- The main principle is that students have to be challenged. Learning should not be too easy or not too difficult. The difficulty is mainly determined by the students’ necessary degree of independence and the assignment’s complexity.
- The degree of independence of the students varies from (1) teacher-centred, (2) teacher and students decide on the learning activities, to (3) student-centred. The independence of the students should increase during the program. The amount of independence is reflected in the learning objectives, the cases or problems, the degree of self-study and the sources of information.
- The complexity of learning tasks ranges from simple to complex. It is reflected in the following aspects:
a.the clearness and the amount of relevant information in the case or problem,
b.the time available or necessary to finish the assignment.
c.the level of the entry knowledge and skills.
d. the number of disciplines involved in finding the right solution
(from an informal document by S. Vink and J. Vermunt, ICLON and LUMC, Leiden University).
