Activation

First Principles Activation.png

Activation: Overview

The activation phase prepares learners for the acquisition of new knowledge. The purpose of this phase is to create anticipation of the incoming information based on the learner's prior experiences. 

The activation phase is important because learning will be hindered if the material is too abstract. Citing research on instruction, Merrill (2007, p. 9) Links to an external site. suggests activation activities should:

  1. Direct learners to recall, relate, describe or apply prior knowledge from relevant past experience that can be used as a foundation for the new knowledge. If learners have limited prior experience, the instruction should provide relevant experience that can be used as a foundation for the new knowledge.
  2. Help learners see the lesson's relevance, and to have confidence in their ability to acquire the knowledge and skill to be taught.
  3. Provide or encourage the recall of a structure that can be used to organize the new knowledge.

When using the activation principle, consider using these activation strategies:

  • Choose subjects that are related to the learner's life.
  • Allow learners to preview what they will learn. Let them see the subjects and problems.
  • Try to structure information by using a model to organize materials.
  • Give your learners a foundation to build on new knowledge, such as show them statistics or give them stories.
  • Have your learners share prior experiences with their peers to enhance activation of prior knowledge.

Examples of Instructional Activities for Activation Phase

Designing instructional activities as strategies to support learning is one of the most challenging and important aspects of instructional design. Too often learners are given content to read and then tested on their recall, which rarely supports deep and meaningful learning experiences. In this module of the course, our goal is to help you build your toolkit of instructional activities and strategies. To that end, challenge yourself to design, seek out, and critically evaluate instructional activities to support your learners throughout the instruction you are designing. To get you started, review this glossary of over 1,200 instructional strategies developed by Kelly Jo Rowan Links to an external site.. Ms. Rowan started compiling this glossary and writing the definitions in 1996 while working on her Master's degree in Education, and she has since added to her personal toolkit in the two decades that have followed. We encourage you to build a toolkit like this for your own use as a designer.

Let's look at a few examples from Kelly Rowan's glossary that are applicable to the activation phase:

  • Brainstorming

    • What: Brainstorming is a powerful technique that stimulates your learners thoughts before teaching a new topic. Brainstorming helps your learners activate their prior knowledge on that topic, and it helps the instructor identify and verify the learners’ prior knowledge.
    • How: Write the topics of the lesson on the board or paper, and prompt the learners to reflect on what these these terms remind them. 

  • "Know, Want to know, Learn" (KWL)

    • What: KWL is an activity that helps a learner activate their prior knowledge.
    • How: Learners identify what they know about a topic (K), what they want to know (W), and after reading or instruction, identify what they learned or would still like to learn (L).

  • Learning Logs

    • What: Learning Logs can be a useful strategy to create a more organized learning experience for your learners. The prompt for the entry may help your learners to make the connection between the previous and current lesson.
    • How: Ask your learners to keep a learning log about their learning progress, such as the one used at the beginning of this module.

Pause.png Before you move on ...

Circling back to the learning log you started at the beginning of this module, please consider the concept of activation. How do you think activation activities promote learning? 

Design Checkbox.png Your Design Decisions

You may have heard the expression, "start where the learner is". That approach to instruction is application of the activation principle. Think about the personas we reviewed within Module 1. What are some relevant life experiences that you could incorporate into your lesson as part of an activation activity for the subject and topic of instruction you are designing, as well as the learner persona you have been contemplating? What examples from Kelly Rowan's glossary instructional strategies Links to an external site. are applicable to the activations phase?