Prioritizing Content

Prioritizing Content
After identifying a list of potential tasks and subtasks that may need to be trained, you will need to identify and select those tasks that should be trained. As an instructional designer, you need to be careful not to select and train tasks just because they were identified during the Task Analysis. Many designers identify training content by using their best estimation of what needs to be trained ("best guess"), but that is not the best way to select the content. Instead, you should adopt and use a systematic process that will help you identify the correct tasks based on reasoning and analysis.

There are many reasons why you may not want to select a task for training. The following list identifies some common reasons for not selecting a task for training:
 * The student should already possess the knowledge, skill or ability/attitude (KSA)
 * The task will be trained later after scaffolding is provided
 * The task is accomplished infrequently
 * There isn’t enough time
 * The return on the investment is not adequate to justify the cost

QUESTION #1: Why would you not want to train a task that is accomplished infrequently?

Think about how you would answer this question before clicking on the answer below.

ANSWER #1

Instruments for Prioritizing Content
There are a variety of instruments (tools) that can be used to help you select and prioritize content for physical tasks that need to be trained. The three instuments in the table below are the tools we recommend. When selecting the appropriate tool(s) to use, review them in the order listed.