Subordinate skills and entry behaviors

1- Subordinate Skills

After the steps in the goal have been identified, it is necessary to examine each step to determine what learners must know or be able to do before they can learn to perform that step in the goal => this is referred to as Subordinate Skills Analysis. 

Purpose: Identify the appropriate set of subordinate skills for each step.
If required skills are omitted and many students do not have them => instruction will be ineffective!
If superfluous skills are included => they might interfere with learning the required skills.

A Subordinate skill is "a skill that must be achieved in order to learn a higher level skill. Also known as a subskill, prerequisite, or enabling skill."

Approaches to Subordinate Skills Analysis: 

Hierarchical analysis technique 

Procedural analysis technique 

Cluster analysis technique 

Subordinate skills analysis for attitude goals 

2- Entry Behaviors

The instructional analysis process helps the designer identify entry behaviors: what learners will already have to know or be able to do BEFORE they begin the instruction.

 Entry behaviors are defined as "specific competencies or skills a learner must have mastered before entering a given instructional activity."

In order to identify entry behaviors, examine the hierarchy or cluster analysis and identify those skills that a majority of the learners will have already mastered before beginning your instruction. Draw a dotted line above these skills in the analysis chart.  The skills that are above this line are those you must teach in your instruction. Those that fall below the line are the entry behaviors.