IRACST – International Journal of Computer Networks and Wireless Communications (IJCNWC), ISSN: 2250-3501

Vol.6, No 2, Mar-Apr 2016

Advance Organizer:
Cognitive Instructional Strategy

Lee Bih Ni Nor Syuhada Binti Rohadi Hasni Binti Alfana

Faculty of Psychology and Education Faculty of Psychology and Education Faculty of Psychology and Education
Universiti Malaysia Sabah Universiti Malaysia Sabah Universiti Malaysia Sabah
Sabah, Malaysia Sabah, Malaysia Sabah, Malaysia

Abstract—This paper discusses advance organizer as a cognitive

instructional strategy used to promote the learning and retention II. THE FRAMEWORK
of new information. In the literature, researchers used narrative
literature review to describe the current states of both art and A. The Instructional Design Model
science in focused areas of inquiry. Advance organizers are used “According to Ausubel, learning is based upon the kinds of
in good "transmissive" teaching, e.g. direct instruction. Such
superordinate, representational, and combinatorial processes
teaching is different from simple rote learning, since learners are
encouraged to relate new knowledge to old knowledge.
that occur during the reception of information. A primary
Researchers collect all the important points of discussion, and process in learning is subsumption in which new material is
synthesis them here with reference to the specific field where this related to relevant ideas in the existing cognitive structure on a
paper is originally based on. The findings show that advance substantive, non-verbatim basis” Subsumption Theory [8].
organizers present a higher level of abstraction. They are not just “Ausubel suggests that advance organizers might foster
simple overviews, illustrating examples etc, but they share with meaningful learning by prompting the student regarding pre-
such techniques the idea, that they must be integrated with other existing superordinate concepts that are already in the student's
teaching/learning activities. Advance organizers provide the cognitive structure, and by otherwise providing a context of
necessary scaffolding for students to either learn new and
general concepts into which the student can incorporate
unfamiliar material (an expository organizer which provides the
basic concept at the highest level of generalization) or to integrate
progressively differentiated details. Ausubel claims that by
new ideas into relatively familiar ideas (a comparative organizer presenting a global representation of the knowledge to be
which compares and contrasts old and new ideas). learned, advance organizers might foster "integrative
reconciliation" of the subdomains of knowledge - the ability to
Keywords-advance organize;, transmissive teaching; expository understand interconnections among the basic concepts in the
organizer domain.” [8].
Advance organizers are used in good "transmissive"
I. INTRODUCTION teaching, e.g. direct instruction. Such teaching is different from
An advance organizer is a cognitive instructional strategy simple rote learning, since learners are encouraged to relate
used to promote the learning and retention of new information. new knowledge to old knowledge (what they already know).
“ An advance organizer is information that is presented prior to According to Joyce et al. (2000), the advance organizer
learning and that can be used by the learner to organize and model has three phases of activity [5] [6]:
interpret new incoming information (Mayer, 2003)” [9]. “These Phase I (includes presentation of the advance organizer)
organizers are introduced in advance of learning itself, and are • Clarify the aimes of the lesson
also presented at a higher level of abstraction, generality, and • Presentation of the advance organizer
inclusiveness; and since the substantive content of a given • Prompting awareness of relevant knowledge
organizer or series of organizers is selected on the basis of its Phase II (includes making links to/from the organizer)
suitability for explaining, integrating, and interrelating the • Presentation of the learning task or learning material
material they precede, this strategy simultaneously satisfies the • Make organization and logical order of learning
substantive as well as the programming criteria for enhancing material explicit
the organization strength of cognitive structure.”[8]. “An Phase III (strengthening of the cognitive organization)
advance organizer is not an overview, but rather a presentation • Integrative reconciliation and active reception learning
of information (either verbal or visual) that are "umbrellas" for (e.g. the teacher can ask learners to make summaries, to point
the new material to be learned.” The avance organizing our differences, to relate new examples with the organizer).
principle is compatible with many modern instructional design • Elicit critical approach to subject matter (have
models like Merril's first principles of instruction [1] [7].
students think about contraditions or implicit inferences in the
learning material or previous knowledge)
The simple principles behind advance organizers are that:

