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In:Technology and Instructed Second Language Acquisition: Connecting research and pedagogy
Edited by Shawn Loewen, Frederick J. Poole, Hyun-Bin Hwang and Matthew D. Coss
[Language Learning & Language Teaching 63] 2025
► pp. 68–91

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Chapter 3
Instructed SLA and instructional design principles

Making the best use of authoring tools in curriculum development

 | Michigan State University
 | University of Minnesota
Published online: 27 October 2025
DOI logo with link
https://doi.org/10.1075/lllt.63.03qui
Abstract
Authoring tools (software or applications that allow teachers to create their own materials using existing templates and formats) have been growing in popularity in recent years and give teachers the opportunity to create their own course materials, which has many benefits. The field of instructional design (ID) has a set of established principles that, in tandem with ISLA research findings, can benefit teacher-authors as they embark on the process of curriculum development. This chapter outlines several of these ID principles, including the Multimedia Principle, the Signaling Principle, the Feedback Principle, the Segmenting Principle, the Self-Pacing Principle, and the Coherence Principle. We put these principles in dialogue with ISLA research to give teachers ways to maximize the effectiveness of their materials.
Article outline
  • Introduction
  • The multimedia principle
    • People learn better from both words and pictures than from words alone
  • The segmenting principle
    • People learn better when complex learning materials are broken into coherent segments
  • The self-pacing principle
    • People learn better when they have control over the pace of their learning
  • The coherence principle
    • People learn better when “seductive details” are excluded
  • The signaling principle
    • People learn better when learning materials include cues to guide their attention to the most relevant parts
  • The feedback principle
    • People learn better with explanatory feedback than with corrective feedback alone
  • Other considerations
  • Recommendations
  • Extension resources
    • Reflection and discussion questions
  • Generative AI use acknowledgement
  • Acknowledgements
  • References
References (73)
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Cited by (1)

Cited by one other publication

Montero-Pérez, Maribel
2025. The impact of multimodal input tools in instructed second language acquisition (and beyond). In Technology and Instructed Second Language Acquisition [Language Learning & Language Teaching, 63], ► pp. 139 ff. DOI logo

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