Task Analysis
EDU 553 – Principles of
Instructional Design
Dr. Steve Broskoske
Outline
• Task Analysis
– What is it?
– How do you perform it?
– Examples to try.
Task Analysis
What Is Task Analysis?
• Task analysis: Process of understanding
the instructional problem and defining
lesson content.
• Involves analyzing the instructional
problem to determine:
– Precisely what the learner needs to know
before approaching a lesson.
– Precisely what the lesson must cover.
– What parts of a lesson may be optional.
What Is Task Analysis?
• Once the task is fully understood,
performance objectives will be developed
for the instructional unit.
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General Steps
1. Establish the instructional goal.
2. Determine the major tasks and
subtasks or components of the subject
matter content.
3. Organize the components and
represent their relationships in some
way.
Purpose
•
You basically want to answer three
questions in conducting task analysis:
1. What must the learner know in order to
accomplish the goal?
2. What must the learner do in order to
accomplish the goal?
3. What does the learner need to know
before approaching this instructional unit?
What Kind of Analysis Is Needed?
• Determine what type of analysis is appropriate
based on the nature of the subject matter:
– hierarchical analysis: Sequence the skills, subskills,
rules, concepts, and discriminations of a learning
activity.
– procedural analysis: List the procedural steps in an
activity.
– cluster analysis: List the categories of information
implied by the goal.
– simulation analysis: List the events from easy to more
difficult.
How to Perform
1. List the facts (e.g., names, symbols, definitions),
concepts, principles, or steps that should receive
attention.
– Sources for determining tasks include task observation, task
descriptions, other instruction, documentation, or information
from subject matter experts (SME’s).
2. Arrange these components in some logical order.
–
–
–
–
Chronologically, numerically, or in some other logical order.
From simple to complex, from concrete to abstract.
From overview to detail, from detail to overview.
From familiar to unfamiliar.
How to Perform
3. Connect the components graphically, and
Illustrate relationships between components.
4. Examine your graphical representation for
gaps. Add missing components.
5. Use marginal notes (or other notations) to
suggest techniques, identify possible
problems, or pinpoint necessary prerequisite
knowledge, concepts, or skills.
6. Revise your graphic layout to incorporate your
margin notations and produce a final version.
When Performing Task Analysis
• What does the learner do very specifically?
– Analyze carefully and identify each step.
• What knowledge is needed for this step?
– Does a step require certain prerequisite knowledge?
– Does the learner know this info., or should this be
taught?
• How can you effectively teach this step?
– Cues, mnemonics, analogies, techniques?
Analyzing the Task Analysis
• After developing TA, determine which
tasks can be assumed and which need to
be taught.
– Cross out tasks all learners already know.
– Circle optional tasks (some learners may
already know some of these).
– What’s left:
• Leave all tasks that few if any of the learners know.
This is what will be taught.
Gathering Info. for Task Analysis
• Techniques for gathering data:
– Literature search.
– Interview SME (subject matter expert).
– Developer modeling: Walk through the steps
with SME present.
Most teachers!
– Be your own SME.
How to Be Your Own SME
• Analyze very carefully!
• Try to write directions from a novice’s point
of view.
• Go over the task analysis many times,
ensuring you have caught every step!
• Involve others:
– Have someone else test the steps in your
task.
– Have another SME review your work.
Learning Hierarchy
• When a task analysis is carried out on
successively simpler components of a
target skill, the result is a learning
hierarchy (Gagne, 1985).
• This shows progressively simpler skills,
each of which is an enabling objective for
a target objective.
• Example:
– Subtraction.
• Subtract whole numbers of any size.
• Subtract when “double borrowing” is required (across 0).
• Subtract when successive borrowing is required, in
adjacent columns.
• Subtract when several borrowings are required in nonadjacent columns.
• Subtract when single borrowing is required, in any
column.
• Subtract successive columns, without borrowing.
• Subtract a one-digit number, with borrowing.
• Identify where borrowing is to be done.
• Subtract when a 0 is understood (“bringing down”).
• Subtract in successive columns, where each requires a
simple subtraction.
• Simple subtraction.
Types of Analysis
• Procedural: Steps that make up a task
are arranged linearly and sequentially,
illustrating where the learner begins and
ends.
• Cluster: Used to analyze verbal
information skills where no logical order is
required to meet the stated goal(s)
(Muffoletto, 2000).
Types of Analysis
• Hierarchical: Tasks are arranged from top
to bottom, thereby showing a hierarchical
relationship amongst the tasks. The
learner cannot perform the third task until
he/she has performed the first and second
tasks respectively.
Compared to procedural analysis,
hierarchical answers: What must the learner
know or be able to do to achieve this task?
Hierarchical Example
Try It
• Perform a task analysis to fix a flat tire on
a car.
Main Steps
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Secure car.
Get tools and spare tire.
Jack up car.
Replace tire.
Jack down car.
Put away tires and flat tire.
Now
determine
sub-steps.
Then
determine
entry
behaviors.
Try It
• Perform a task analysis:
– Wash your clothes.
– Bathe a dog.
– Balance a checkbook.
Tasks we
perform regularly
are more
complex than we
realize!
Your Project
• Examine:
– What task do you propose to teach?
– How involved will your task analysis be? Do
you need to refocus narrower?
• After performing TA:
– What tasks do (should) students already
know?
– What tasks are optional?
– Think: what is the best way to teach each step
of task?