending on the system, schools for this period, or a part of it, may be called secondary or high schools, gymnasiums, lyceums, middle schools, colleges, or vocational schools. The exact meaning of any of these terms varies from one system to another. The exact boundary between primary and secondary education also varies from country to country and even within them, but is generally around the seventh to the tenth year of schooling. Secondary education occurs mainly during the teenage years. In the United States, Canada and Australia primary and secondary education together are sometimes referred to as K-12 education, and in New Zealand Year 1-13 is used. The purpose of secondary education can be to give common knowledge, to prepare for higher education or to train directly in a profession.
The emergence of secondary education in the United States did not happen until 1910, caused by the rise in big businesses and technological advances in factories (for instance, the emergence of electrification), that required skilled workers. In order to meet this new job demand, high schools were created and the curriculum focused on practical job skills that would better prepare students for white collar or skilled blue collar work. This proved to be beneficial for both the employer and the employee, because this improvement in human capital caused employees to become more efficient, which lowered costs for the employer, and skilled employees received a higher wage than employees with just primary educational attainment.
In Europe, the grammar school or academy existed from as early as the 16th century; public schools or fee-paying schools, or charitable educational foundations have an even longer history.
 Higher education

The University of Cambridge is an institute of higher learning.
Higher education, also called tertiary, third stage, or post secondary education, is the non-compulsory educational level that follows the completion of a school providing a secondary education, such as a high school, secondary school. Tertiary education is normally taken to include undergraduate and postgraduate education, as well as vocational education and training. Colleges and universities are the main institutions that provide tertiary education. Collectively, these are sometimes known as tertiary institutions. Tertiary education generally results in the receipt of certificates, diplomas, or academic degrees.
Higher education includes teaching, research and social services activities of universities, and within the realm of teaching, it includes both the undergraduate level (sometimes referred to as tertiary education) and the graduate (or postgraduate) level (sometimes referred to as graduate school). Higher education generally involves work towards a degree-level or foundation degree qualification. In most developed countries a high proportion of the population (up to 50%) now enter higher education at some time in their lives. Higher education is therefore very important to national economies, both as a significant industry in its own right, and as a source of trained and educated personnel for the rest of the economy.
Adult education
Adult education has become common in many countries. It takes on many forms, ranging from formal class-based learning to self-directed learning and e-learning. A number of career specific courses such as veterinary assisting, medical billing and coding, real estate license, bookkeeping and many more are now available to students through the Internet.
Alternative education
Alternative education, also known as non-traditional education or educational alternative, is a broad term that may be used to refer to all forms of education outside of traditional education (for all age groups and levels of education). This may include not only forms of education designed for students with special needs (ranging from teenage pregnancy to intellectual disability), but also forms of education designed for a general audience and employing alternative educational philosophies and methods.
Alternatives of the latter type are often the result of education reform and are rooted in various philosophies that are commonly fundamentally different from those of traditional compulsory education. While some have strong political, scholarly, or philosophical orientations, others are more informal associations of teachers and students dissatisfied with certain aspects of traditional education. These alternatives, which include charter schools, alternative schools, independent schools, and home-based learning vary widely, but often emphasize the value of small class size, close relationships between students and teachers, and a sense of community.
Indigenous education
Increasingly, the inclusion of indigenous models of education (methods and content) as an alternative within the scope of formal and non-formal education systems, has come to represent a significant factor contributing to the success of those members of indigenous communities who choose to access these systems, both as students/learners and as teachers/instructors.
Process
Curriculum
 Curriculum and List of academic disciplines
An academic discipline is a branch of knowledge which is formally taught, either at the university, or via some other such method. Each discipline usually has several sub-disciplines or branches, and distinguishing lines are often both arbitrary and ambiguous. Examples of broad areas of academic disciplines include the natural sciences, mathematics, computer science, social sciences, humanities and applied sciences.
Learning modalities
There has been work on learning styles over the last two decades. Dunn and Dunn focused on identifying relevant stimuli that may influence learning and manipulating the school environment, at about the same time as Joseph Renzulli recommended varying teaching strategies. Howard Gardner identified individual talents or aptitudes in his Multiple Intelligences theories. Based on the works of Jung, the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator and Keirsey Temperament Sorter focused on understanding how people's personality affects the way they interact personally, and how this affects the way individuals respond to each other within the learning environment. The work of David Kolb and Anthony Gregorc's Type Delineator follows a similar but more simplified approach.
It is currently fashionable to divide education into different learning "modes". The learning modalities are probably the most common:

    * Visual: learning based on observation and seeing what is being learned.
    * Auditory: learning based on listening to instructions/information.
    * Kinesthetic: learning based on hands-on work and engaging in activities.

