Trends and cases

Inst ruct ional d e v e l o p m e n t : a key to br idging t h e g a p b e t w e e n educa t iona l research and learning

Leslie P. GreenhiU

During the past twenty-five years there has been a considerable amount of research on learning, especially on the development of new edu- cational methods and the use of instructional media such as films, television and the com- puter. Yet, in the view of many, application of this research in formal learning situations ap- pears to be small in relation to its potential.

The causes of this comparatively low level of application are several. First, educational prac- tices tend to be bound by tradition, and hence, change slowly. Second, many teachers are un- familiar with the educational research and its results and are not in a position to apply them. Third, in many instances there appears to be a lack of the physical, financial and human re- sources which are required to bring about the innovations that are needed to solve educational problems. Fourth, even where resources are available there is often a lack of knowledge as to how to marshal them and to bring them into focus on the improvement of learning.

During the past ten years or so a process has been evolved by instructional technologists which provides a useful approach to bridging the gap between educational research and its practical application to the solution of edu-

Leslie P. Greenhill (United States of America). Pro- fessor of education, Assistant Vice-president for Aca- demic Services and Director of the University Division of Instructional Services at the Pennsylvania State Uni- versity (University Park, Pa.). He has conducted extensive research on instructional films and television and is author of a large number of publications on instructional technology, especially as applied to uni- versity teaching.

cational problems. This is a process now com- monly called 'instructional development'. It in- volves a systematic approach to the analysis and solution of educational problems, and by its nature the process requires an application of the results of research on learning in general and especially of research on educational methods and media.

Incidentally, it should be noted in passing: that 'instructional tectmology' includes not only the use of andio-visnal equipment and materials such as projectors, television, slides, f i l l s and videotapes, but it also includes the systematic design and evaluation of the whole process of teaching and learning in terms of specific ob- jectives, and employing a wide range of human and non-human resources. 'Instructional devel- opment' is the process by which it is all put together.

What is instructional development?

In simplest terms instructional developmem involves the formulation of answers to the fol- lowing questions: Who are the learners? What are they to learn? How are they to learn it? How will we know if they have learned it? How successful was the instructional procedure?

Finding answers to these questions requires a knowledge and consideration of the results of educational research, but the process is not a difficult one to apply, and it results in tested, effective instruction. For the process to work effectively, however, a 'team' approach is necessary.

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The team members should include: an indi- vidual with a background in educational re- search and a familiarity with instructional devel- opment (such an individual is often referred to as an 'instructional developer'); subject-matter specialists (these usually include teachers or professors and possibly a curriculum specialist); production specialists who can produce films, slides, videotapes, graphics or other needed materials; and an evaluation specialist who has a background in test construction and the evalu- ation of instruction. It is also helpful to have an educational administrator on the team who can marshal the needed resources. In some cir- cumstances, several of the above competencies may be found in one individualmfor example in an educational technologist who is familiar with the research, who knows the instructional de- velopment process and who has a background in testing. In other cases, consultants in some of these areas may be brought in to work on a specific project.

The instructional development process has been in operation for several years at the Pennsylvania State University under the direc- tion of the author, where it has been applied principally to the improvement of university level courses. However, the basic principles can be adapted and applied to instruction at any level from primary school to post-graduate work. The following sections of this article will describe the steps in the instructional develop- ment process as they have been applied at the Pennsylvania State University.

The instruct ional deve lopment t e a m s

In actua! practice it has been found useful to have two groups of people work on each instructional project. The first, an 'advisory committee', is concerned with over-all planning. It includes a course developer, subject matter specialists, and an educational administrator. It has fairly heavy representation from those who

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will be involved in implementing the instruction. The second group, known as the 'working group', is concerned with the actual execution of the project. It includes the instructional devel- oper, subject-matter specialists who are know- ledgeable about content, production specialists in one or more areas who will develop materials, and an evaluation specialist. There is a necessary overlap between the personnel on each group and occasionally the groups meet together.

Lest it be thought that the instructional development process can be carried out only with a large team of specialists, let it be said that, at the simplest level, the process could be carried out by a team of two people--an educational psychologist]instructional developer and a teacher]subject-matter specialist. How- ever, such a team would be limited in what it could do as far as the production of materials is concerned, and in practice it has been found that wider participation is more likely to result in the incorporation of useful viewpoints and to gain better acceptance of final solutions.

W h o are the learners?

All too frequently the learners in a given edu- cational situation are described in very general terms, for example they are I I-year-old boys and girls, or they are university students in their first year, or adults who need to improve their job qualifications. Even in a university course, a professor rarely has detailed information about the educational backgrounds of the individuals in his class which describes their levels of prior knowledge about the subject, reasons why they are taking this course, and whether they all have the necessary skills to succeed.

