First Principles of Instruction

This chapter opens with commentary on whether the First PrinciplesFirst Principles/First Principes of Instruction is rooted in a specific instructional designDesign theory, making the case that Merrill’s framework comes closer to a proto-design theory. Pushing against the universalistic claims Merrill makes for them, it is argued that the First Principles are heuristically rich in orientating instruction in many contexts, but in many others, their importance is less significant. This chapter delves into the “structure-guidance-coaching-reflectionStructure-guidance-coaching-reflection” instructional dynamic underlying the First PrinciplesFirst Principles/First Principes of Instruction, as well as Merrill’s embrace of a simple to complex progression of problem identification and resolution as a primary methodology to facilitate learning. Attention is given to the different emphases in Merrill’s two essays (2002a, 2009) on First Principles, the earlier version focusing on problem-basedProblem-based instruction, the latter presenting a task-basedTask-Based approach. Rejecting any great divide, the differences between them are, nonetheless, significant. The focus then shifts to a descriptive analysis of the First Principles—activationActivation, demonstrationDemonstration, applicationApplication, and integrationIntegration—within a problem- or task-basedTask-Based orientation. This chapter concludes with Merrill’s attempt at synthesis through the development of an entrepreneurship course which embeds the First PrinciplesFirst Principles/First Principes of Instruction and the structuring framework of Instructional TransactionInstructional transactions Theory. Positive appraisals and critical commentary are embedded throughout the discussion.