Although it is claimed that, depending on their preferred learning modality, different teaching techniques have different levels of effectiveness, recent research has argued "there is no adequate evidence base to justify incorporating learning styles assessments into general educational practice."
A consequence of this theory is that effective teaching should present a variety of teaching methods which cover all three learning modalities so that different students have equal opportunities to learn in a way that is effective for them. Guy Claxton has questioned the extent that learning styles such as VAK are helpful, particularly as they can have a tendency to label children and therefore restrict learning.
Teaching
Teachers need to understand a subject enough to convey its essence to students. While traditionally this has involved lecturing on the part of the teacher, new instructional strategies put the teacher more into the role of course designer, discussion facilitator, and coach and the student more into the role of active learner, discovering the subject of the course. In any case, the goal is to establish a sound knowledge base and skill set on which students will be able to build as they are exposed to different life experiences. Good teachers can translate information, good judgment, experience and wisdom into relevant knowledge that a student can understand, retain and pass to others. Studies from the US suggest that the quality of teachers is the single most important factor affecting student performance, and that countries which score highly on international tests have multiple policies in place to ensure that the teachers they employ are as effective as possible. With the passing of NCLB in the United States (No Child Left Behind), teachers must be highly qualified.
Technology
Technology is an increasingly influential factor in education. Computers and mobile phones are used in developed countries both to complement established education practices and develop new ways of learning such as online education (a type of distance education). This gives students the opportunity to choose what they are interested in learning. The proliferation of computers also means the increase of programming and blogging. Technology offers powerful learning tools that demand new skills and understandings of students, including Multimedia, and provides new ways to engage students, such as Virtual learning environments. One such tool are virtual manipulatives, which are an "interactive, Web-based visual representation of a dynamic object that presents opportunities for constructing mathematical knowledge" (Moyer, Bolyard, & Spikell, 2002). In short, virtual manipulatives are dynamic visual/pictorial replicas of physical mathematical manipulatives, which have long been used to demonstrate and teach various mathematical concepts. Virtual manipulatives can be easily accessed on the Internet as stand-alone applets, allowing for easy access and use in a variety of educational settings. Emerging research into the effectiveness of virtual manipulatives as a teaching tool have yielded promising results, suggesting comparable, and in many cases superior overall concept-teaching effectiveness compared to standard teaching methods.[citation needed] Technology is being used more not only in administrative duties in education but also in the instruction of students. The use of technologies such as PowerPoint and interactive whiteboard is capturing the attention of students in the classroom. Technology is also being used in the assessment of students. One example is the Audience Response System (ARS), which allows immediate feedback tests and classroom discussions.
Information and communication technologies (ICTs) are a “diverse set of tools and resources used to communicate, create, disseminate, store, and manage information.” These technologies include computers, the Internet, broadcasting technologies (radio and television), and telephony. There is increasing interest in how computers and the Internet can improve education at all levels, in both formal and non-formal settings. Older ICT technologies, such as radio and television, have for over forty years been used for open and distance learning, although print remains the cheapest, most accessible and therefore most dominant delivery mechanism in both developed and developing countries. In addition to classroom application and growth of e-learning opportunities for knowledge attainment, educators involved in student affairs programming have recognized the increasing importance of computer usage with data generation for and about students. Motivation and retention counselors, along with faculty and administrators, can impact the potential academic success of students by provision of technology based experiences in the University setting.
The use of computers and the Internet is in its infancy in developing countries, if these are used at all, due to limited infrastructure and the attendant high costs of access. Usually, various technologies are used in combination rather than as the sole delivery mechanism. For example, the Kothmale Community Radio Internet uses both radio broadcasts and computer and Internet technologies to facilitate the sharing of information and provide educational opportunities in a rural community in Sri Lanka. The Open University of the United Kingdom (UKOU), established in 1969 as the first educational institution in the world wholly dedicated to open and distance learning, still relies heavily on print-based materials supplemented by radio, television and, in recent years, online programming. Similarly, the Indira Gandhi National Open University in India combines the use of print, recorded audio and video, broadcast radio and television, and audio conferencing technologies.
The term "computer-assisted learning" (CAL) has been increasingly used to describe the use of technology in teaching.
Educational theory
Education theory is the theory of the purpose, application and interpretation of education and learning. Its history begins with classical Greek educationalists and sophists and includes, since the 18th century, pedagogy and andragogy. In the 20th century, "theory" has become an umbrella term for a variety of scholarly approaches to teaching, assessment and education law, most of which are informed by various academic fields, which can be seen in the below sections.
Economics
It has been argued that high rates of education are essential for countries to be able to achieve high levels of economic growth. Empirical analyses tend to support the theoretical prediction that poor countries should grow faster than rich countries because they can adopt cutting edge technologies already tried and tested by rich countries. However, technology transfer requires knowledgeable managers and engineers who are able to operate new machines or production practices borrowed from the leader in order to close the gap through imitation. Therefore, a country's ability to learn from the leader is a function of its stock of "human capital". Recent study of the determinants of aggregate economic growth have stressed the importance of fundamental economic institutions and the role of cognitive skills.
At the individual level, there is a large literature, generally related back to the work of Jacob Mincer, on how earnings are related to the schooling and other human capital of the individual. This work has motivated a large number of studies, but is also controversial. The chief controversies revolve around how to interpret the impact of schooling.
Economists Samuel Bowles and Herbert Gintis famously argued in 1976 that there was a fundamental conflict in American schooling between the egalitarian goal of democratic participation and the inequalities implied by the continued profitability of capitalist production on the other.
History
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A depiction of the University of Bologna, Italy
The history of education according to Dieter Lenzen, president of the Freie Universität Berlin 1994, "began either millions of years ago or at the end of 1770". Education as a science cannot be separated from the educational traditions that existed before. Adults trained the young of their society in the knowledge and skills they would need to master and eventually pass on. The evolution of culture, and human beings as a species depended on this practice of transmitting knowledge. In pre-literate societies this was achieved orally and through imitation. Story-telling continued from one generation to the next. Oral language developed into written symbols and letters. The depth and breadth of knowledge that could be preserved and passed soon increased exponentially. When cultures began to extend their knowledge beyond the basic skills of communicating, trading, gathering food, religious practices, etc., formal education, and schooling, eventually followed. Schooling in this sense was already in place in Egypt between 3000 and 500BC.The history of education is the history of man as since its the main occupation of man to pass knowledge, skills and attitude from one generation to the other so is education.
Nowadays some kind of education is compulsory to all people in most countries. Due to population growth and the proliferation of compulsory education, UNESCO has calculated that in the next 30 years more people will receive formal education than in all of human history thus far.
Philosophy
John Locke's work Some Thoughts Concerning Education was written in 1693 and still reflects traditional education priorities in the Western world
As an academic field, philosophy of education is a "the philosophical study of education and its problems...its central subject matter is education, and its methods are those of philosophy". "The philosophy of education may be either the philosophy of the process of education or the philosophy of the discipline of education. That is, it may be part of the discipline in the sense of being concerned with the aims, forms, methods, or results of the process of educating or being educated; or it may be metadisciplinary in the sense of being concerned with the concepts, aims, and methods of the discipline." As such, it is both part of the field of education and a field of applied philosophy, drawing from fields of metaphysics, epistemology, axiology and the philosophical approaches (speculative, prescriptive, and/or analytic) to address questions in and about pedagogy, education policy, and curriculum, as well as the process of learning, to name a few. For example, it might study what constitutes upbringing and education, the values and norms revealed through upbringing and educational practices, the limits and legitimization of education as an academic discipline, and the relation between educational theory and practice.
Psychology
A class size experiment in the United States found that attending small classes for 3 or more years in the early grades increased high school graduation rates of students from low income families.
Educational psychology is the study of how humans learn in educational settings, the effectiveness of educational interventions, the psychology of teaching, and the social psychology of schools as organizations. Although the terms "educational psychology" and "school psychology" are often used interchangeably, researchers and theorists are likely to be identified as educational psychologists, whereas practitioners in schools or school-related settings are identified as school psychologists. Educational psychology is concerned with the processes of educational attainment in the general population and in sub-populations such as gifted children and those with specific disabilities.
Educational psychology can in part be understood through its relationship with other disciplines. It is informed primarily by psychology, bearing a relationship to that discipline analogous to the relationship between medicine and biology. Educational psychology in turn informs a wide range of specialities within educational studies, including instructional design, educational technology, curriculum development, organizational learning, special education and classroom management. Educational psychology both draws from and contributes to cognitive science and the learning sciences. In universities, departments of educational psychology are usually housed within faculties of education, possibly accounting for the lack of representation of educational psychology content in introductory psychology textbooks (Lucas, Blazek, & Raley, 2006).
Sociology
The sociology of education is the study of how social institutions and forces affect educational processes and outcomes, and vice versa. By many, education is understood to be a means of overcoming handicaps, achieving greater equality and acquiring wealth and status for all (Sargent 1994). Learners may be motivated by aspirations for progress and betterment. Education is perceived as a place where children can develop according to their unique needs and potentialities. The purpose of education can be to develop every individual to their full potential. The understanding of the goals and means of educational socialization processes differs according to the sociological paradigm used.
Education in the Developing World

   
World map indicating Education Index (according to 2007/2008 Human Development Report)
In developing countries, the number and seriousness of the problems faced are naturally greater.[citation needed] People in more remote or agrarian areas are sometimes unaware of the importance of education. However, many countries have an active Ministry of Education, and in many subjects, such as foreign language learning, the degree of education is actually much higher than in industrialized countries; for example, it is not at all uncommon for students in many developing countries to be reasonably fluent in multiple foreign languages, whereas this is much more of a rarity in the supposedly "more educated" countries where much of the population is in fact monolingual.
Universal primary education is one of the eight Millennium Development Goals and great improvements have been achieved in the past decade, yet a great deal remains to be done. Researchers at the Overseas Development Institute indicate the main obstacles to greater funding from donors include: donor priorities, aid architecture, and the lack of evidence and advocacy. Additionally, Transparency International has identified corruption in the education sector as a major stumbling block to achieving Universal primary education in Africa. Furthermore, demand in the developing world for improved educational access is not as high as one would expect as governments avoid the recurrent costs involved and there is economic pressure on those parents who prefer their children making money in the short term over any long-term benefits of education. Recent studies on child labor and poverty have suggested that when poor families reach a certain economic threshold where families are able to provide for their basic needs, parents return their children to school. This has been found to be true, once the threshold has been breached, even if the potential economic value of the children's work has increased since their return to school.
But without capacity, there is no development. A study conducted by the UNESCO International Institute for Educational Planning indicates that stronger capacities in educational planning and management may have an important spill-over effect on the system as a whole. Sustainable capacity development requires complex interventions at the institutional, organizational and individual levels that could be based on some foundational principles:

    * national leadership and ownership should be the touchstone of any intervention;
    * strategies must be context relevant and context specific;
    * they should embrace an integrated set of complementary interventions, though implementation may need to proceed in steps;
    * partners should commit to a long-term investment in capacity development, while working towards some short-term achievements;
    * outside intervention should be conditional on an impact assessment of national capacities at various levels.