In an instructional development project it is common to start by conducting a pre- development survey which elicits such rel- evant information from students entering the course. As a results of this survey a pre-test may be warranted which would permit qualified

Trends and cases

students to by-pass all or parts of the course. Or corrective measures may be needed for some students who do not have the necessary skills to succeed in the particular course. Or some options may be developed to suit the needs of learners who are interested in different appli- cations of, say, certain basic principles. This is in line with recent research on the 'individu- alizing' of instruction, i.e. adapting instruction to the differing needs of individual learners.

W h a t are t h e learners to learn?

Frequently learning objectives are stated in terms of instructional content, and, if they are written down, it is in the very general terms of a course description. While such an approach describes the general area of knowledge to be acquired it tells neither the instructional de- signer nor the learner exactly what is to be done with that knowledge in order to satisfy these general educational purposes.

The instructional development process re- quires that, in addition to stating general edu- cational purposes, specific learning objectives also be stated. In other words, what do we want the learners to be able to do as a result of the instruction or what competencies do we want them to develop? Again, when efforts have been made to do this in traditional teaching situations, such learning objectives are often stated in gen- eral terms such as 'to understand this', or 'to appreciate that', or 'to be able to write well', or 'to criticize thoughtfully'. The principles of instructional development require that learning objectives be specified in observable, testable terms. These are sometimes referred to as 'behavioral objectives'. In stating such objectives it is helpful to begin with active verbs. For example, at the level of learning of information, appropriate verbs might be: summarize, define, identify, list, etc. At the level of application of facts and principles, learning objectives might begin with: solve, prove, construct, compare,

contrast, etc., and at the level of learning that requires synthesis of knowledge, statements of learning objectives might start with such verbs as analyse, predict, discover, discuss, etc. In each instance, the objective states what the learner will be required to do with the know- ledge that is to be acquired.

Here are some examples that will illustrate the difference between a general statement of purpose and learning objectives stated in terms of competencies the learners are expected to acquire as a result of the instruction.

The first example is drawn from a course in mathematics and concerns the topic of para- metric equations. General statements of pur- pose might be as follows: 'the student wiU be required to understand parametric equations', or 'the course will include the study of para- metric equations'.

These statements leave unidentified exactly what the learners should be able to do with parametric equations. Translated into learner competencies, the learning objectives could be stated as follows: 'as a result of completing this section of the course on parametric equations you should be able to: (a) define parametric equations; (b) sketch a graph from parametric equations; (c) eliminate the parameter for a pair of parametric equations; (d) find the de- rivatives of a function in parametric form.'

The second example is drawn from a course in writing and concerns the writing of para- graphs. A general statement of purpose might be as follows: 'the students will learn to write a good paragraph as a part of the course', or 'one of the topics to be covered in this course is the writing of acceptable paragraphs'. Neither of these statements indicates what a 'good' or 'acceptable' paragraph is.

Written in terms of desired learner com- petencies the objectives could be stated as follows: 'as a result of completing the instruction on the topic of paragraphs, you should be able to write a paragraph that: (a) has a clearly identifiable main point of focus; (b) states

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assumptions clearly; (c) contains sufficient evi- dence or supporting information to clarify the main point or focus; (d) has the parts of the main point and supporting evidence arranged in a definable, logical order; (e) uses transitions between parts; (f) is expressed in grammatical terms that are mechanically sound, economical and appropriate; (g) uses words that are cor- rectly spelled and exactly suited to the intended purpose of the paragraph.'

There has been much debate about the value of stating specific learning objectives. Some claim that it inhibits learning by making it too easy or too specific, others say it is difficult to write such objectives for more complex types of learning, especially learning that relates to atti- tudes and values. Yet, without such objectives it is really difficult to develop a good instruc- tional strategy, and it is almost impossible to have a satisfactory assessment of learning. How- ever, it has been the writer's experience that, with a little help from someone who understands the principles, most subject-matter specialists can come up with good, specific statements of learning objectives.

Having agreed upon operational objectives for each segment of the instruction, the task of selecting the content of what is to be learned and of structuring it so as to facilitate achieve- ment of the specific objectives, is relatively easy.

Major topics and subtopics should be listed, facts and principles outlined, and applications, including practical work, specified as appro- priate to the achievement of the learning objec- tives for each unit of the instruction.

H o w are t h e l e a r n e r s t o learn it?

