Our Mission

WIDS strives to enhance the quality of learning through the development, implementation, support, and continuous improvement of the WIDS Curriculum Management Solution, a comprehensive design approach and methodology, supported by application and professional development tools, for designing and planning performance-based learning and teaching.



 

WIDS supports teachers and learners who believe:

• Learning is the central focus of education; instruction supports learning.

• Learners are the primary customers of education; they are also its primary products.

• Learning is a life-long process.

• Education must be relevant to the real demands of an individual's work and other life roles.

• Learning should emphasize application of knowledge and skills (doing something, not just knowing about something).

• Performance expectations and standards should be spelled out and communicated to learners in advance.

• Learning should be integrated so that learners enhance core abilities such as critical thinking, life-long learning, and communication at the same time they are developing concrete technical or content skills.

• Learner performance is measured according to established performance standards, not in comparison to the performance of other learners.

• Learning is a process in which learners take an active role and for which learners assume primary responsibility.

• Because learners have varied learning styles and processing preferences, educators enhance learner success when they employ a variety of teaching methods and media and when they encourage learners to use a variety of learning strategies.

• Teachers are integral to the learning process.

• Learning is enhanced when teachers are supported with excellent professional development opportunities and provided with quality systems and tools.

WIDS is unique in that we are a division of the WTCS Foundation, Inc., a not-for-profit organization dedicated to the advancement of education. In 1993, Wisconsin’s 16 technical colleges partnered with the Foundation to create a performance-based instructional design system effective for both education and industry. A statewide advisory team collaborated to build best practices and learning theories into WIDS curriculum-design software. The WIDS Advisory Team has evolved into the WIDS International Users Group representing a strong network of WIDS leaders who provide the input that fuels the continuous improvement of the software, model, methodology, and training/consulting services. WIDS collaborates with and serves clients in over 100 organizations worldwide.