Russia has more academic graduates than any other country in Europe.
A lack of good universities, and a low acceptance rate for good universities, is evident in countries with a high population density. In some countries, there are uniform, over structured, inflexible centralized programs from a central agency that regulates all aspects of education.

    * Due to globalization, increased pressure on students in curricular activities
    * Removal of a certain percentage of students for improvisation of academics (usually practised in schools, after 10th grade)

India is now developing technologies that will skip land based phone and internet lines. Instead, India launched EDUSAT, an education satellite that can reach more of the country at a greatly reduced cost. There is also an initiative started by the OLPC foundation, a group out of MIT Media Lab and supported by several major corporations to develop a $100 laptop to deliver educational software. The laptops are widely available as of 2008. The laptops are sold at cost or given away based on donations. These will enable developing countries to give their children a digital education, and help close the digital divide across the world.
In Africa, NEPAD has launched an "e-school programme" to provide all 600,000 primary and high schools with computer equipment, learning materials and internet access within 10 years. Private groups, like The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, are working to give more individuals opportunities to receive education in developing countries through such programs as the Perpetual Education Fund. An International Development Agency project called nabuur.com, started with the support of former American President Bill Clinton, uses the Internet to allow co-operation by individuals on issues of social development.
Internationalization
Education is becoming increasingly international. Not only are the materials becoming more influenced by the rich international environment, but exchanges among students at all levels are also playing an increasingly important role. In Europe, for example, the Socrates-Erasmus Programme stimulates exchanges across European universities. Also, the Soros Foundation  provides many opportunities for students from central Asia and eastern Europe. Programmes such as the International Baccalaureate have contributed to the internationalisation of education. Some scholars argue that, regardless of whether one system is considered better or worse than another, experiencing a different way of education can often be considered to be the most important, enriching element of an international learning experience.

Learning Theories and Learning Styles

Understanding how people learn is the key to producing effective instruction, both traditionally and in the form of e-learning. Although many theories of learning have been proposed, with some leading candidates described below, it seems clear that different individuals learn in different ways. One of the strengths of e-learning is its ability to provide a unique learning experience for each participant rather than the one-size-fits-all approach dictated by the classroom. The most effective e-learning will be grounded in learning theory, and will also facilitate varying experience to suit varying styles of learning and instructional need.
1. Learning Theories
A number of (often competing) theories of learning have been proposed.
1.1 Andragogy
Knowles (1913-97) differentiates the needs of adult learners from those of juveniles and uses the term andragogy to describe the specific methods which should be employed in the education of adults. Smith [Smith Mark K.; Andragogy - The history and current use of the term plus an annotated bibliography; http://www.infed.org/lifelonglearning/b-andra.htm] summarizes Knowles’ andragogy thus:

    * The adult learner moves towards independence and is self-directing. The teacher encourages and nurtures this movement.
    * The learner’s experience is a rich resource for learning. Hence teaching methods include discussion, problem-solving etc.
    * People learn what they need to know, so that learning programmes are organized around life application.
    * Learning experiences should be based around experiences, since people are performance centred in their learning.

Andragogy requires that adult learners be involved in the identification of their learning needs and the planning of how those needs are satisfied. Learning should be an active rather than a passive process. Adult learning is most effective when concerned with solving problems that have relevance to the learner’s everyday experience.
1.2 Behaviorism
Skinner (1904-1990) is associated with the approach to learning known as behaviorism. Skinner conducted experiments in which pigeons and rats were taught to obtain food pellets by performing certain actions, e.g. pecking a lever a certain number of times. Skinner asserted learning occurs through operant conditioning. This is based upon the idea that organisms operate on their environment. If an action has positive consequences for the organism it is more likely to repeat that action, if the consequences are undesirable then the action is less likely to be repeated [PageWise, Inc; B. F. Skinner and behaviorism; http://nh.essortment.com/bfskinner_rgjj.htm].
Skinner’s approach has been used “to teach mentally retarded and autistic children, … in industry to reduce job accidents, and … in numerous applications in health-related fields.” [PageWise, Inc; B. F. Skinner and behaviorism; http://nh.essortment.com/bfskinner_rgjj.htm] However some kinds of learning are not easily explained by conditioning, e.g. “those cases where skills are used in a highly flexible way, as in the use of language; … where people do things that lead only to intangible rewards; … where people appear to learn passively by observing others’ actions” [Tennant Mark; Psychology & Adult Learning; Routledge 1997].
Skinner’s 1971 work “Beyond Freedom and Dignity” drew criticism because it appeared to deny the essential human attributes of free will and dignity and declared “man’s actions were nothing more than a set of behaviors that were shaped by his environment, over which he had no control.” [PageWise, Inc; B. F. Skinner and behaviorism; http://nh.essortment.com/bfskinner_rgjj.htm]
According to Tennant [Tennant Mark; Psychology & Adult Learning; Routledge 1997] the influence of behaviorism on adult education is “most apparent in the literature on behavioral objectives”. Behavioral objectives are formulated using language that refers to observable behavior only, e.g. describes, identifies, explains, predicts… Criticisms of such predefined objectives include:

    * they are inappropriate for certain types of learning, e.g. music, drama etc.;
    * they fragment learning into many narrow categories and in so doing fail to address the whole;
    * they are concerned only with the outcomes and not the process of learning;
    * they cannot describe the acquisition of general ides which are applicable in a variety of contexts;
    * they cannot account for subjective outcomes, e.g. the development of self-concept;
    * they ignore peripheral learning, i.e. that which lies beyond the formal syllabus but frequently occurs in any course of study;
    * they do not account for changing learner needs as learning takes place.

1.3 Chomsky and Language Acquisition
A particular challenge to behaviorism comes from Chomsky’s theory of language acquisition. Chomsky argues that human beings are endowed with an internal understanding of the fundamental rules of language that allow us to develop language skills far in excess of those which would result purely from environmental conditioning. Gross and McIlveen [Gross Richard, McIlveen Rob; Cognitive Psychology; Hodder & Stoughton 1997] give the following evidence supporting Chomsky’s view:

    * language acquisition appears to occur in a culturally universal and invariant sequence of stages;
    * native speakers use language creatively, i.e. they are able to produce sentences of a form they have not previously encountered;
    * children spontaneously use grammar rules they have never heard or been taught;
    * the meaning of a sentence is more than the meaning of its individual words and varies according to context;
    * babies as young as two days have been shown (by Eimas) to be able to discriminate between ‘ba’ and ‘pa’ sounds;
    * studies of twins (by Malmstrom and Silva) have shown the existence of private languages intelligible only to the twins, such languages share certain features with ordinary languages.

