Hansen (teaching and learning, Northeastern Illinois U.) offers college professors guidance in developing instruction that has a clear purpose, is well-situated in the curriculum, and improves student learning in measurable ways. He focuses on idea-based course design, showing how it is best for low-stress teaching and learning, and is guided by big conceptual ideas. He explains that idea-based learning is focused on key ideas and meaningful tasks, detailed performance criteria, practice opportunities, and identification of learning barriers. He outlines a backward course-design model that entails learning outcomes that are derived from big ideas and enduring understandings and are connected with essential questions and guiding concepts, and details how to remove barriers to critical thinking, articulate a clear rationale for choosing outcomes based on student needs and intellectual readiness, align outcomes with instructional requirements, and evaluate the quality of work through practical tasks and rubrics. Hansen also discusses assignment-centered instruction, the characteristics of an authentic performance task, the elements of course design documents, and implementing course design with online technology. Annotation ©2012 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)