Robert Mills Gagné (August 21, 1916– April 28, 2002) was an American educational psychologist best known for his "Conditions of Learning". Gagné pioneered the science of instruction during WWII for the air force with pilot training. Later he went on to develop a series of studies and works that helped codify what is considered to be 'good instruction' today. He also was involved in applying concepts of instructional theory to the design of computer based training and multimedia based learning.
Gagne's book, The Conditions of Learning, first published in 1965, identified the mental conditions for learning. These were based on the information processing model of the mental events that occur when adults are presented with various stimuli.
Gagne's book, The Conditions of Learning, first published in 1965, identified the mental conditions for learning. These were based on the information processing model of the mental events that occur when adults are presented with various stimuli.
In this theory, five major types of learning levels are identified:
1.verbal information
2.intellectual skills
3.cognitive strategies
4.motor skills
5.attitudes
The importance behind the above system of classification is that each learning level requires different types of instruction. Kearsley provides the following example:
for cognitive strategies to be learned, there must be a chance to practice developing new solutions to problems; to learn attitudes, the learner must be exposed to a credible role model or persuasive arguments.
for cognitive strategies to be learned, there must be a chance to practice developing new solutions to problems; to learn attitudes, the learner must be exposed to a credible role model or persuasive arguments.
Gagne also contends that learning tasks for intellectual skills can be organized in a hierarchy according to complexity:
#stimulus recognition
#response generation
#procedure following
#use of terminology
#discriminations
#concept formation
#rule application
#problem solving
Gagne outlines the following Nine Instructional Events and corresponding cognitive processes:
1.gaining attention (reception)
2.informing learners of the objective (expectancy)
3.stimulating recall of prior learning (retrieval)
4.presenting the stimulus (selective perception)
5.providing learning guidance (semantic encoding)
6.eliciting performance (responding)
7.providing feedback (reinforcement)
8.assessing performance (retrieval)
9.enhancing retention and transfer (generalization)
These events should satisfy or provide the necessary conditions for learning and serve as the basis for designing instruction.
To flesh these concepts out
1.Gain attention
In order for any learning to take place, you must first capture the attention of the student. A multimedia program that begins with an animated title screen sequence accompanied by sound effects or music startles the senses with auditory or visual stimuli. An even better way to capture students' attention is to start each lesson with a thought-provoking question or interesting fact. Curiosity motivates students to learn.
2.Inform learners of objectives
Early in each lesson students should encounter a list of learning objectives. This initiates the internal process of expectancy and helps motivate the learner to complete the lesson. These objectives should form the basis for assessment and possible certification as well. Typically, learning objectives are presented in the form of "Upon completing this lesson you will be able to. . . ."
3.Stimulate recall of prior learning
Associating new information with prior knowledge can facilitate the learning process. It is easier for learners to encode and store information in long-term memory when there are links to personal experience and knowledge. A simple way to stimulate recall is to ask questions about previous experiences, an understanding of previous concepts, or a body of content.
4.Present the content
This event of instruction is where the new content is actually presented to the learner. Content should be chunked and organized meaningfully, and typically is explained and then demonstrated. To appeal to different learning modalities, a variety of media should be used if possible, including text, graphics, audio narration, and video.
5.Provide "learning guidance"
To help learners encode information for long-term storage, additional guidance should be provided along with the presentation of new content. Guidance strategies include the use of examples, non-examples, case studies, graphical representations, mnemonics, and analogies.
6.Elicit performance (practice)
In this event of instruction, the learner is required to practice the new skill or behavior. Eliciting performance provides an opportunity for learners to confirm their correct understanding, and the repetition further increases the likelihood of retention.
7.Provide feedback
As learners practice new behavior it is important to provide specific and immediate feedback of their performance. Unlike questions in a post-test, exercises within tutorials should be used for comprehension and encoding purposes, not for formal scoring. Additional guidance and answers provided at this stage are called formative feedback.
