I Wonder: What the Heck is an Operational Principle?

An abstract idea called operational principle is described by Polanyi (Personal Knowledge, The Tacit Dimension) as the principles by which something functions. An operational principle describes the transfer of energy and information that allows the something to function. Jane Darke (British architect, in Design Studies) described these abstractions from a designer's viewpoint as primary generators. Whatever you call them, these abstractions form the effective core of a design, and designers can use the concept of "operational principle" to better comprehend what they are really designing and how to design.

I gave a talk on the operational principle at the Annual Technology in Teaching Idea Exchange (TTIX) Conference that is held each year at Utah Valley University in Provo, Utah (good conference, free). I tried to make the concept of an operational principle clear, concrete, and relevant. I divided the video of the talk into short podcasts and put them on YouTube:

Part 1 – Operational principle defined (3:36)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nL9ambSGr4s

Part 2 – Operational principle across fields (3:36)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iKi_puMPbL0

Part 3 – Operational principle of a yo-yo (3:42)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d4ejZtRuNrg

Part 4 – Yo-yo operational principle in more detail (6:01)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=29hTv0SRqYM

Part 5 – Operational principle and instructional designs (8:20)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WiKPAZe5lSg

Part 6 – The operational principle of model-centered instruction (4:08)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F1xJ-aSTWGI