David Ausubel &
Advance Organizers
By : Michelle Cavazos
Theories of Ed Tech
Dr. Corbeil
Introduction
The picture to the right shows
David Ausubel. This man
developed the theory dealing
with advanced organizers and
subsumption. His theory
involved the idea that when we
link new information with
information we already know,
creative learning can happen.
We can use “meaningful
materials” called advanced
organizers to help us create this
learning environment.
Who is David Ausubel ?
• David Ausubel was born in 1918 in New York. He
graduated from medical school and worked at
hospitals in New York. He also served in the
military to provide services. He serviced many
psychiatric facilities. In 1973 he decided to make a
change and focus completely on psychiatric
practice rather than academic processes. He
published many books and over 150 articles. He
made massive contributions through his work and
even wrote four books after retiring. He passed
away on July 9, 2008. (www.davidausubel.org)
Theory
• “According to Ausubel, learning is based upon the kinds of
superordinate, representational, and combinatorial
processes that occur during the reception of information.”
(www.instructionaldesign.org)
• Ausubel’s theory is based on the idea of subsumption. “A
primary process in learning is subsumption in which new
material is related to relevant ideas in the existing cognitive
structure on a substantive, non-verbatim basis.”
(www.instructionaldesign.org)
• His theory is based on the idea that we make relations of
new material to material that we already know. Since we
are able to create these relationships and link these ideas,
we are able to learn the information.
Theory
• This theory can be applied by using advance
organizers which help us link new information
with information we already know. Below are
a few examples.
Supporting Online
Teaching and Learning
• This idea is amazing when we think of how it can
support online learning. We use advanced
organizers all of the time in the classroom, but it
can be much more interactive and fun if we are
able to incorporate technology into this. Using
apps to create our graphs and submit our
advanced organizers is a great way to support
online teaching and learning. Online teaching and
learning can also be supported through using
advanced organizers, because it provides the
students the opportunity to link and relate
information.
Strengths
• Linking information and turning it into learning
• Helps provide order and organization
• Helps as a guide for the student so they don’t
have to start blank
• Advanced organizers can be used for just
about any kind of subject
Weaknesses
• Students may not immediately understand the
advanced organizers
• Teachers will have to understand the advance
organizer
The Future of This Theory
• I think that this theory will only further
advance in the future. I feel that this theory
has been substantiated by the amount of use
of Mr. Ausubel’s articles. Teachers all over the
world are using advance organizers to help
their students. More and more apps are being
created to help us feature advance organizers.
These apps can help us also apply this
technology to the future.
References Cited:
• DausubelIndex. (n.d.). Retrieved February 19, 2015,
from http://www.davidausubel.org/
• ENCHANTED LEARNING HOME PAGE. (n.d.). Retrieved
February 19, 2015, from
http://www.enchantedlearning.com/Home.html
• Nebraska Department of Education | NDE. (n.d.).
Retrieved February 19, 2015, from
http://www.education.ne.gov/
• Subsumption Theory (David Ausubel). (n.d.).
Retrieved February 19, 2015, from
http://www.instructionaldesign.org/theories/subsump
tion-theory.html