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Content Organization – Linear Versus Concept DrivenContent organization refers to the layout of the topics in the course. From the beginning, it was acknowledged that some courses would be better presented in a linear manner--like a textbook--from concept 1 to concept 10, in that order. The science, math, and language courses are in subjects needing this approach. Certain topics and concepts need to be covered before other topics can be presented. It is difficult to teach genetics in a biology course, for example, if the student has not covered the structure of the cell. In contrast, many of the social science courses seemed to be more topic-driven. Groups or clusters of similar topics could be covered in one section before moving to another section, with the order of the sections to be chosen by the student. In other words, as long as all sections were covered, it didn’t matter in what order they were covered. Each course was studied carefully by the members of the content and design team to determine which approach would be most appropriate. Science, language, and some math courses were prepared in a linear manner since earlier material must be mastered before more complex concepts are introduced. It was difficult for some teachers/authors/content experts to look at their discipline in a concept-driven format. They were used to teaching from a linear textbook where the contents were presented in order. With much coaching, some authors got the idea, but it proved time consuming. It was obviously easier and faster to follow an outline from a textbook! 
A non-linear or concept-driven approach was used Psychology, Global Perspectives: Bosnia, Health 1, most English courses, and some math and other courses. In these courses, content was arranged in chunks of similar concepts, and the option of order was left up to the student. For example, units in the World Literature 1: In Search of Self, units are “Philosophy,” “Family,” and “Romance.” Students may explore these areas of literature in any order they wish. Within these units—let’s use the Philosophy unit as an example—literature samples about “Relating with Nature,” “Mortality,” and “Discovering Purpose” may also be visited in any order the student chooses. There were some students who found themselves uncomfortable with the concept-driven approach. They were afraid they might be skipping important material or that they weren’t sure where they should go next. Even the more adventuresome prefer more structure in a class that they are taking for credit. Some students, like some of the teachers and authors, had trouble understanding the idea that they could choose the order in which they studied the material. They also had been “trained” by the textbook approach! There were other students who appreciated the choices in paths. 
One way we tried to help students choose their paths and feel that they are in control of the material was the addition of the “Contents Viewer.” Using the Contents Viewer on the CLASS™ tool bar, students can see where they are in the course and see the units, lessons, and topics in order. The Contents Viewer shows the entire course structure and content and takes the student to any section of the course with just a click! With the variety of student personalities and learning styles, no
one course will be perfect for all students. More research might find
out details about what type of students prefer which type of content
organization. However, the more options a course contains, the better
its chances of success with the greatest majority of students. Copyright 2004 - University of Nebraska Board of Regents - All Rights Reserved |
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