William Winn

Compares undergraduate learning from an interactive 3‑D oceanography simulation with learning from a day on a research vessel conducting direct measurements. Field experiences contextualized learning for students with little prior ocean exposure, whereas simulations facilitated transfer and integration with classroom content. Authors conclude that simulation and fieldwork are complementary for different learners and objectives.

Responds to calls for evidence‑based practice by affirming the value of controlled experiments while arguing that nonexperimental approaches—such as design experiments and randomized field trials—are essential for studying learning in complex settings. Discusses validity concerns and proposes that studying the dynamics of learning can integrate fine‑grained experimental findings with insights from authentic contexts.

Reviews the evolution of educational technology research from content‑focused instructional design and message design to interaction/simulation and, currently, complex learning environments. Winn argues that such environments simulate real‑world experiences and enable new forms of social, symbolic, and distributed activity, requiring research methods beyond tightly controlled experiments. Implications for practice and an agenda for future research are outlined.

Two experiments asked participants to choose sentences that best expressed the meaning of simple diagrams depicting category membership, property possession, or causality. By varying the spatial placement of concepts and labeling them with nonsense words or English terms, the study showed systematic response biases: when semantics are absent, English syntactic conventions strongly influence interpretation; when semantics are present but diagram arrangements violate syntax, interpretations become less consistent. Design implications for diagram construction are offered.

Reviews theory and research on how learners understand maps and diagrams. Winn proposes a unified framework emphasizing how preattentive and top‑down processes support symbol discrimination, grouping, and configuration, arguing that much information is communicated through relative placement of components and their frames. Ten concluding points summarize evidence that discrimination and configuration are fundamental to learning from maps and diagrams.

Examines implications of developments in cognitive theory for instructional design. Argues that behaviorist prescriptions are inadequate for teaching for understanding. While designers have adopted elements of cognitive theory, Winn contends that indeterminism in human cognition necessitates deeper shifts: countering reductionism inherent in task analysis, integrating design with implementation, and grounding decisions in comprehensive theory rather than procedural checklists.

Argues that instruction involves guiding cognitive processes with carefully chosen strategies. Analyzes visual cognitive processes involved in perception, assimilation of new information, and analogical learning, identifying instructional strategies that can support each process. Concludes with implications linking visual learning and instructional design and directions for research and practice.