1.4 Constructivism
Constructivism asserts that people construct their own individual mental models of the world in order to make sense of their experiences. Learning is the process of adding to or refining this mental model.
On Purpose Associates [On Purpose Associates; Constructivism; http://www.funderstanding.com/constructivism.cfm] describe how constructivism impacts on learning:

    * There is no standardized curriculum. Curricula are customized to the students’ prior knowledge, and hands-on problem solving is emphasized.
    * Educators focus on making connections between facts and fostering new understanding in students. Instructors tailor their teaching strategies to student responses and encourage students to analyze, interpret, and predict information. Teachers also rely heavily on open-ended questions and promote extensive dialogue among students.
    * Assessment is part of the learning process and students play a larger role in judging their own progress. There are no grades or standardized testing.2. Learning Styles
      Just as individuals exhibit different personalities it has been suggested that people learn (most effectively) in different ways. A number of different learning styles have been identified.
      2.1 Field Dependence/Independence
      Tennant [Tennant Mark; Psychology & Adult Learning; Routledge 1997] describes Witkin’s work on field dependence/independence. Essentially field dependent people are significantly influenced by context in making judgment whilst field independents pay little or no attention to context (i.e. are able to isolate their point of interest). Witkin suggests that field dependence/independence forms a continuous distribution, and that an individual’s field dependence/independence changes with the context in which they find themselves.
      Field dependents tend to learn better in a social setting, e.g. class discussion, group work etc., and where direction and structured material are provided for them. They tend to specialize in work and study requiring interaction with people. Field independents tend to be more self-directed and better able to make sense of unstructured material. They are more likely to favour impersonal disciplines such as science and mathematics. Studies have shown that learners can modify their style of learning with appropriate guidance.
      The field dependence/independence of the teacher will tend to influence their teaching style, e.g. field dependent teachers favour class discussions and field dependents favour more impersonal lectures. It is suggested that more effective learning takes place when the styles of the teacher and students match, however other commentators state that the conflict arising from mixing teacher and learner styles creates a challenge that ultimately enhances the learner’s experience.
      Whilst it is impractical to create classes according to learning style, and in any case this would present the learners with a very artificial environment, it is beneficial for the teacher to be aware of the different styles and to teach in a manner that is accessible to the majority of students.
      2.2 Neuro-Linguistic Programming
      Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) is “a set of models of how communication impacts and is impacted by subjective experience” [Robbins Stever; Neuro-Linguistic Programming: A Definition; http://www.nlp.org/whats-nlp.html]. It was first developed in the 1970s by John Grinder and Richard Bandler. The models used by NLP have arisen because they have been observed to work rather than being based on any deep underlying theory.
      One NLP technique identifies a set of learning styles based upon an individual’s dominant sense.
    * Visual learners learn best from what they see.
    * Auditory learners learn best from what they hear.
    * Kinaesthetic learners learn best from physical manipulation.

Since any group of learners is likely to consist of members with different styles the most effective lessons will include elements suited to each.
2.3 Multiple Intelligence Theory
Gardner’s multiple intelligence theory suggests that human beings perceive and understand the world in a number of ways. Gardner proposes a not necessarily exhaustive list of seven such intelligences:

    * Verbal-Linguistic – the ability to use words and language.
    * Logical-Mathematical -The capacity for inductive and deductive thinking and reasoning, as well as the use of numbers and the recognition of abstract patterns.
    * Visual-Spatial -The ability to visualize objects and spatial dimensions, and create internal images and pictures.
    * Body-Kinesthetic -The wisdom of the body and the ability to control physical motion.
    * Musical-Rhythmic -The ability to recognize tonal patterns and sounds, as well as a sensitivity to rhythms and beats.
    * Interpersonal -The capacity for person-to-person communications and relationships.
    * Intrapersonal -The spiritual, inner states of being, self-reflection, and awareness.

Source [On Purpose Associates; Multiple Intelligences; http://www.funderstanding.com/multiple_intelligence.cfm].
2.4 Experiential Learning Model
Kolb and Fry (referred to in [Tennant Mark; Psychology & Adult Learning; Routledge 1997]) identify a four-stage learning cycle (experiential learning model) comprising concrete experience, reflection and observation on that experience, the formation of a theory and the testing of that theory under new conditions. From this learning cycle Kolb and Fry propose two dimensions, one ranging from concrete experience to abstract conceptualization (theory formation) the other from reflective observation to active experimentation. They further state that individuals will tend to favour one of the two extremes in each dimension and will in fact fall somewhere on the continuum between the two.
From the combination of an individual’s preference on the two dimensions Kolb and Fry identify four learning styles, namely converger, diverger, assimilator and accommodator. Kolb and Fry consider each style to be equally valid and assert that the most effective learners are those who learn to apply each of the styles to their learning experiences.

