Definition
In instructional design, sites are one of the four components of a learning objective in the SDDS model (Skill, Desired outcome, Difficulty, Sites). Sites refer to the locations, settings, or environments in which the skill must be performed in order for the objective to be considered met.
Plain English
The places where the student has to be able to do the task. Not just whether they can do it, but where they can do it — in the classroom, in the airplane, on the ramp, at night, in busy airspace, and so on.
Context Anchor
Seen in aviation instruction discussions about using online resources, training materials, and computer-based learning.
Derivation
From Latin situs, meaning 'position' or 'place where something is located.' In instructional design, it keeps the focus on the physical or operational setting where performance must occur, not just the skill itself.
Why Pilots Care
A skill demonstrated only in a quiet classroom is not the same as a skill demonstrated in a busy cockpit. Specifying sites forces the instructor (and the student) to confirm the skill works in the real environments where it will be needed.
Intuition Check
Do not assume “sites” means only physical places like airports or training areas. In this glossary context, it usually means online places where information is found.
Example Sentence 1
When writing the lesson objective, the instructor listed the sites as 'in the traffic pattern at a non-towered airport, in day VFR conditions.'
Example Sentence 2
Before the cross-country, the student identified alternate sites along the route in case of an emergency.