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 IRACST – International Journal of Computer Networks and Wireless Communications (IJCNWC), ISSN: 2250-3501
Vol.6, No 2, Mar-Apr 2016
1. Most general ideas should be presented first in an 2. How do I Use Advance Organizers?
organized way (not just a summary) a [15nd then progressively • should focus on what is important, and essential
differentiated. • "higher level" (more abstract) organizers produce
2. Following instructional materials should integrate new deeper learning than "lower level" (more concrete) advanced
concepts with previously presented information and with an organizers (analysis, synthesis vs. knowledge,
overall organization. comprehension—see Bloom's Taxonomy)
Therefore, advance organizers present a higher level of • different types of advanced organizers produce
abstraction. They are not just simple overviews, illustrating different results
examples etc. ! But they share with such techniques the idea, 3. What are the different types of Advance Organizers?
that they must be integrated with other teaching/learning • Expository
activities. o simply describes the new content
“Advance organizers provide the necessary scaffolding for • Narrative
students to either learn new and unfamiliar material (an o presents new information in a story format
expository organizer which provides the basic concept at the • Skimming
highest level of generalization) or to integrate new ideas into o skimming material before reading can be a powerful
relatively familiar ideas (a comparative organizer which organizer
compares and contrasts old and new ideas). Ausubel contends • Graphical Organizers
that these organizing ideas, which may be single concepts or o effective with all types of organizers: pictographs,
statements of relationship, are themselves important content descriptive patterns, concept patterns, etc.
and should be taught because they serve to organize everything 4. Benefits of Technology Used with Graphic and Advance
that follows. Advance organizers are based on major concepts, Organizers
generalizations, principles, and laws of academic disciplines” • Fluid and Dynamic
[1]. o Diagrams can be easily manipulated and updated
The template is used to format your paper and style the text. o Diagrams can be begun through a teacher template
All margins, column widths, line spaces, and text fonts are and completed by the student
prescribed; please do not alter them. You may note • Resource Saving
peculiarities. For example, the head margin in this template o using a digital medium saves in paper and copier costs
measures proportionately more than is customary. This o teachers can review student cues with a computer
measurement and others are deliberate, using specifications that sometimes easier than using paper
anticipate your paper as one part of the entire proceedings, and • Organizer can extend into the Direct Instruction
not as an independent document. Please do not revise any of o saved organizers can be used throughout a lesson, or
the current designations.
for review at a later time
• Organizer can Adapt Easily into Notetaking and
III. ADVANCE & GRAPHICAL ORGANIZERS: PROVEN Summarization
STRATEGIES ENHANCED THROUGH TECHNOLOGY o the graphic organizer can serve as a model for later
organizational skills students may complete.
A. Using Advance Organizers
Educational researchers have shown that the activation of Exposure to the Internet without the user can cause a loss of
prior knowledge is critical to learning of all types. You can students in searching. Thus teachers can also use other methods
view (and print, if you like) this information, organized in a of carrying out discussions on the internet. Discussions may be
cluster map. conducted through user groups at www.google.com or
The theories and research-backing described in this outline www.gmail.com. For the authors the most appropriate method
is derived from my notes from chapters 6 & 10 from Classroom is via a discussion board that is dedicated to the purpose of
Instruction that Works by Robert J. Marzano, Debra J. discussion. Among the most widely used internet for discussion
Pickering, and Jane E. Pollock [2] [10]. and is the in vision Power Board [15].
1. What is an Advance Organizer? Finland, Hong Kong, Singapore, United Kingdom,
• an instructional unit that is used before direct United States and other countries have implemented national
instruction, or before a new topic; this is sometimes called a policies, the use of information and communication
hook, set induction, or anticipatory set technology in education, and in fact, many of them are
• popularized by David Ausubel, first in 1968 national ICT plan their second or third master. Keep in
• introduced in advance of direct instruction mind, the purpose of the knowledge society and
• presented at a higher level of abstraction than the globalization is the support of the Ministry of Education
information presented later of Singapore, through the use of information and
• designed to bridge the gap between what the learner communication technology development, self-directed
already knows and what she needs to know learning objectives, the purpose of this article is extracted
• use of advance organizers has shown, through several self-directed learning (SDL), which is compatible with
the cultural concept of Malaysia [16].
research studies, to improve levels of understanding and recal

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 IRACST – International Journal of Computer Networks and Wireless Communications (IJCNWC), ISSN: 2250-3501
Vol.6, No 2, Mar-Apr 2016
School management and the creation of appropriate • Physical Models
conditions need to integrate Windows Movie Maker in the • Mental Pictures
resources available to support teaching and learning of history • Drawing Pictographs
cornerstone. this regard, Windows Movie Maker is software • Engaged Motion—Kinesthetic Activity
that can be used as a pack of Microsoft Windows and can be
used to manage many school programs. Microsoft Excel can be
used to prepare the budget and financial statements. By using IV. EXAMPLE OF GRAPHICAL AND ADVANCE ORGANIZERS.
Windows Movie Maker in the history teachers and learners can Educational The following example pair an advanced and/or
make the school to sell the film to such schools to potential graphical organizer with a Virginia SOL. These are all
donors to assist learners and principals [17]. designed with the following guidelines [2]:
Students should be considered for the study, who • The activity is not the major focus of the lesson in
participated in the learning process. Interactive teaching itself
methods, use of information and communication technologies • If used as an advanced organizer, more abstract
give all students the opportunity to learn by doing digital
concepts have purposely been included.
research. Active learning approach helps to develop a positive
self-esteem and develop students' lifelong learning (LLL). • A variety of methods can be used to implement
Given the ubiquity of ICT is no longer a need to prove that advanced and graphical organizers, including computer
there is a need to teach how to effectively use information and technology
communication technologies [18].
A. Example 1
B. Using Imagery Knowledge
Science (Which Is Suitable For History Teaching And
Allan Paivio's Dual-Coding Theory of Information Storage Learning Too)
[link 1, link 2, link 3] proposes that knowledge is stored in two Students in the sixth grade investigate life processes of
forms [11]: organisms. This activity encourages students to think
• Linguistic Form abstractly, and would make an excellent advanced organizer
o most widely used in schools today after some study of had taken place.
o involves writing and speaking
• Nonlinguistic, or "imagery" form
o mental pictures
o physical sensations: smell, taste, touch,
sound, kinesthetic associations
o explicitly engaging students in the creation
of nonlinguistic representations stimulates
and increases activity in the brain

