Robert M. Gagné
Ron Zemke (1999), author of the article
"Toward a Science ofTraining", credits Robert
Gagné for helping turn the art of instruction into something
more reliable. Gagné's unique contributions developed during World
War II when he was asked to find a way to instruct non-teachers to make airplane
mechanics out of farmers in 30 days instead of two years of trail and error.
Being a training designer for the Army Air Corps, he took on this task. Through
this experience Gagné identified the five kinds of performance that
require unique types of instruction
Robert M. Gagné was born in 1916 in
North Andover, Massachusetts. In 1937, he earned his A.B. from Yale University.
After receiving his Ph.D. from Brown University in psychology in 1940, he
taught at Connecticut College for Women and Pennsylvania State University.
In 1949, he became the research director for the perceptual and motor skills
laboratory of the United States Air Force and studied military training problems.
He also served as a consultant to the United States Department of Defense.
It was during this time that he began to develop ideas known as the "conditions
of learning".
Robert Gagné is considered to be the foremost researcher and contributor
to the systematic approach to instructional design and training. Gagné
believed that effective instruction should reach beyond traditional learning
theories. He supported cumulative teaching that transitions from simple to
complex skills. This hierarchical framework is widely used in many instructional
environments today.
Gagné wrote several books about his learning theory, of which the most
well known is The Conditions of Learning
(Gagné, 1965).
Sources:
- The Encyclopedia of Educational Technology http://coe.sdsu.edu/eet
- Instructional Technology Global Resource Network, http://www.ittheory.com/gagnec.htm
Last Updated: 11th December 2002