Michael Wilder's research focuses on identifying principles to guide the effective design of online learning curriculum. While technology provides opportunities for flexible learning, poorly designed online environments can create obstacles to learning. Research is needed to understand how technology impacts the teaching and learning process in order to minimize technical challenges and maximize effectiveness. Wilder's current research compares the effects of functional and modular curriculum organization on student performance, cognitive load, and time on task. Future research will focus on curriculum sequencing and ordering to make content flow more intuitive for learners and reduce cognitive load. Long-term, Wilder aims to apply cognitive load theory and usability testing to identify basic principles for online course design.

1. Research Statement – Michael Wilder
My research interests focus on identifying basic effects and underlying principles that can
guide the development of effective and efficient online learning course curriculum. While
technology-based education continues to provide a variety of opportunities that were previously
unavailable through traditional delivery methods, it is important that the pedagogical design of
such instruction does not create unintended obstacles to student learning. Conveniences
provided by technology such as as mobility, flexible scheduling, and improved multimedia may
be offset by frustration, confusion, and disorientation experienced by students in poorly
conceived learning environments. Contemporary learning management systems, for example,
provide a sophisticated array of affordances for both the learner and the educator such as virtual
grade books, self-grading assignments and quizzes, and online discussion forums to name a few.
At the same time, using and understanding these complex, Web-based tools may require the
expenditure of valuable cognitive resources that could otherwise be allocated toward
comprehending the actual learning material. In order to design curriculum that minimizes
technical challenges and maximizes pedagogical effectiveness, higher education faculty,
instructional designers, and subject matter experts need to be informed regarding the impact of
technology on the teaching and learning process. As a result, it is important that empirical
research guided by established and recognized learning theory (such as the cognitive load theory)
be conducted to identify basic principles that can guide the development of future online course
curriculum.
Current research
As a professional instructional designer in higher education, I witness the effects of online
curricular organization on a daily basis. As an academic, however, I have begun the process of
conducting formal research. My dissertation (in progress) entitled “Effects of curricular
organization on cognitive load and student performance in online learning environments,”
specifically focuses on comparing the impact of functional curricular organization (determined
by features and tools offered by a commercial learning management system) with modular
curricular organization (determined by the instructor based upon logical sequence by date or
theme) on student learning performance, self-perceived cognitive load, and time on task. The
question raised in this line of research is whether there are ways in which online course content
can be sequenced and ordered so that the logical flow (from the learners’ perspective) becomes
more intuitive and less confusing so that more cognitive resources can be directed toward
developing educational schemata rather than spent comprehending a confusing and awkward
interface. This study uses traditional experimental research methods to gather performance,
survey, and time data between two groups. Variances not related to curricular organization (such
as prior experience with online learning standards and prior content familiarity) is controlled
statistically and analyzed using standard Multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA)
strategies.

2. Future research
In the short-term, my research will focus on questions related to online course development
that can be immediately manipulated by the instructor or instructional designer rather than
features that need to be implemented by software designers. In particular, I plan to conduct
studies that indicate how curriculum can be ordered and sequenced so that learners are able to
navigate through learning materials with minimal cognitive effort. In the long-term, I intend to
apply research methods established by cognitive load theory, traditional human computer
interaction studies, and contemporary usability testing strategies to higher education online
curriculum. In combination with techniques to gather and analyze learning analytics, I seek to
identify basic learning principles that can be used to inform online course developers and serve
as a basis for future research.