DIFFUSION THEORY AND INSTRUCTIONAL TECHNOLOGY

The purpose of this paper is to describe how the theory of innovation diffusion has been incorporated into the field of instructional technology. Professionals in a number of disciplines, from agriculture to marketing, have used the theory of innovation diffusion to increase the adoption of innovative products and practices. Instructional technologists, faced with a growing realization that innovative instructional products and practices have suffered from a lack of utilization, are beginning to turn toà diffusion theory in an effort to increase the adoption of instructional technologies.
Diffusion is defined as the process by which an innovation is adopted and gains acceptance by members of a certain community. A number of factors interact to influence the diffusion of an innovation. The four major factors that influence the diffusion process are the innovation itself, how information about the innovation is communicated, time, and the nature of the social system into which the innovation is being introduced (Rogers, 1995). Diffusion research, in its simplest form, investigates how theàse major factors, and a multitude of other factors, interact to facilitate or impede the adoption of a specific product or practice among members of a particular adopter group.
The study of diffusion theory is potentially valuable to the field of instructional technology for three reasons. First, most instructional technologist do not understand why their products are, or are not, adopted. In a very real sense, the underlying causes of instructional technology's diffusion problem remain a mystery to the field. There appear to be as many reasons for instructional technology's lack of utilization as there are instructional technologists. Some instructional technologists blame àteachers and an intrinsic resistance to change as the primary causes of instructional technology's diffusion problem, others cite entrenched bureaucracies and inadequate funding (Schneberger and Jost, 1994). By better understanding the multitude of factors that influence adoption of innovations, instructional technologist will be better able to explain, predict and account for the factors that impede or facilitate the diffusion of their products.
Second, instructional technology is inherently an innovation-based discipline. Many of the products produced by instructional technologists represent radical innovations in the form, organization, sequence, and delivery of instruction. An instructional technologist who understands the innovation process and theories of innovation diffusion will be more fully prepared to work effectively with clients and potential adopters (Schiffman, 1991).
Third, the study of diffusion theory could lead to the development of a systematic, prescriptive model of adoption and diffusion. Instructional technologists have long used systematic models to guide the process of instructional development (ID). These systematic ID models have resulted in the design and development of effective and pedagogically sound innovations. A systematic model of diffusion could help guide the process of adoption and diffusion in a similar manner and, perhaps, with similarly effàective results.
General Diffusion Theory
Before discussing how diffusion theory has been incorporated into instructional technology, I will provide a brief background and overview of general diffusion theory. The most important fact to consider in discussing diffusion theory is that it is not one, well-defined, unified, and comprehensive theory. A large number of theories, from a wide variety of disciplines, each focusing on a different element of the innovation process, combine to create a meta-theory of diffusion. The most likely reason why there is not a unified theory of diffusion is that the study of innovation diffusion is a fairly recent field. Rogers (1995) points out that a 1943 study by Ryan and Gross at Iowa State University provided the genesis of modern diffusion research. The Ryan and Gross (1943) study, from the field of rural sociology, used interviews with adopters of an innovation to examine a number of factors related to adoption. The interview-based methodology used in the Ryan and Gross study àhas remained the predominant diffusion research methodology ever since (Rogers, 1995). A number of researchers from rural sociology (e.g., Fliegel and Kivlin, 1962) and other disciplines (e.g., Weinstein, 1986) have built on the Ryan and Gross' work to conduct studies and develop theories related to the diffusion of innovations.
The researcher who has done the most to synthesize all of the most significant findings and compelling theories related to diffusion is Everett M. Rogers. Rogers' book Diffusion of Innovations, first published in 1960, and now in its fourth edition (Rogers, 1995) is the closest any researcher has come to presenting a unified theory of diffusion.. Four of the theories discussed by Rogers are among the most widely-used theories of diffusion: Innovation Decision Process; Individual Innovativeness; Rate ofà Adoption; and Perceived Attributes.
Innovation Decision Process
The Innovation Decision Process theory (Rogers, 1995) states that diffusion is a process that occurs over time and can be seen as having five distinct stages. The stages in the process are Knowledge, Persuasion, Decision, Implementation, and Confirmation. According to this theory, potential adopters of an innovation must learn about the innovation, be persuaded as to the merits of the innovation, decide to adopt, implement the innovation, and confirm (reaffirm or reject) the decision to adopt the innovaàion. This theory has been so widely cited in the instructional technology literature that Sachs (1993) writes, somewhat derisively, "after looking at [the literature] in our field, one might get the impression that the only important thing we need to know about how to encourage the adoption of innovations or how to be better change agents is that there are five stages to the innovation adoption process (p. 1)". While Sachs correctly concludes that many other important theories of innovation diffusion areà overlooked, the Innovation Decision Process theory remains among the most useful and well known.
Individual Innovativeness
The Individual Innovativeness theory (Rogers, 1995) states individuals who are predisposed to being innovative will adopt an innovation earlier than those who are less predisposed. Figure 1 shows the bell shaped distribution of Individual Innovativeness and the percentage of potential adapters theorized to fall into each category. On one extreme of the distribution are the Innovators. Innovators are the risk takers and pioneers who adopt an innovation very early in the diffusion process. On the other eàxtreme are the Laggards who resist adopting an innovation until rather late in the diffusion process, if ever.
Rate of Adoption
The third widely-used diffusion theory discussed by Rogers (1995) is the theory of Rate of Adoption. Rate of Adoption theory states that innovations are diffused over time in a pattern that resembles an s-shaped curve. Rate of Adoption theorizes that an innovation goes through a period of slow, gradual growth before experiencing a period of relatively dramatic and rapid growth. An example of how rate of adoption might typically be represented by an s-curve is shown in Figure 2. The theory also states tàhat following the period of rapid growth, the innovation's rate of adoption will gradually stabilize and eventually decline.
Perceived Attributes
The Theory of Perceived Attributes (Rogers, 1995) states that potential adopters judge an innovation based on their perceptions in regard to five attributes of the innovation. These attributes are:Trialability; Observability; Relative Advantage; Complexity; and Compatibility. The theory holds that an innovation will experience an increased rate of diffusion if potential adopters perceive that the innovation: 1) Can be tried on a limited basis before adoption; 2) Offers observable results; 3) Has an adàvantage relative to other innovations (or the status quo); 4) is not overly complex; and 5) Is compatible with existing practices and values. The Theory of Perceived Attributes has been used as the theoretical basis for several studies relevant to the field of instructional technology. Perceptions of compatibility, complexity, and relative advantage have been found to play a significant role in several IT-related adoption studies. Wyner (1974) and Holloway (1977) each found relative advantage and compatibility to be significant perceptions among potential adopters of instructional technology in high schools. Eads (1984) found compatibility àwas the most important attribute among students and school administrators. Surry (1993) studied the perceptions of weather forecasters in regard to innovative computer based training and found relative advantage, complexity and compatibility were important adoption considerations.
Instructional Technology Diffusion Theory
A number of researchers have attempted to use the general theories of innovation diffusion to develop diffusion theories specific to the field of instructional technology. It would be impossible for one paper to adequately discuss in detail the techniques and purposes of all of these attempts at theory building. Even providing a brief synopsis of each major application of diffusion theory to IT would result in a lengthy discussion far beyond the scope of any one paper. I will limit the present paper to àa discussion of the broad goals and major philosophical premises of instructional technology diffusion theory.
Macro and Micro Theories
Applications of diffusion theory to instructional technology can be grouped into two major, categories with distinctly separate goals. The first major category focuses on the reform and restructuring of educational institutions. The goal of this category of IT diffusion research is to develop theories of organizational change, most commonly school change, in which technology plays a major role. Examples of this category include Reigeluth's (1987) Third Wave Educational System, The Schoolyear 2000 modàel (Center for Educational Technology, 1989), and the New American Schools Development Corporation (NASDC) (Mehlinger, 1995). These theories, often referred to as systemic change theories, typically involve the adoption a wide range of innovative technologies and and practices. Because of their broad scope, systemic change theories can be thought of as macro-level IT diffusion theories. The second major category of IT diffusion research focuses on increasing the adoption and utilization of specific instructional products. The goal of this category of research is to develop theories of technology adoption that will lead to a more widespread use of instructional innovations. Examples of product adoption and utilization theories include Burkman's (1987) User-Oriented Instructional Development process, Environmental Analysis (Tessmer, 1990), Adoption Analysis (Farquhar and Surry, 1994), àand the Technological Imperative Model (Schneberger and Jost, 1994). Theories in this category are not concerned with large scale, systemic change, but focus on the adoption of a specific innovation by a specific set of potential adopters. Because of their focus on specific innovations and specifics environments, these theories are, in effect, micro-level IT diffusion theories.
The two major categories of IT-related diffusion research, which I will call Macro, or Systemic Change Theories, and Micro, or Product Utilization Theories, can each be divided into two subcategories. These subcategories represent the two predominant philosophies of technology and technological change: Technological Determinism and Technological Instrumentalism. Before discussing the subcategories, which I will call "Developer (Determinist)" and "Adopter (Instrumentalist)", I will provide a brief overàview of the two predominant philosophies.

