An education for application derives its sequence “backward” from specific
performance goals that signify success in understanding. Again, Whitehead’s
maxim of “get your knowledge and use it quickly” always applies. In
planning, we aim early for the desired performance, even if the task has to be
in simplified or scaffolded form (e.g., T-ball for 6-year-olds, or templates for
writers); we build up performance progressively; and we revisit the fundamentals
repeatedly as we do so. We eventually take off the intellectual training
wheels of cues, prompts, and tools to see if students can perform with understanding
on their own. This approach involves a careful task analysis that
moves backward from the desired performances, and a whole-part-whole
design for learning to perform with understanding.