editorial6-2


Australian Journal of 
Educational Technology 
 
Volume 6, Number 2, Summer 1990. ISSN 0814-673X 

 

 
Contents 
 
Editorial ................................................................................................................ ii 
 
Using standards to improve performance ................................................ 75-91 
 Peter J. Dean 
 
Validation: Cost effective external evaluation ......................................... 92-98 
 Peter Brown and Michael Hickey 
 
Measuring participant performance: An alternative ............................ 99-107 
 Susan Bumpass and David Wade 
 
Cognitive load theory as an aid for instructional design ................... 108-113 
 Graham Cooper 
 
Mapping attitudes by performances: A case study of  
practical research techniques for employee selection ......................... 114-135  
 Alec Jones 
 
Training needs assessment (and application) in an  
accounting firm ......................................................................................... 136-152 
 Fiona Pirera and Daljit Singh 
 
Expert assistants: Productivity to the power of ...! .............................. 153-170 
 Sylvia Willie 
 
The Australian Journal of Educational Technology is published twice a year by AJET 
Publications. Manuscripts for publication should be sent to Associate Professor 
John Hedberg, Faculty of Education, University of Wollongong, P.O. Box 1144 
(Northfields Avenue), Wollongong, NSW, Australia, 2500. Enquiries about 
subscriptions should be sent to the Business Manager, Mr James Steele, AJET 
Publications, PO Box 772 Belconnen, ACT, Australia, 2616. Subscription rate is $30 
per volume ($45 foreign). Members of the Australian Society for Educational 
Technology and the National Society for Performance and Instruction receive an 
AJET subscription as a part of their membership fees. 
 



Editorial 
 
This issue marks an important milestone in the growth of instructional 
and educational technology in Australia. We have now a vehicle 
through which we can disseminate information to both the educational 
and training communities. The exciting work that is being undertaken 
in industry is showcased in this issue which includes some of the 
papers presented to the August 1990 Australasian conference of the 
National Society for Performance and Instruction. The Sydney Chapter 
became the first outside North America when it was chartered in April 
1990. 
 
NSPI is an international organisation which promotes systematic 
instructional design principles in training and development. I feel that 
the emphasis the Society places on analysing training and 
development tasks in terms of the performance required is an 
important aspect of the work of instructional designers working in the 
training. It is very easy to be blamed for failing to deliver expected 
organisational changes when the problem is not best solved by 
training. From my own work with BHP and NSW TAFE, I feel that we 
should always be aware of the importance of information and 
conducting an appropriate analysis which properly examines all the 
options. 
 
Unfortunately, due to the lack of space, we are holding over to the next 
issue one paper by Professor Wes Becker who talked about his work on 
direct instruction to the NSPI Conference. As always might I continue 
to encourage contributions from members of the Australian Society for 
Educational Technology and the National Society for Performance and 
Instruction, and others interested in furthering knowledge of 
educational technology and instructional design. 
 
John Hedberg 
EDITOR 
 
Editorial Advisory Panel 
 
Peter Bartos, Overseas Telecommunications Corporation 
Raden Dunbar, Charles Sturt University 
Andrew Grieg, University of Sydney 
Colin Latchem, Curtin University of Technology 
Sue McNamara, Monash University 
John Mitchell, Melbourne State College 
Marguerite Foxon, Coopers & Lybrand