      Determinist versus Instrumentalist

From a theoretical standpoint, views of technology range on a continuum from technological determinism to technological instrumentalism. Autonomy and continuity are the key issues in the philosophical debate between determinists and instrumentalists. Technological determinists view technology as an autonomous force, beyond direct human control, and see technology as the prime cause of social change (Chandler, 1995). Determinists view the expansion of technology as discontinuous. They see technologicalà growth not as a gradual, evolutionary process, but as a series of revolutionary leaps forward (McCormack, 1994). Among the most widely-cited deterministic works is Toffler's (1971) book Future Shock. Toffler concisely outlines the determinist's philosophy when, after citing several examples of accelerated economic growth, he writes "behind such prodigious economic facts lies that great, growling engine of change - technology" (p. 25). While acknowledging that technology is not the only force in social change, Toffler adds, "technology is indisputably a major force behind this accelerative thrust" (p. 25) and "by noàw the accelerative thrust triggered by man has become the key to the entire evolutionary process of the planet" (p.485).
Technological determinists, united in their belief that technology is an autonomous and revolutionary force, often differ in their opinion of the morality of technology. Determinists commonly have either a radically utopian or radically dystopian opinion on technology (Kaplan, 1996). Figure 3 provides an outline of the respective positions. Utopian determinists believe that technology is a positive and uplifting force that will, over time, mitigate or eliminate most or all of the ills that afflict humaànity. They believe technology is leading society towards an ever more utopian existence. Karl Marx is the most often cited example of a utopian determinist philosopher, although the exact nature of his philosophy is a hotly debated question (Misa, 1994). Other well known utopian determinists include Marshall McLuhan and Alvin Toffler.
Dystopian determinists believe that technology is an inherently evil, or dehumanizing, force that will lead, inevitably, to the moral. intellectual, or physical destruction of humankind. Jacques Ellul's (1964) work The Technological Society is the seminal writing in technological determinism and provides a classic outline of the dystopian position. Another well-known dystopian determinist is George Orwell (1949) who provides a fictional account of the dehumanizing effects of technology in his càlassic novel 1984.
Opposed to the determinist philosophers are the instrumentalist philosophers. Human control over technology is the issue that most dramatically divides instrumental philosophers and determinist philosophers. Technological instrumentalists, as their name may imply, view technology as a tool. The instrumentalists often cite the knife as an example of their philosophy (Levinson, 1996). A knife is a tool and can be used for either good or evil, depending upon the intentions of the person employing the toolà Extrapolating from that simple example, instrumentalists believe that all technology is a tool, largely under human control, that can be used for either positive or negative purposes. While determinists see technology as the most powerful force for change, instrumentalists see social conditions and human aspiration as the primary causes of change. The other major difference between the two philosophies is that instrumentalists view the growth of technology as an evolutionary process, not as a series of àrevolutions or technological leaps (Levinson, 1996). They see technological growth as the ultimate culmination of a long history of slow, gradual expansion.
As mentioned above, the two major categories of IT-related diffusion research can be sub-divided into two subcategories. The result is a breakdown of IT-related diffusion theory into four areas. The areas are shown in Figure 4. I will now describe the two subcategories, Developer Based and Adopter Based, in more detail
Developer Based (Determinist) Theory
The goal of developer based theory is to increase diffusion by maximizing the efficiency, effectiveness and elegance of an innovation. The developer, or architect, of superior technology is seen as the primary force for change. The underlying assumption of developer based theories is deterministic in its belief that superior technological products and systems will, by virtue of their superiority alone, replace inferior products and systems. Developer based theories of diffusion see change as following dàirectly from a technological revolution. Developer based theories in instructional technology assume that the best way to bring about educational change is to create a system or product that is significantly superior to exiting products or systems. Potential adopters are viewed as being predisposed to adopt innovations that are quantifiably superior. Top down school reform efforts such as the Goals 2000 initiative (Mehlinger, 1995) are excellent examples of developer based diffusion theories. These top down reform efforts seek to diffuse eduàcational change by proposing educational systems that are superior to existing systems. By specifying goals, organizational structures, managerial philosophies, instructional products, and fiscal strategies that have been proven to be, or at are least theorized to be, superior to existing practice, top down school reformers are counting on technological superiority to bring about change.
Instructional development (ID) models are another example of developer based theories of diffusion. Diffusion is not an element overtly described in a typical ID model (Andrews and Goodson, 1991), but the adoption of an innovation does have an implied place in the ID process. Diffusion through technological superiority is the implicit goal of the process. Andrews and Goodson (1991) list four purposes of systematic instructional design: Improved learning; improved management (of the ID process), improveàd evaluation (of products); and theory building. Three of the four purposes center on the creation of technologically superior products. The instructional development process assumes that technological superiority is a sufficient condition that will lead directly to the adoption and diffusion of innovative products and practices.

      Limitations of Developer Based (Deterministic) Theories

Instructional development is a process based on the research, development, and diffusion (RDD) paradigm (Burkman, 1987). Saettler, in the first edition of is classic work A History of Instructional Technology (1968) provides an insight into the thinking of those who were early advocates of the RDD approach when he writes: "In the education sector, it is becoming increasingly apparent to scientifically oriented educators that education must discard the folklore approach to instruction and move forward to new frontiers, this includes the development of instructional systems based on behavioral science theory, research, and development." (p. 270).
As Saettler describes, one of the hallmarks of the RDD approach is to abandon "folklore" approaches to education and, in their place, to develop systematic, scientific alternatives. Saettler writes that the systems engineering approach has been the foundation of industrial engineering since the beginning of the industrial revolution and that "one of the most successful applications of the systems concept . . . was the development of the atomic bomb" (p. 269).
While there can be ethical debate as to whether the same process used to develop the atomic bomb should be used to develop human minds, there can be little argument that the continuing refinement and wider use of the RDD paradigm have resulted in the creation of instructional products that are pedagogically sound and technically advanced. Instructional technologies greatest challenge is not developing effective products, but developing effective products that people want to use. As Dalton (1989) writesà, "although w can fill instructional gaps with fervor, we never seem to examine our solutions in light of the wants of the implementors" (p. 22). Hall and Hord (1987) point to the failure of many large-scale curriculum reform projects in the 1960s as evidence that instructional technology has failed to meet the challenge of utilization.
The primary limitation of instructional development theory, and the RDD paradigm upon which it is based, is their inherent deterministic bias. There is a general consensus in the diffusion and adoption literature that technological superiority alone is not enough to guarantee the adoption of an innovation. In fact, some would argue whether technological superiority is even a necessary condition, at least at the beginning of the adoption process (MacKenzie, 1996). If technological superiority is not suffàicient to increase adoption, where does that leave us? Several instructional technologists suggest that the ultimate answer to this important question can be found in a more instrumentalist approach to diffusion.
Adopter Based (Instrumentalist) Theory
Adopter based theories focus on the human and interpersonal aspects of innovation diffusion. Adopter based theories are inherently instrumental in philosophy because they view the end user -- the individual who will ultimately implement the innovation in a practical setting, as the primary force for change. These theories reject the assumption that superior products and practices will automatically be attractive to potential adopters. Segal (1994) states the importance of adopter based theories when he writes "all structures and machines, primitive or sophisticated, exist in a social context and, unless designed for the sake of design itself, serve a social function" (p.2). Adopter based theories seek to understand the social context in which the innovation will be used. Tenner (1996) describes the concept of revenge effects which is central to many adopter based theories. Revenge effects occur when "new structures, devices, and orgaànisms react with real people in real situations in ways we could not foresee" (p.9). Predicting and account for probable revenge effects caused by an innovation is a defining component of many adopter based diffusion theories.
Adopter based theorists (e.g., Tessmer, 1990) argue that a variety of factors, most unrelated to technical superiority, influence the decision to adopt or reject an innovation. Adopter based theorists such as Burkman (1987) often site the QWERTY and Dvorak keyboard example. The Dvorak keyboard configuration is superior and allows for more efficient and faster typing. However, since most typists learned to type using the QWERTY configuration and are comfortable with that configuration, there is great ràeluctance to adopt the Dvorak configuration, despite its superiority. This is a classic example of how human, interpersonal, and social factors often play a more significant role in adoption than technological superiority.
Examples of adopter based theories can be found in both the Macro and Micro categories of IT diffusion research. Ernest Burkman (1987) was the first major author in the field to suggest a Micro (Product Utilization) theory based on an instrumentalist view of instructional technology. Burkman's theory of a user-oriented instructional development (UOID) rejects the idea that technological superiority is a sufficient condition for the adoption of an instructional product. In UOID, the opinions, needs, andà perceptions of the potential adopters are seen as the primary forces that influence adoption.

   1. Burkman's User Oriented Instructional Development process consists of 5 steps: Identify the potential adopter
   2. Measure relevant potential adopter perceptions
   3. Design and develop a user-friendly product
   4. Inform the potential adopter (of the product's user-friendliness)
   5. Provide Post Adoption Support

