4The Survey of Instructional Design Models, now in its 6th edition, is part literature review, part discussion. The literature review provides a broad foundation to understanding the diversity and use of instructional design models used in research and practice while reflecting on the many changes experienced in the field.

The updated taxonomy and assumptions provide guidance on how to consider instructional design models as conceptual and operational tools. From learning space to contextual factors and elements, the taxonomy benefits anyone of interest with practically any level of prior knowledge about the systematic design of instruction. However, the taxonomy is likely to be most useful to people at the ends of the instructional design knowledge continuum: novice instructional designers on one end and instructional design scholars on the other end.

The streamlined layout in the latest edition reviews 12 instructional design models currently encountered in a variety of contexts and should assist you in creating a personal mental model to aid in adopting or adapting existing models or when encountering a new model.