C. How to Tap into Imagery Knowledge

• a variety of activities produce imagery
representations:
o creating graphic representations
o making physical models
o generating mental pictures
o drawing pictures and pictographs
o engaging in kinesthetic activities
• Imagery Activities should elaborate on knowledge
o students understand a topic in greater depth
o students can recall information more easily
Source: Inpsiration or AppleWorks, MS Office
D. Creating Graphic Organizers
Graphic Organizers combine the linguistic and non-linguistic This is an adapted Process/Cause-Effect Organizer..Three
modes of information storage life processes are listed in this diagram, obviously these will
be studied this day in class. Without life processes we would
• Descriptive Patterns
die. How do humans adapt when these processes are in
• Time-Sequence Patterns
jeopardy?
• Process/Cause-Effect Patterns Students will fill-out the "preventions" in the diagram,
• Episode Patterns providing the answers such as "antibiotics, adoption," or "IV
• Generalization/Principle Patterns fluids." Students can produce this diagram, or complete a
• Concept Patterns teacher-generated template, using a variety of software.
Other Imagery Methods

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 IRACST – International Journal of Computer Networks and Wireless Communications (IJCNWC), ISSN: 2250-3501
Vol.6, No 2, Mar-Apr 2016
Inspiration makes this type of diagramming a breeze. • Recalling a personal experience and relating it to
Inspiration also comes with many pre-made graphic organizer what will be learned
templates. [2] researchers • Stating the objectives of the lesson [3]

What are some examples of advance organizers?

V. COMPUTER-BASED ORGANIZATIONAL TOOLS [2]: Advance organizers can present themselves in a plethora of
• Appleworks ways. These can include anything from skimming the reading
o Drawing and Painting material to the use of graphic organizers [4].
o Presentations 1. Narrative
• Inspiration/Kidspiration 2. Expository
o Outline Mode 3. Skimming
o Diagram Mode 4. Graphic Organizers
• iMovie 5. KWL Chart
o Manipulation of Digital Pictures and Digital
A. Narrative
Video
o Filming of Digital Video This type of advance organizer presents new information in
• iPhoto the format of a story. For example, a teacher will provide the
o Kinesthetic Activities Captured main and important concepts of the lesson by telling a story
o Pictographs that includes these concepts.
• Microsoft Office (Word, PowerPoint, Excel) B. Expository
o Organizational Charts
This type of advance organizer is used to present new or
o Drawing Tools
detailed information as oppposed to making connections with
• Internet and Web-Formatted Media
previously introduced information.
o Quicktime Streaming Video
o Teacher-Supplied Web Documents C. Skimming
o Information Gathering for Advanced Skimming is when the teacher provides the learners with the
Organizers (charts, skimming) opportunity to skim over the information that is about to be
o Write Design Online Website introduced, focusing on highlighted information (headings).
o Teach-o-logy Website
o California SCORE Graphic Organizers D. Graphic Organizers
o PS Print's Collection of Graphic Organizer Graphic Organizers are used as a method of presenting
Templates information in the visual realm. They are efficient because
they highlight and focus on just the important aspects and they
An advance organizer is relevant introductory materials also show relationships between necessary information.
presented in advance in any format of text, graphics, or Graphic Organizers take on a plethora of avenues and looks,
hypermedia [12]. Instructors may use an advance organizer to but the two most utilized are Venn Diagrams and Concept
present a framework for module content [3]. Mapping [2].
Ausubel's idea of an "advance organizer" is to relate what a
student already knows to the new content to be learned and E. KWL Chart
thus increase retention. Advance organizers should be at a A KWL chart is a type of advance organizer that can be used
higher level of abstraction, generality, and inclusiveness than at any age and for any subject matter. This particular chart has
the content to be presented. Although not technically advance three steps [4]:
organizers, some faculty may choose to provide overviews, 1. What the learner already knows about the subject matter
outlines, statements of objectives, pre-instructional questions, 2. What the learner wants to know about the subject matter
etc. for similar reasons [14]. 3. What the learner learned
Advance Organizers ARE (NETnet, 2002) [13]: The first two steps take place before instruction. These
• Organizational cues steps allow the teacher to activate prior knowledge and get the
• Tools that help connect the known to the unknown students to ask questions and be active particpants. The third
• Frameworks for helping students understand what it step is the last step of instruction, the culmination of the
is they'll be learning lesson. Through this step, the learners reflect on what they
Advance organizers are NOT learned and if their questions were answered.
• A review of what was covered in the previous class
session
VI. CONCLUSION
• A simple overview
• Recalling what was done last week or last year Advance organizer is worth to use to foster student
• Telling the students about tomorrow engagement. Advance organizer establish a purpose and
direction for students’ participation in the lesson while also

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Vol.6, No 2, Mar-Apr 2016
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Deve
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