Burkman's UOID is representative of instrumentalist philosophy because UOID assumes the end user is the most important force in the adoption of a new product. Other adopter-based theories of product utilization include Stockdill and Morehouse's (1992) adoption checklist and Farquhar and Surry's (1994) Adoption Analysis. Hall and Hord's (1987) Concerns Based Adoption Model (CBAM) is a notable example of a Macro (Systemic Change) theory of diffusion that is instrumentalist, rather than determinist, in philosophy. Hall and Hord describe a process in which change facilitators understand change from the point of view of the people who will be affected by change. The idea of CBAM is to bring about systemic restructuring by understanding the social, political, and interpersonal aspects of the school. The Coalition of essentiaàl Schools, and many other Bottom Up reform strategies (Mehlinger, 1995), are other examples of adopter based, systemic change theories.
In this section, we have seen that diffusion theory has been incorporated in the field of instructional technology in a number of ways, both subtle and overt. We have seen that diffusion theories can have as their goal the total restructuring of an entire instructional system or the adoption of a specific instructional product. We have also seen that theories of adoption and diffusion can represent either a determinist or instrumental philosophy. Figure 5 shows examples of instructional technology diffusàion theories in each of the four resulting areas.
Conclusions
The field of instructional technology is a broad and diverse field. Instructional technologists routinely incorporate theories from communication, cognitive psychology, management, computer science, behavioral psychology and many other fields into the development of instructional products and systems. In this paper, I have discussed several important ways that instructional technologists have begun to incorporate the theories of innovation diffusion. The increased awareness of diffusion's importance anàd expanded use of diffusion theories are of potentially great benefit to instructional technology In order to maximize the potential benefit of diffusion theory, instructional technologists should adopt a more instrumentalist philosophy of technology. No reasonable diffusion theorist would suggest that technological superiority is the only necessary condition for diffusion. Instructional technologists have been seduced by the simplicity and basic logic of technological determinism. The decision to adopt an innovation, however, defies simple logic. The best products are not always the ones people wàant to use. As MacKenzie (1996) writes: "Technologies . . . may be best because they have triumphed, rather than triumphing because they are best" (p. 7).
Superior technology does not always steam roll inferior technology, as the determinists believe. Nor does a superior technology explode onto the scene in a glorious, perfect form -- it creeps along in fits and starts. Technology's advance may be inevitable, but it is gradual. Instructional technologists should, therefore, look to the potential adopters to show us ways to gradually introduce our innovations into their societies.
Of course, while a less determinist philosophy would be beneficial to instructional technology, a totally instrumentalist philosophy would be disastrous. Turning out technically inferior and pedagogically weak products that people want to use is not the answer. Every technologist is inherently a determinist. There is no danger in being driven to improve society by improving instructional technology. The danger is to ignore the society we are attempting to improve.
References
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Learning theories and their implications on educational technology - Presentation Transcript