Now we come to a consideration of the learning activities, methods and resources that will be required to help the learners to attain the objec- tives. Are the learners attending formal classes or are they at home? What human teaching resources exist? What materials are needed?

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What exists and what needs to be produced in order to facilitate the desired learning? Is it appropriate to use television, slides, films, audio- tapes to bring the outside world into the class- room or to bring instruction to learners at scat- tered locations? What combinations of methods will be most effective, for example printed ma- terial, non-print media, discussions, practical work, etc.? How should these materials and methods be structured? What guidance will learners need in order to maximize the use of the learning resources? What help will teachers need in order to make best use of the materials and methods?

Much research has been done on the use of television, films, and other audio-visual media to stimulate learning. A knowledge of this research is essential if effective combinations of methods and media are to be used. There has also been a good deal of research in recent years into methods of 'individualizing' instruction, in order to permit individual learners to move at their own speed, to provide a choice of learn- ing resources (e.g. auditory, print, or non verbal visual materials) to suit the learning character- istics of different individuals, or to provide choices of topics within courses to meet the needs or interests of different learners (some- times called 'mini courses').

Some of this recent research has dealt with the audio-tutorial method of instruction, with modular construction of study material (each module or unit is self-contained with its own ob- jectives, content and tests), and with computer- assisted and computer-managed instruction. At the secondary school and university levels in- creased emphasis is being placed on indepen- dent learning by students in order to develop study skills which will be useful throughout their lifetimes.

A consideration of these questions will lead to decisions about the acquisition or production of suitable instructional materials. These may include videotapes, audiotapes, 35-ram slides, graphics, special student study guides, reference

Trends and cases

books, laboratory exercises and the like. In this connexion, it is desirable to have access to pro- duction facilities staffed with specialists who can design and produce the required materials, In large universities such instructional support services are becoming rather commonplace. In other circumstances, it may be appropriate to establish a central production facility to serve the universities or the schools of a region.

The methods of instruction may also require special facilities and equipment such as multi- med ia learning laboratories equipped with suitable audio-visual equipment for individual self-instruction. Or television receivers and videocassette equipment may be needed for group learning situations. Again, judgements about these needs should be based on a know- ledge of the research into what is effective for learning under various conditions.

H o w wi l l w e k n o w if the learners have learned it?

The assessment of learners' performances is an important part of most learning situations, but unfortunately it is often poorly handled. Fre- quently, because instructional objectives are not clearly stated, learners are constantly guessing at the nature of the examinations they will be given. Also, because of lack of clarity of objec- tives, there is often a low correlation between what is taught and what is covered in examin- ations. Furthermore, examination questions are often poorly constructed (if objective, multiple- choice type) or poorly worded (if the essay type), as a consequence of which the assessment of learner performance is highly unreliable.

Under the instructional development process, tests or examinations are closely related to the statements of learning objectives, and they are usually constructed by the teacher or professor with the assistance of an individual who has a background in test development and a know- ledge of the research on testing.

Such tests serve several functions: (a) they assess the degree to which the learners have achieved the stated learning objectives or com- petencies; (b) they can be used to assess the quality and appropriateness of the instructional methods and materials; and (c) they can be used to improve the learner's performance, if feedback is given in such a way that t h e learner can adjust his learning activities and make another attempt to meet the specified objectives.

An approach to testing which seeks to maxi- mize learning, and which is becoming increas- ingly popular, is to divide a course into several sub-units (five or six is typical) and to have two or more forms of an appropriate test for each unit. Upon completion of unit one, the learners take a test and are given the results quite promptly. They later take a test on unit two, and if they desire they may also take the alter- nate form of the test on unit one in order to improve their performance--and so on through- out the course. A final comprehensive examin- ation may also be given.

A variation on this plan is to require that students achieve a certain level of performance on each unit test (say, 8o per cent) and they must make successive attempts to achieve this level (on alternate forms of the test) before they may proceed to the next unit. This type of exam- ining ('criterion-reference testing') is especially appropriate for sequential courses where a sub- sequent course presupposes a high level of knowledge from a previous course, or in subjects where a high level of competence is required for all learners. However, several different forms of each unit test are required and this necessi- tates the development of a good sized pool of items or questions which have been tested and refined.

It should be apparent that different kinds of tests are appropriate for assessing different kinds of learning. Objective tests may be most efficient for testing knowledge of facts and principles, ability to make inferences or to solve problems.

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Essay tests assess ability to synthesize and to express ideas clearly in writing. Practical tests may be needed to assess ability to perform experiments and the like.

of qualified teachers); (g) improved cost- effectiveness (e.g. reduced unit-costs of in- struction); (h) makes more efficient me of space.

