Foreword to Conducting performance-based Instructional Analysis by Guy Wallace

There are two things that are in danger of extinction in learning, with all the focus on learning in the workflow and learning ‘experiences’. They lie at the ‘top’ and ‘tail’ of a learning programme.

The first, at the top, is the abandonment of analysis before you design a learning intervention. Detailed analysis seems to be out of fashion but its absence can lead to learning experiences that are simply illusory. Guy has a lifetime of experience which he brings to bear on the management and process of delivering a learning project. His focus on stakeholders, for example, is just one of many solid pieces of advice to guide the novice.

But it is at the tail that Guy’s method really shines. His obsession with ‘performance’ is so often swept under the carpet by those who think that learning is just about knowledge. How do we get what we know turned into actual practice and performance? This is what lies behind Guy’s methodology. He is relentless in chaining together a causality that leads to actual competence and performance.

It was refreshing to see someone who has been around long enough to remember Gilbert’s book on Human Competences and Gloria Gery on Performance Support. We are entering an age where AI and smart software can now deliver, push and pull instruction, to support learners when they need it. This puts learning much closer to performance. Transfer is that much easier when you learn at the very moment you put it into practice.

Analysis, process and performance – ignore them at your peril.