Designing the instructional interface

Designing the instructional interface is a challenging endeavor requiring k nowledge and skills in instructional and visual design, psychology, human-f actors, ergonomic research, computer science and editorial design. While nu merous design guidelines are available to assist the designer, many do not fit the specific needs of an instructional environment. The designer is als o faced with a challenging design environment. Rapid application developmen t (RAD) settings in which instructional interfaces are developed are charac terized by intense production schedules and limited resources. In these env ironments learning goals may often be bypassed in favor of aesthetics or te chnical needs. This paper describes the instructional interface, the challe nges of its development, and an instructional systems approach to its desig n that integrates principles of message design, information design, and sys tems design. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.