Donald Stepich, Ph.D. Department Chair Associate Professor Department of Instructional & Performance Technology College of Engineering, ET323 Boise State University 1910 University Dr. Boise, ID 83725-2070 Office: (208) 426-2339 Fax: (208) 426-1970 Email: dstepich@boisestate.edu

Educational/Professional Background:

Dr. Don Stepich has a bachelor's degree from Purdue University, with a major in psychology, a master's degree in social work from Indiana University, and a Ph.D. in education from Purdue University.  Dr. Stepich worked in the mental health field for 12 years prior to completing his doctoral degree.  He was a social worker in a mental health center, did individual and group counseling in a private counseling practice, and worked at a crisis center. Before he joined the IPT department at BSU, he was on the faculty in the Human Resource Development Program at Northeastern Illinois University in Chicago, where he taught courses in instructional design, needs assessment, and other topics related to the design and implementation of effective training programs. His current academic interests include how people become experts at something and how instruction can be used to facilitate the development of expertise, the use of analogies and metaphors as learning and teaching tools, and the development of learning communities.

As an instructional designer, Dr. Stepich's expertise is in using training as a strategy for improving the performance of individuals and organizations.  This involves identifying the needs of the learners and the organization, specifying learning objectives directly linked to those needs, and devising training strategies that will achieve those objectives.

Dr. Stepich has used this expertise to design training materials to meet a wide variety of needs, including:

• helping managers apply a broad concept of diversity to the solution of organizational problems
• helping personnel professionals comply with the laws and regulations governing government contracts
• helping technical employees represent the company at meetings of international standards committees
• helping manufacturing employees work as members of empowered work teams
• helping information systems employees shift to a service-oriented "partnership" relationship with other business units
• helping people improve their listening and communication skills

Teaching:

Dr. Stepich regularly teaches:

• IPT529 Needs Assessment
• IPT535 Learning Theory for Instructional Designers
• IPT537 Instructional Design

Advising:

Dr. Stepich's advisees (on-campus and online students) - Please review the advisement FAQs. For more information, contact him via email or phone, or in person.

