Article instructional Design 2

Information is Not Instruction - The Wise Remarks of David Merrill
by Kevin Kruse

The most profound statement uttered in the training community over the last 10 years was the simple declaration in 1998 by M. David Merrill that "information is not instruction." Although Merrill, professor of instructional technology at Utah State University, was reacting to the inadequacies of many Web-based training programs, his statement reflects that it has always been too easy to become enamored with the "technology" portion of technology-based training - at the expense of proper design and learning outcomes.

In the early days of disk-based computer-based training (CBT), there was a rush to pour content into electronic tutorials. At the time, computers could only display black and white text. Audio, video, and graphics were years away. A few innovative designers made the most of the limited media and created engaging simulations, quizzes, and even games. But this was the exception to the rule and most early programs were nothing more than books on a computer. Learners were forced to passively read the text on the screen, often clicking the Enter button or space bar to move on. Eyestrain and boredom, rather than improved learning and performance, often were the end results. These types of programs, derisively known as page-turners, tainted the image of CBT for many years.

With the advent of interactive videodisks and multimedia CD-ROMs, designers gained the ability to add graphics, animation, audio, and video. Today's CD-ROM training programs often use creative themes and production elements that make them look more like the latest blockbuster movie or Nintendo® video game. These bells and whistles can keep students engaged, but still many of these programs lack implementation of sound principles of instructional design. Frequently, development budgets are consumed by dramatic themes and Hollywood production values, leaving little resources to spend on instructional activities. The result is an audience who has been entertained but who has not acquired new skills or knowledge.

More recently, there has been an unprecedented move towards Web technology as a training and education medium. Consider recent changes: at the 1996 annual conference of the American Society for Training and Development there was only one seminar devoted to the topic of Web-based training. Two years later there were over a dozen conferences held on the topic. In 1997, total expenditures on Web-based training were estimated at $197 million, with spending in the year 2002 projected to be $6 billion, representing a 95% annual growth rate (International Data Corporation, 1998).

Most of early Web-based training programs were nothing more than online documents. Trainers created electronic versions of traditional printed student manuals, articles, tip sheets, and reference guides. While valuable and accessible resources, these conversions to the Web cannot be considered true training programs.

The rush to the Web without consideration given to instructional design led to Merrill's passionate defense of a scientific approach to learning. In a June 1998 interview in Training magazine, Merrill put it simply, "If you don't provide adequate practice, if you don't have an adequate knowledge structure, if you don't provide adequate guidance, people don't learn."

To guarantee the effectiveness of any training program, remember that while technology will always change, the way adults learn will not. Remember Merrill's admonishment and his keys to learning:

• provide structured knowledge
• provide practice
• provide guidance