Susan M. Markle

Remodeling a model: An elaborated hierarchy of types of learning 1

Abstract A revision of Merrills revision of Gagnes hierarchy is proposed, based upon experience in training, teachers and instructional designers to use the taxonomy as an analytical tool to develop relevant instruction and precise evaluation. The three‐dimensional model emphasizes the interaction of Affective, Psychomotor, and Cognitive domains. The category Verbal Repertoire is added to emphasize the role of memory in high‐level attainment and to integrate recent developments in mathemagenic research and the measurement of comprehension. The crucial distinctions between Memory and Complex Cognitive types of learning are maintained.

Training Designers To Think about Thinking.

Instructional products can be characterized as reaching three different levels of achievement: (1) students remember the information presented; (2) students can apply conceptual classification schemes, can apply rules, or can follow procedures; (3) students can discover how conceptual and rule-governed structures work. While memory is often a useful outcome, it does not imply the ability to use the knowledge. Ability to think at an adult level is an increasingly called-for outcome, especially among science educators, an outcome that calls for new ways of designing instruction. Designs that enable students to apply conceptual schemes and rules do not foster thinking skill development. The pursuit of efficiency and content coverage in instructional products will have to be sacrificed in some cases in order to train students in thinking skills.

Review of the psychology of teaching methods (ed.) N. L. Gage

Abstract The editor of this volume, N. L. Gage, is Professor of Education and Psychology at Stanford University, and a major contributor to the study of the psychology of teaching. The reviewer, Susan M. Markle, is Head, Instructional Design, Office of Instructional Resources Development, University of Illinois at Chicago Circle. Her major interest is in strategies and principles for constructing instructional materials (teacher‐mediated or other‐method‐mediated), especially at higher cognitive levels.