Dr. Stepich's Vita

Education	Ph.D. in Education, Purdue University, 1989 Master of Social Work (MSW), Indiana University, 1975 B.S. in Psychology, Purdue University, 1969
Employment	August, 2003 to Present Associate Professor, Instructional & Performance Technology, College of Engineering, Boise State University, Boise, Idaho August, 2002 to August, 2003 Visiting Associate Professor, Instructional & Performance Technology, College of Engineering, Boise State University, Boise, Idaho Fall 1998 to fall 2002 Adjunct Instructor, College of Engineering, Department of Instructional and Performance Technology, Boise State University, Boise, Idaho August, 1990 to August, 2002 Associate Professor, Human Resource Development Program Northeastern Illinois University, Chicago, Illinois August, 1997 to May, 1998 Visiting Associate Professor, Educational Technology Program Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana September, 1989 to May, 1990 Director, Curriculum Development American Academy of Entrepreneurs, Cassopolis, Michigan September, 1983 to September, 1988 Clinical Social Worker, Alternatives Counseling, Inc., West Lafayette, IN December, 1984 to July, 1987 Clinical Consultant, Crisis Center, Lafayette, IN July, 1975 to September, 1983 Clinical Social Worker, Wabash Valley Hospital, West Lafayette, IN
Books	Newby, T.J., Stepich, D. A., Lehman, J.D., & Russell, J.D. (1996). Instructional technology for teaching and learning: Designing instruction, integrating computers, and using media.  Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.
Articles	Chyung, S. Y., & Stepich, D. A. (2003). Applying the “congruence” principle of Bloom’s taxonomy to designing online instruction. Quarterly Review of Distance Education, 4(3), 317-330. Stepich, D. A., & Ertmer, P. A. (2003). Building community as a critical element of online course design. Educational Technology, 43(5), 33-43. Hendel-Giller, R., & Stepich, D. A. (2003). Diane King. In Ertmer, P. A. & Quinn, J. (eds.). The ID CaseBook: Case studies in instructional design (second edition). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice-Hall. Elsbernd, G., & Stepich, D. A. (2003). Davey Jones. In Ertmer, P. A. & Quinn, J. (eds.). The ID CaseBook: Case studies in instructional design (second edition). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice-Hall. Ertmer, P. A., & Stepich, D. A. (2002). Initiating and maintaining meaningful case discussions: Maximizing the potential of case-based instruction. Journal on Excellence in College Teaching. 13(2-3), 5-18. Stepich, D. A., Ertmer, P. A., & Lane, M. M. (2001). Problem-solving in a case-based course: strategies for facilitating coached expertise. Educational Technology Research & Development, 49(3), 53-69. Newby, T. J., Stepich, D. A., Lehman, J. D., & Russell, J. D. (2000). Instructional technology for teaching and learning Designing instruction, integrating computers, and using media (second edition). Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall. Newby, T.J., Ertmer, P.A., & Stepich, D.A. (1995). Instructional analogies and the learning of concepts. Educational Technology Research & Development, 43(1), 5-18. Medsker, K., Hunter, P., Stepich, D., Rowland, G., & Basnet, K. (1995). HPT in academic curricula: Survey results. Performance Improvement Quarterly, 8(4), 6-21. Stepich, D.A. (1992). The simplicity of baseball and the complexity of training. Performance & Instruction, 31(6), 32-33. Stepich, D.A. (1991). From novice to expert: Implications for instructional design. Performance & Instruction, 30(6), 13-17. Stepich, D.A., & Newby, T. J. (1989/1990). Designing instruction: Practical strategies. Performance and Instruction, 28(7)-29(4). Stepich, D.A., & Newby, T.J. (1988). Analogizing as an instructional strategy. Performance & Instruction, 27(9), 21-23. Stepich, D.A., & Newby, T.J. (1988). Analogical instruction within the information processing paradigm: Effective means to facilitate learning. Instructional Science, 17(2), 129-144. Newby, T.J., & Stepich, D.A. (1987). Learning abstract concepts: The use of analogies as a mediational strategy. Journal of Instructional Development, 10(2), 20-26.
Presentations	Stepich, D. A. (2004). Evaluating online discussion threads. Presentation given as part of the Selland College of Technology Summer Institute, Boise State University, May 19, 2004. Stepich, D. A. (2004). Facilitating and evaluating online discussions. Presentation given as part of the Academic Technologies Summer Institute, Boise State University, June 14, 2004. Ertmer, P. A., & Stepich, D. A. (2003). Preparing ID students for professional practice: Increasing impact through distance learning technologies. Presentation given at the international conference of the Association for Educational Communication and Technology (AECT). Anaheim, CA, October 23, 2003. Stepich, D. A. (2003). Writing course objectives (2003). Presentation given to College of Engineering faculty, Boise State University, August 21, 2003. Stepich, D. A. (2003). Analogies as a learning tool. Presentation given at the monthly meeting of the Treasure Valley Chapter of the American Society for Training and Development, (ASTD-TV), April 10, 2003. Stepich, D. A., & Chyung, S. Y. (2003). Creating and using interactive learning strategies in an online course. Presentation given as part of a seminar series