H o w successful was the instructional procedure?

This phase of the instructional development process involves evaluation and requires some knowledge of educational research methods. It seeks to answer such questions as: How well did the instruction work? What did the learners think of it? Was it efficient? What revisions in methods or materials are needed to improve the instruction?

Instructional development, while it depends quite heavily on background research as a basis for decisions during planni,g, is also an empiri- cal process which involves testing of instruc- tional units during production, and of the in- structional programme as a whole. Information gathered from these evaluations is used as a basis for making revisions in objectives, content, methods and examinations.

How do we know tithe instruction is meeting its objectives? Generally, the results of learners' performances on unit and end-of-course tests are carefully analysed, and learners' opinions are sought concerning various aspects of the instructional programme through the use of special questionnaires and interviews.

Administrators of educational programmes are often interested in knowing whether the investments of time and resources required by an instructional development programme are justified. Here are some indicators of over- all instructional improvement: (a) improved learner competencies; (b) fewer failures or drop- outs; (c) improved student attitudes toward learning; (d) improved faculty attitudes toward instruction; (e) more learning in same or less time; (f) instruction is possible where it could not be offered previously (e.g. because of lack

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Some characterist ics of developed instruct ion

At the Pennsylvania State University a n instruc- tional development programme has been in operation for several years, and the results, in terms of improved instruction, have been very gratifying. The programme has concentrated principally on the development of basic courses that serve substantial, numbers of students. Courses that have been subjected to the instruc- tional development process exhibit many of the following characteristics: They have a statement of general purposes. They provide a diagnostic pretest, or a test

which permits students to by-pass all or parts of the course.

They consist of several clearly defined instruc- tional units or modules.

They have statements of objectives for students to achieve for each unit.

They use appropriate multi-media instructional materials and learning situations including field or laboratory work if appropriate.

They make efficient use of faculty time (e.g. through independent study or use of assis- tants).

They provide alternative paths through the ma- terial with some choices for students.

They offer learning incentives for students (e.g. variable credit or points for extra work, op- tions or mini-courses within courses, oppor- ttmities to move ahead at student's own speed, or to retake unit tests after feedback and additional study).

They have carefully designed unit tests and end-of-course examinations.

They include provisions to evaluate the course regularly and to update it.

Trends and cases

They provide a clearly written study guide for students.

They have a manual for teachers.

The instructional development process can be adapted to various needs at different educational levels. It involves a team approach to the sys- tematic analysis of an instructional problem,

and the application of research results in the de- velopment of empirically validated instructional programmes which are designed to facilitate the achievement of stated learning objectives or learner competencies. Instructional develop- ment provides, in my view, a good bridge be- tween educational research and its practical ap- plication to the improvement of learning.

S e c o n d a r y educat ion and recurrent educa t ion in S w e d e n '

Gulmar Bergendal

To judge from my experience, albeit limited, conferences on problems of education and the world of work tend to be biased in the direction of either education or employment. This lack of balance may make the central problem of inter- relations escape serious analysis and consider- ation. Very few people, in fact, have a thorough knowledge of both the world of work and of

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educational planning and even fewer decision- makers have influence over both spheres. I am no exception. This article reflects my experience as secretary of the Swedish 1968 Educational Commission (which was mainly concerned with higher education) and, to a lesser degree, my background as a university teacher of math- ematics and my present occupation as director of a school of education. The stress is being laid on overriding problems of educational planning. The point of departure is that the relation be- tween education and employment is a cen- tral problem that must affect all facets of that planning.

Gunnar Bergendal (Sweden). Rector of the Malm6 School of Education.

The Swedish school

The compulsory comprehensive school (grund- skolan) came into being following a decision by parliament in 1962. It was introduced gradually and was put into effect in all communities since 1972/73. According to the curriculum of 1969, there is no streaming in grades VII-IX and no vocational preparation for specific jobs in the comprehensive school.

In upper secondary school (gymnasieskolan) a subdivision is used in Figure I that reflects the earlier organization in three types of schools, the vocational school, the continuation school and the gymnasium. The new organization was introduced in July 1971 and followed a decision by parliament in 1968. The invention was to integrate the upper secondary education and to remove barriers between courses with different historical backgrounds. Since the statistics avail- able concern the old organization, Figure i shows the traditional structure. The upper sec- ondary school consists of the following twenty- one courses (lines) of two, three or four years.

I. This text is an edited version of a paper presented to a Unesco meeting of experts on secondary education and the world of work (Copenhagen, December 1974).

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