Development of Design Guiding Principles For Constructivist-Based Distance Learning Environments

K-12 teachers are struggling to design effective learning environments that meet the future needs of their students.A number of individuals have suggested that a relatively new theory of learning, constructivism, supports visions of the 21st century, technology-rich, classrooms. The role of technology in the learning process has steadily in-creased as access has opened classrooms to the world providing teachers and students with expanding learning opportunities. The advent of increased access to world-linking technology has increased the use of distance education to enrich and expand the learning landscape for students. To support and facilitate teachers responses to these changes in their classrooms, this project sought to identify a core of instructional design guiding principles for constructivist based distance learning environments. A panel of knowledgeable individuals in the areas of constructivism and technologically mediated education participated in an electronic study. The information produced by the study will be used to further identify designs, examples, and elements for teacher will be available for planning of in service experiences and mentoring processes in the future.