Analysis: Direct learning instruction and its components offer a framework for teaching new material to students. Using the components in lesson planning helps teachers ensure that all aspects of the lesson are being covered. According to Slavin (2015) the components of direct instruction include:
- state lesson objective(s)
- "Tell students what they will be learning and what...is expected of them" (Slavin, 2015).
- mentally prepare students for the lesson
- Grab the students' attention, and prepare them to learn. Hook them into the lesson.
- review previously learned material
- Ensure that skills necessary to access the current lesson are reviewed so that students can utilize what they already know.
- present new material
- This is the meat of the lesson. It is necessary that teachers be clear in the presentation. Teachers will offer explanations, examples, and demonstrations. It is important that teachers keep students engaged and maintain an appropriate pace considering the information being covered and the students in the class.
- gather feedback on student understanding
- Teachers must ensure student understanding in order to progress to another lesson. In order to check student understanding, teachers employ various checks. These checks can include verbal questions, written responses, short answers written on whiteboards, plickers, and many others.
- independent practice
- Students participate in independent practice in order to practice newly learned material or skills while the teacher monitors. This step is important because students are "transferring new information in working memory to long term memory" (Slavin, 2015).
- assess and give feedback
- In order to determine whether or not students have met the lesson objectives, teachers must assess. Assessment takes many forms, and in order for it to be most effective, teachers should provide timely feedback to student performance.
- distributed practice and review
- Sometimes called spiral review, it is important to revisit the information to ensure that students can remember the information throughout the year. Not only are other skills built upon this information, but information learned throughout the year will be assessed on end of course tests.
Each component of direct instruction has important implications for student learning. Skipping one of the components can hinder student progress. Teachers must plan lessons carefully and pace themselves in order to cover all of the material.
The way students learn concepts can be categorized in two main methods. One is by observation, and the other is by definition. Learning by observation has been done since birth. Experiences increase learning by observation. Learning by definition involves examples and non-examples that students can relate to.
Discussion in the class room is an effective mode of learning. Students can participate in discussion as a whole class or in small groups. Teacher participation is less than in normal lecture type lessons. In whole class discussions, the teacher serves as a facilitator and guides the discussion. When students come to a stumbling block, the teacher can pose a question or statement to encourage discussion. The teacher ensures that the conversation stays on topic. In small group discussions, the teacher monitors each group and assists with the discussion. In this type of discussion, the peer leader ensures that group members stay on the topic of discussion. Student discussion, whether whole class or small group, encourages student participation and engagement. Students are able to voice their position and add relevant information.
Reflection: Direct instruction is an important teaching method for introduction new material. When teaching Biology, I like to provide direct instruction for the initial lesson. Afterwards, I incorporate student discussion and hands on activities/labs. I fell that the direct instruction portion of the unit provides knowledge that students need in order to adequately understand and perform the hands on portions of the unit. Often times, I have been guilty of skipping parts of the direct instruction model in order to save time. What I didn't realize at the time was that I was actually hindering learning by removing important aspects of the lesson. Reading this chapter of our text has made me more cognizant of the implications of leaving out important teaching strategies that make major impacts in learning.
Resources:
Slavin, R. E. (2015). Educational psychology: Theory and practice. Boston, MA:
Pearson Education.
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