8.Assess performance
Upon completing instructional modules, students should be given the opportunity to take (or be required to take) a post-test or final assessment. This assessment should be completed without the ability to receive additional coaching, feedback, or hints. Mastery of material, or certification, is typically granted after achieving a certain score or percent correct. A commonly accepted level of mastery is 80% to 90% correct.
9.Enhance retention and transfer to the job
The repetition of learned concepts is a tried and true means of aiding retention, although often disliked by students. (There was a reason for writing spelling words ten times as grade school student.)
EXAMPLE
1.Gain attention
In order for any learning to take place, you must first capture the attention of the student. A multimedia program that begins with an animated title screen sequence accompanied by sound effects or music startles the senses with auditory or visual stimuli. An even better way to capture students' attention is to start each lesson with a thought-provoking question or interesting fact. Curiosity motivates students to learn.
2.Inform learners of objectives
Early in each lesson students should encounter a list of learning objectives. This initiates the internal process of expectancy and helps motivate the learner to complete the lesson. These objectives should form the basis for assessment and possible certification as well. Typically, learning objectives are presented in the form of "Upon completing this lesson you will be able to. . . ."
3.Stimulate recall of prior learning
Associating new information with prior knowledge can facilitate the learning process. It is easier for learners to encode and store information in long-term memory when there are links to personal experience and knowledge. A simple way to stimulate recall is to ask questions about previous experiences, an understanding of previous concepts, or a body of content.
4.Present the content
This event of instruction is where the new content is actually presented to the learner. Content should be chunked and organized meaningfully, and typically is explained and then demonstrated. To appeal to different learning modalities, a variety of media should be used if possible, including text, graphics, audio narration, and video.
5.Provide "learning guidance"
To help learners encode information for long-term storage, additional guidance should be provided along with the presentation of new content. Guidance strategies include the use of examples, non-examples, case studies, graphical representations, mnemonics, and analogies.
6.Elicit performance (practice)
In this event of instruction, the learner is required to practice the new skill or behavior. Eliciting performance provides an opportunity for learners to confirm their correct understanding, and the repetition further increases the likelihood of retention.
7.Provide feedback
As learners practice new behavior it is important to provide specific and immediate feedback of their performance. Unlike questions in a post-test, exercises within tutorials should be used for comprehension and encoding purposes, not for formal scoring. Additional guidance and answers provided at this stage are called formative feedback.
8.Assess performance
Upon completing instructional modules, students should be given the opportunity to take (or be required to take) a post-test or final assessment. This assessment should be completed without the ability to receive additional coaching, feedback, or hints. Mastery of material, or certification, is typically granted after achieving a certain score or percent correct. A commonly accepted level of mastery is 80% to 90% correct.
9.Enhance retention and transfer to the job
The repetition of learned concepts is a tried and true means of aiding retention, although often disliked by students. (There was a reason for writing spelling words ten times as grade school student.)
EXAMPLE The following example applies Gagne's nine instructional events.
Instructional Objective: Recognize an equilateral triangle (example from Kearsley 1994a).
Methodology:
1.Gain attention - show a variety of computer generated triangles
2.Identify objective - pose question: "What is an equilateral triangle?"
3.Recall prior learning - review definitions of triangles
4.Present stimulus - give definition of equilateral triangle
5.Guide learning - show example of how to create equilateral
6.Elicit performance - ask students to create 5 different examples
7.Provide feedback - check all examples as correct/incorrect
8.Assess performance - provide scores and remediation
9.Enhance retention/transfer - show pictures of objects and ask students to identify the equilateral triangles.
In summary, what constitutes a 'good lesson' when taking into account Robert Gagne's instructional model is one where the Conditions of Learning are addressed via the 9 events of instruction.
References:
http://www.e-learningguru.com/articles/art3_3.htm
http://tip.psychology.org/gagne.html http://www.psy.pdx.edu/PsiCafe/KeyTheorists/Gagne.htm
http://en.wilipedia.org
http://coe.sdsu.edu/eet/Articles/gagnesevents/index.htm
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