Abstract

The combination of the demise of empiricism and the rise of interpretivism has resulted in considerable instability of conceptual knowledge and skills. Combined with a exponential increase in non-epistemic interpretive knowledge on the Internet, the field of instructional technology has been slow to adapt its methodologies to the new reality. This thesis seeks to understand why the field has been slow to evolve, despite efforts to improve its practices, including the introduction of frameworks such as constructivism. The investigation begins with the hypothesis that the problem might be located in the epistemic roots of logical empiricism, which sought to eliminate metaphysics and relativism. The demise of logical empiricism was achieved by the methods of post-analytical philosophers, are appropriated to critique the ontological, theoretical and hidden metaphysical assumptions of the field of instructional technology. Finally the method is used to critique the instructional system design model to conclude that the design component is too heavily constrained to be an effective heuristic for the rest of the process, and needs to be radicalized. This thesis demonstrates that the post-analytical method is not only an effective critical tool, but also offers constructive ideas for problem solving. It should be adopted not only to analyze and correct current standards and practices of the field but also to establish clearer boundaries and criteria for empirical research, as well as in the task and content analyses used by instructional designers.