Education research. Instructional complexity and the science to constrain it.

<p>Science and technology have had enormous impact on many areas of human endeavor but surprisingly little effect on education. Many large-scale field trials of science-based innovations in education have yielded scant evidence of improvement in student learning (<a href="http://www.sciencemag.org/content/342/6161/935.long#ref-1"><em>1</em></a>, <a href="http://www.sciencemag.org/content/342/6161/935.long#ref-2"><em>2</em></a>), although a few have reliable positive outcomes (<a href="http://www.sciencemag.org/content/342/6161/935.long#ref-3"><em>3</em></a>, <a href="http://www.sciencemag.org/content/342/6161/935.long#ref-4"><em>4</em></a>). Education involves many important issues, such as cultural questions of values, but we focus on instructional decision-making in the context of determined instructional goals and suggests ways to manage instructional complexity.</p>