Course Design and Development—Instructional Systems Development

Functional-Context Learning

The term functional-context often crops up in discussions of the competency-based approach. It too describes training that relates to actual job circumstances, because training is successful only when learners can carry out learned tasks at their actual work stations. For example, a learner may be able to diagnose a mechanical problem and perform a series of repair steps in a logical, timely way during the training course. But if actual work conditions are noisy and chaotic, those conditions may need to be simulated during training.

Similarly, the materials, tools, and aids that learners use in training must match those available on the job. Conditions during training should increasingly approximate conditions on ...