 1. LEARNING THEORIES AND INTEGRATION MODELS
   2. Skinner’s Behaviorist Theories of Learning : Building on the S-R Connection
   3.
          * Internal processes involved in learning could not be seen directly.
          * Concentrated on cause and effect relationships that could be established by observation.
          * Human behavior could be shaped by “contingencies of reinforcement” or situations in which reinforcement for a learner is made contingent on a desired response.
      Basic Teachings
   4.
          * Positive Reinforcement
          * Negative Reinforcement
          * Punishment
      THREE kinds of situations that can shape behavior
   5.
          * Teaching is a process of arranging contingencies of reinforcement effectively to bring about learning
          * High level of capabilities as critical thinking and creativity could be taught by reinforcement
          * Learning is simply a matter of establishing chains of behavior through principles of reinforcement
          * Programmed instruction is the most efficient means available for learning skills
      Implications for Education
   6.
          * Modern instructional design models and methods have their roots in Gagne.
          * One component of a systematic instructional design process was the use of learning hierarchies to develop curriculum maps.
      Basic Teachings
   7.
          * Most drill and practice softwares were based on Skinner’s reinforcement principles.
          * Tutorial software usually is based on the idea of programmed instruction.
          * The idea behind drill software is to increase the frequency of correct answering in response to stimuli, these packages often are used to help students memorize important basic information, while tutorial software gives students an efficient path through concepts they want to learn.
      Implications for Technology Integration
   8. The Information-Processing Theorists: The Mind as Computer
   9.
          * The mind as computer
          * Based on a model of memory and storage
          * The brain contains certain structures that process information much like a computer
          * The human mind has three kinds of memories or “stores”
      Basic Teachings
  10. 
  11.
          * Sensory Register
          * Short-Term Memory (STM)
          * Long-Term Memory (LTM)
      THREE kinds of memories or “stores”
  12.
          * Become the basis for many common classroom practices. (for example, teachers ask interesting questions and display eye-catching materials to increase the likelihood that students will pay attention to the new topic)
          * While presenting information they give instruction that emphasizes important points and characteristics in the new material and suggests methods of encoding or remembering them by linking them to information students already know.
      Implications for Education
  13.
          * Teachers also give students practice exercise to help ensure the transfer of information from short-term memory to long-term memory.
          * The use of Gagne’s “Bottom-up approach” – students learn lower skills first.
          * Ausubel’s “Top-down” approach – teachers provide advance organizer or overviews of the way information will be presented to help students develop mental frameworks on which to “hang” new information.
      Implications for Education
  14.
          * Information Processing Theories have guided the development of Artificial Intelligence (AI) applications – an attempt to develop computer software that can stimulate the thinking and learning behaviors of humans.
          * Many of the drill and practice softwares available are designed to help students encode and store newly learned information into long-term memory.
      Implications for Technology Integration
  15. Gagne’s Principles: Providing Tools for the Teachers
  16.
          * Gagne built on the work of behavioral and information processing theories by translating principles from their learning theories into practical instructional strategies that teachers could employ with directed instruction.
          * Gagne is best known for his “events of instruction”, “Types of learning”, and “learning hierarchies”.
      Basic Teachings
  17.
          * 1. Gaining Attention
          * 2. Informing the learner of the objective
          * 3. Stimulating recall of pre-requisite knowledge
          * 4. Presenting new material
          * 5. Providing learning guidance
          * 6. Eliciting performance
          * 7. Providing feedback about correctness
          * 8. Assessing performance
          * 9. Enhancing retention and recall
      9 Events of Instruction
  18.
          * 1. Intellectual skills
          * Problem solving
          * Higher order rules
          * Defined concepts
          * Concrete concepts
          * Discriminations
          * 2. Cognitive Strategies
          * 3. Verbal information
          * 4. Motor skills
          * 5. Attitudes
      Types of Learning
  19.
          * The development of “intelelctual skills requires learning that amounts to a building process.
          * Lower level skills provide a necessary foundation for higher level ones.
          * To teach a skill, a teacher must first identify its prerequisite skills and make sure the students possess them.
          * The list of building block skills is called learning hierarchies.
      Learning Hierarchies
  20.
          * The events of instruction and learning hierarchies have been widely used to develop systematic instructional design principles.
          * Many school curriculum development projects still use a learning hierarchy approach to sequencing skills.
      Implications for Education
  21.
          * Gagne’s events of instruction could be used to plan lessons using each kind of instructional software (drill, tutorial, simulation)
          * Only tutorial could “stand by itself” and accomplish all the necessary events of instruction.
          * The other kinds of software require teacher-led activities to accomplish events before and after software use.
      Implications for Technology Integration
  22. Systems Approaches and the Design of Instruction: Managing the Complexity of Teaching
  23.
          * Modern instructional design models and methods have their roots in Gagne.
          * One component of a systematic instructional design process was the use of learning hierarchies to develop curriculum maps.
      Basic Teachings
  24. 
  25.
          * Systems approaches to designing instruction had great influence on training programs.
          * Performance objectives and sequences for instructional activities still are widely used.
      Implications for Education
  26.
          * Most directed models for using technology resources are based on systems approaches, that is, teachers set objectives for a lesson, then develop a sequence of activities.
          * A software package or an internet activity is selected to carry out part of the instructional sequence. (For example, the teacher may introduce a principle of genetics, then allow students to experiement with a simulation package to “breed” cats in order to see the principle in action.
      Implications for Technology Integration
  27. John Dewey: Educational Reform as Social Activism
  28.
          * Curriculum should arise from students’ interests.
          * Curriculum topics should be integrated, rather than isolated from each other.
          * Education is growth, rather than an end in itself.
          * Education occurs through its connection with life, rather than through participation in curriculum.
          * Learning should be hands-on and experience based, rather than abstract.
      Basic Teachings
  29.
          * Dewey’s philosophy directly caused some of the trends in current educational practice like interdisciplinary curriculum, hands-on, experience based curriculum.
      Implications for Education
  30.
          * Dewey would likely have approved of technologies like the internet being used to help students communicate with each other and learn about their society.
          * Dewey’s emphasis on the need for cooperative learning would mesh well with technologies used for developing group projects and presentations.
      Implications for Technology Integration
  31. The Contributions of Lev Vygotsky: Building a Scaffold to Learning
  32.
          * Cognitive development is directly related to and based on social development.
          * What children learn and how they think are derived directly from the culture around them.
          * The social world is the source of all concepts, ideas, facts, skills, and attitudes.
      Basic Teachings
  33.
          * ZPD refers to the difference between the levels of cognitive functioning of an adult –expert and child-novice.
          * Teachers could provide good instruction by finding out where each child was in his or her development and building on the child’s experiences.
          * This building process is called “ Scaffolding ”.
          * Teachers promote students’ cognitive development by presenting some classroom tasks that they can complete only with assistance, i.e. within each student’s ZPD.
      Zone of Proximal Development
  34.
          * Education is intended to develop children’s personalities.
          * Human personality is linked to its creative potential.
          * Teaching and learning assume that students master their inner values through some personal activity.
          * The most valuable methods for student learning are those that correspond to their individual developmental stages and needs, and therefore, can not be uniform across students.
      Implications for Education
  35.
          * Many constructivists models of technology use the concepts of scaffolding and developing each individual’s potential.
          * Many of the visual tools are used under the assumption that they can help bring the student up from their level of understanding to a higher level by showing graphic examples and by giving them real-life experiences relevant to their individual neds.
      Implications for Technology Integration
  36. Jean Piaget’s Theories: Cognitive Development in Children
  37.
          * Sensorimotor stage (birth to 2)
          * Pre-Operational Stage ( 2 to 7)
          * Concrete Operational Stage (7 to 11)
          * Formal Operational Stage (12 to 15)
      Basic Teachings
  38.
          * Children explore the world around them through their senses and motor activities
          * Children can not differentiate between themselves and their environment
          * Children begin to have some perceptions of cause and effects.
          * Children develop the ability to follow something with their eyes.
      Sensorimotor Stage (birth to 2)
  39.
          * They develop greater abilities to communicate through speech and engage in symbolic activities such as drawing objects and playing by pretending and imagining.
          * Develop numerical abilities such as the skill of assigning a number to each object in a group as it is counted.
          * Unable to do “conservation task” (task that call for recognizing that a substance remains the same even though its appearance changes)
      Pre-operational Stage (2 to 7)
  40.
          * Children increase in abstract reasoning ability.
          * Develop ability to generalize from concrete experiences.
          * Can perform conservation task.
      Concrete Operational Stage (7 to 11)
  41.
          * They can form and test hypotheses
          * They can organize information
          * They can reason scientifically
          * They can show results of abstract thinking in the form of symbolic materials
      Formal Operations Stage (12 to 15)
  42.
          * There is a need for concrete examples and experiences when teaching abstract concepts to young children who may not have reached a formal operations stage.
      Implications for Education
  43.
          * Many technology – using teachers feel that using visual resources such as simulations can help raise children’s developmental levels more quickly than they would have occured through maturation.
          * Other educators feel that young children should experience things in the “real world” before seeing them represented in the more abstract ways they are shown in software.(e.g. Computer simulations)
      Implications for Technology Integration
  44. The Contributions of Jerome Brunner: Learning as Discovery
  45.
          * Enactive Stage (birth to 3)
          * Iconic Stage ( 3 to 8)
          * Symbolic Stage (8 and above)
      Three Stages of Development
  46.
          * Children perceive the environment solely through actions they initiate.
          * They describe and explain objects solely in terms of what a child can do with them.
          * Showing and modeling have more learning value than telling for children at this stage.
      Enactive Stage (birth to 3)
  47.
          * Children can remember and use information through imagery (mental pictures or icons).
          * Visual memory increases and children can imagine or think about actions without actually experiencing them.
          * Decisions are made on the basis of perceptions, rather than language.
      Iconic Stage (3 to 8)
  48.
          * Children begin to use symbols (words or drawn pictures) to represent people, activities, and things.
          * They have the ability to think and talk about things in abstract terms.
          * They can better understand mathematical principles and the use of symbolic idioms.
      Symbolic Stage (8 and above)
  49.
          * Discovery learning is an approach to instruction through which students interact with their environment by exploring and manipulating objects, wrestling with questions and controversies or performing experiments.
          * Students were more likely to understand and remember concepts they had discovered in the course of their own exploration.
          * Teachers have found that discovery learning is most successful when students have pre-requisite knowledge and undergo some structured experiences.
      Implications for Education
  50.
          * Radical reconstructivist uses of technology employ a discovery learning approach.
          * Use of technology as guided discovery learning approach.
      Implications for Technology Integration
  51. Seymour Papert
  52.
          * One of the first to raise national consciousness about the potential role of technology in creating alternatives to what he percieved as inadequate and harmful educational methods.
          * He popularized the use of LOGO (a high level programming language originally designed as an AI language but later popularized by Papert as an environment to allow children to learn problem solving behaviors and skills.
      Basic Teachings
  53.
          * Children should be allowed to “teach themselves” with LOGO.
          * In a LOGO environment, new ideas are often acquired as a means of satisfying a personal need to do something one could not do before.
          * Papert feel that children need great flexibility to develop their own powerful ideas or insights about new concepts.
      Implications for Education
  54.
          * Papert perceived Logo as a resource with ideal properties for encouraging learning.
          * LOGO is graphics oriented, it allows children to see cause and effect relationships between the logic of programming commands and the pictures that result.
          * This logical, cause and effect quality of logo activities makes possible “microworlds,” or self-contained environments where all actions are orderly and rule governed.
      Implications for Technology Integration
  55.
          * He called these microworlds, “incubators for knowledge” where children could pose and test out hypotheses.
          * After LOGO, technology resources began to be evalauted according to how they could be used as “microworlds” and “incubators for knowledge” in which learners could generate their own knowledge.
      Implications for Technology Integration
  56. The Cognition and Technology Group at Vanderbilt (CTGV): Tying Technology to Constructivism
  57.
          * Preventing Inert knowledge
          * The nature of situated cognition and the need for anchored instruction
          * Building knowledge through generative activities
      Basic Teachings
  58.
          * The CTGV proposed that the best way of providing instruction that would meet all the required criteria was to present it as videodisc based scenarios posing interesting but difficult problems for students to solve.
      Implications for Education & Technology Integration
  59. Gardner’s Theory of Multiple Intelligences
  60.
          * Gardner is the only one to define the role of intelligence in learning
          * Gardner’s theory is that at least 8 different and relatively independent types of intelligence exist.
          * Linguistic
          * Musical
          * Logico-Mathematical
          * Spatial
          * Bodily-kinesthetic
          * Intrapersonal
          * Interpersonal
          * Naturalist
      Basic Teachings
  61.
          * If Gardner’s theory is correct, then IQ tests (which tend to stress linguistic and logical – mathematical abilities) may not be the best way to judge a given student’s ability to learn, and traditional academic tasks may not be the best reflection of ability.
          * Teachers should try to determine which type or types of intelligence each student has and direct the student to learning activities that capitalize on these innate abilities.
          * Distributed intelligence may be considered where each student makes a different, but valued contribution to creating a product.
      Implications for Education
  62.
          * Gardner’s theory meshes well with the trend toward using technology to support group work.
          * When educators assign students to groups to develop a multimedia product, they can assign students roles based on their type of intelligence.
      Implications for Technology Integration