sponsored by the Teaching and Learning with Technology Roundtable and the CoreOnline Project, Boise State University, February 27, 2003. Ertmer, P. A., & Stepich, D. A. (2002). Facilitating apprenticeship experiences through distance education technologies. Presentation given as part of Conversations on Teaching series sponsored by the Teaching Academy, Purdue University, March 27, 2002. Ertmer, P. A., & Stepich, D. A. (2000). Case-based instruction in postsecondary education: Facilitating “coached” expertise. Presentation given at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association (AERA). Stepich, D. A., Ertmer, P. A., & Lane, M. M. (2000). Problem-solving in a case-based course: Strategies for facilitating coached expertise. Presentation given at the international conference of the Association for Educational Communication and Technology (AECT). Ertmer, P. A., & Stepich, D. A. (1999). Case-based instruction in postsecondary education: Developing students’ problem-solving expertise. Presentation given at the annual conference of the Midwestern Educational Research Association (MWERA). Newby, T. J., Ertmer, P. A., Lai, F., Stepich, D., & Kearney, L. (1998). Impact of visual and textual analogies on learning science concepts. Presentation given at the annual meeting of the Association for Educational Communication and Technology (AECT). Larsen, D., Newby, T. J., & Stepich, D. A. (1997). A clearing in the MSDS fog: Using analogies as a training tool. Presentation given at the annual conference of the National Safety Council. Kearny, L., Stepich, D.A., & Newby, T.J. Building bridges: Creating graphic analogies. Presentation given more than a dozen times at various local, regional, and national conferences, including: National Society for Performance and Instruction (NSPI)/International Society for Performance Improvement (ISPI): 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, and 1995. The presentation was an 'encore' session in 1994, 1995, and 1996. Chicago Chapter of NSPI: 1991, 1992, and 1993. Bellcore Technical Education Center: 1992. Productivity Point International: 1993. Association for Educational Communication and Technology (AECT): 1994. American Society for Training and Development (ASTD): 1995 Stepich, D.A., & Newby, T.J. (1995). Instructional templates: Frameworks for the efficient design of instruction. Presentation given at the Annual Conference of the National Society for Performance and Instruction (NSPI) and at the November meeting of the Michigan chapter of the NSPI. Newby, T.J., Ertmer, P.A., & Stepich, D.A. (1994). Instructional analogies and the learning of concepts. Presentation given at the annual meeting of the America Educational Research Association (AERA). Medsker, K., Stepich, D., & Rowland, G. (1993). Survey results: Is PT transforming graduate programs. Presentation given at the 1993 Annual Conference of the National Society for Performance and Instruction (NSPI), Chicago, IL, April, 1993. Lockwood, J., McCampbell, J., Ehrlich, D., & Stepich, D. (1993). Improving training system quality. Presentation given at the 1993 Annual Conference of the NSPI, Chicago, IL, April, 1993 and the 1993 Fall Workshop of the Chicago Chapter of the National Society for Performance and Instruction (CNSPI), Chicago, IL, October, 1992. Lockwood, J., McCampbell, J., Ehrlich, D., & Stepich, D. (1992). Signposts on the road to improving quality. Presentation given at the fall workshop of the Chicago Chapter of the National Society for Performance and Instruction (CNSPI). Lockwood, J., McCampbell, J., Ehrlich, D., & Stepich, D. (1992). Academic programs: It's your choice. Presentation given at the 1992 Fall Workshop of the CNSPI, Chicago, IL, October, 1992. Stepich, D. A. (1992). Games as instructional activity. Presentation given at the 1992 Co-Lead Summer Institute, Chicago, IL, August, 1992. Stepich, D.A. (1991). From novice to expert: Implications for instructional design. Presentation given at the 1991 Annual Conference of the NSPI, Los Angeles, CA, April, 1991 and at the November meeting of the CNSPI, Chicago, IL, October, 1991.
Projects	Information Systems Institute, Motorola, Inc. Schaumburg, IL, 1992 Empowered Work Teams, Motorola, Inc., Schaumburg, IL, 1992 Federal Government Contract Compliance for Personnel, Motorola, Inc., Schaumburg, IL, 1992 Technical Standards, Motorola, Inc., Schaumburg, IL, 1993 Instructional Analogies, Urals State Pedagogical University/Northeastern Illinois University, Ekaterinburg, Russia, 1993 Demonstration as an Instructional Method, Urals State Pedagogical University/Northeastern Illinois University, Ekaterinburg, Russia, 1995 Internal Train the Trainer, North Suburban Library System, Wheeling, IL, 1995 Redefining Diversity, American Institute for Diversity Management, Atlanta, GA, 1997
Professional Memberships	International Society for Performance Improvement (ISPI) American Society for Training and Development (ASTD) American Society for Training and Development – Treasure Valley Chapter (ASTD-TV) Association for Educational Communication and Technology (AECT)

Copyright © 2000-2007 Department of Instructional & Performance Technology
ET-327, College of Engineering, Boise State University, 1910 University Dr., Boise, ID 83725-2070
Voice: 208.426.1312; Fax: 208.426.1970; Email: lburnett@boisestate.edu 
Last updated on June 27, 2008