Online learning systems are rapidly changing the nature of teaching and learning. Large amounts of resources are being put into their development, despite inconclusive evidence of their effectiveness and a lack of pragmatic, empirically supported guidelines to aid the design and development process. A profusion of learning theories has added little to the enterprise with a critical review showing that the dominant learning theory at any point over the past 30 years has mirrored the characteristics of the latest learning technology. In a complex research domain, this study proposes a research methodology which foregrounds teaching practitioners' experience and beliefs and seeks to investigate the differences in both teaching theory and practice between disciplines. Using a University-wide trial of online learning, the ongoing study will compare the learning theories and design decisions made by development teams across the University's discipline areas.
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