Core design principles
This toolbox is built on principles you will use throughout:
1. Start with real learner lives
Design around time, confidence, access, and competing responsibilities
2. Treat delivery format as a design decision
Online, in-person, and blended learning each create different opportunities and barriers
3. Reduce cognitive load — not expectations
Keep learning manageable while maintaining meaningful outcomes
4. Build confidence early and consistently
Early success and low-stakes tasks increase completion
5. Design support into the course
Onboarding, guidance, and communication are part of design — not extras
6. Use interaction intentionally
Only include peer/live elements when they genuinely support learning or belonging
7. Make value visible
Learners need to see how the course helps them — in work and life
8. Design with evidence — and improve with feedback
Be clear about what you know, what you assume, and what you learn
The learner evidence strongly aligned with:
Learner-Centred Design
An approach that places learners’ needs, experiences, goals and circumstances at the centre of decisions about how learning is designed and delivered.
Want to explore further?
Explore Learner-Centred Learning – Yale Poorvu Center
Research & further reading:
Student-Centred Course Design – Stanford Teaching Commons
Adult Learning Theory/ Andragogy
An approach to learning that recognises adults as experienced, self-directed learners who are motivated by relevant, practical learning that connects with their existing knowledge and goals.
Want to explore further?
Explore Adult Learning and Andragogy – RMIT University
Research & further reading:
The Adult Learner: A Neglected Species – Malcolm Knowles
Constructive Alignment
A course design approach that ensures learning outcomes, learning activities and assessment are deliberately aligned so that learners practice and demonstrate what they are expected to achieve.
Want to explore further?
Explore Constructive Alignment – Trinity College Dublin
Research & further reading:
Constructive alignment in university teaching– John Biggs
Experiential Learning
A theory of learning in which learners develop knowledge and skills through experience, reflection, conceptual understanding and applying what they have learned in new situations.
Want to explore further?
Explore Experiential Learning – Institute for Experiential Learning
Research & further reading:
The Experiential Learning Cycle – Simply Psychology
Social Constructivism
A theory that views learning as a social process in which learners build understanding through interaction, collaboration, dialogue and the sharing of different perspectives.
Want to explore further?
Explore Social Constructivism – University of California, Berkeley
Research & further reading:
Online Collaborative Learning – Teaching in a Digital Age, Tony Bates
Self-Efficacy Theory
A theory that highlights how learners’ belief in their ability to succeed can influence their motivation, persistence, engagement and performance.
Want to explore further?
Explore Self-Efficacy Theory – Kirsten Weir
Research & further reading:
Academic Self-Efficacy: From Educational Theory to Instructional Practice – Anthony R. Artino Jr.
Universal Design for Learning
A framework for designing inclusive and flexible learning by providing multiple ways for learners to engage with learning, access information and demonstrate what they know.
Want to explore further?
Explore the Universal Design for Learning Guidelines – CAST
Research & further reading:
Universal Design for Learning – Cornell University Center for Teaching Innovation
Cognitive Load Theory
A theory that recognises the limited capacity of working memory and encourages learning experiences that manage complexity and minimise unnecessary mental effort.
Want to explore further?
Explore Cognitive Load Theory – John Sweller
Research & further reading:
Cognitive Architecture and Instructional Design – Sweller et al.
Scaffolded Learning
An approach that provides learners with structured support as they develop new knowledge and skills, gradually reducing that support as their confidence, competence and independence increase.
Want to explore further?
Explore Scaffolding Learning – University College Cork
Research & further reading
A Meta-Analysis of Scaffolding Effects in Online Learning in Higher Education – Doo, Bonk & Heo
Multimedia Learning (Mayer)
A theory that explains how people learn from words and visuals and provides evidence-based principles for designing multimedia that supports meaningful processing without overloading working memory.
Want to explore further?
Explore Multimedia Learning Theory – University of Queensland
Research & further reading
The Past, Present, and Future of the Cognitive Theory of Multimedia Learning – Richard E. Mayer
Design-Based Research
A research-informed approach that develops and studies educational solutions through repeated cycles of analysis, design, implementation, evaluation and refinement in authentic learning contexts.
Want to explore further?
Explore 7 Things You Should Know About Educational Design Research – EDUCAUSE
Research & further reading:
Educational Design Research: Portraying, Conducting, and Enhancing Productive Scholarship – McKenney & Reeves
Evaluation for Continuous Improvement
An approach that uses learner feedback, learning evidence and implementation data to identify what is working, address emerging issues and inform ongoing improvements to the learning experience.
Want to explore further?
Explore Course Feedback – Carnegie Mellon University, Eberly Center
Research & further reading:
Identifying Support Structures Associated with Informal Formative Evaluation in Instructional Design – Smith & Luo
● = strong/direct alignment ○ = useful secondary alignment