STARTER ACTIVITY

Think back to a lesson in grades K-12 that was particularly memorable.

Describe the type of instruction the teacher used and why you remembered or enjoyed the lesson.

Direct Instruction

EDCI 302 Fall 2011

Also known as…

Explicit Instruction

Systematic Instruction

What is it?

Very teacher-centered

Teacher makes all decisions - they decide what is to be taught, when, and how.

Teacher is the information giver

“I do it, we do it, you do it”

The basic components of direct instruction are: 

• Setting clear goals for students and making sure they understand these goals.

• The teacher giving students clear, concise explanations of the subject matter in small steps.

• Asking frequent questions to see if the students understand the work.

• Giving students frequent opportunities to practice what they have learned.

Madeline Hunter’s Model of Direct Instruction - ITIP

1. Anticipatory set

2. Objective/Purpose

3. Input

4. Modeling

5. Check for understanding

6. Guided practice

7. Independent practice

Hunter’s Model Modernized

1. Anticipatory set = engage or activate

2. Objective/Purpose = big idea

3. Input/modeling = instruction/exploration

4. Check for understanding = mid-point check

5. Guided practice = organize

6. Independent practice = integrate

Sample Lesson - Fractions

PROBLEM

We are going to have a cupcake party on Friday. Because we value diversity, we are going to have three kinds of cupcakes available; chocolate, vanilla, and bacon.

There are 20 students in the class. Two-fifths (2/5) want chocolate. One third (1/3) of the students who are left are brave enough to try the bacon. How many students want vanilla?

You practice

Draw pictures to represent the following fractions:

I have 12 apples – show me 1/3

I have 15 caterpillars – show me 3/5

I have 14 ducks – show me 2/7

I have 16 slices of pizza – show me 3/4

Exit Ticket

PROBLEM

Justin Bieber is coming to Palouse Elementary. He is bringing 15 autographed photos to give away. He gives Mrs. Jones 3/5 of the photos. She gives away 2/3 of those to her students. How many photos did Mrs. Jones keep for herself? Draw a picture to help you solve the problem.

Strengths

• Quick and effective, especially for large groups

• Good for teaching specific facts and basic skills

• Good for things that require step-by step instruction

• Excellent strategy to use at the beginning of a lesson or to explain basic concepts

• Orderly – lends itself to good classroom management

Strengths

• Can be interesting and engaging with use of humor, multimedia, and questioning

• Learning objectives/purpose are clear to students

• Relatively easy to measure student progress

• Material is presented in a logical manner

• Can be very useful with special education students

Weaknesses

• Teacher must be prepared and have good communication skills or it can be boring

• Teacher must know the content or it can be confusing for students

• Audience is often passive – students are not engaged

• Not as effective for higher-order thinking skills, depending on the skill of the teacher.

• Lack of creativity for both teacher and students

MEETING NEEDS OF DIVERSE LEARNERS

• Can be very effective in dealing with students of lower abilities

• Can be boring for higher level students unless the teacher challenges them with higher level questioning

• Better for auditory learners than visual or kinesthetic

Use of questioning

• Most commonly uses lower level questioning – knowledge, comprehension, and application.

• Higher level questions can be used as well.

• Questioning should be used during all stages of direct instruction for it to be truly effective.

Most effective with

• Older students

• Math

• Grammar (spelling, punctuation)

• Introducing new skills and concepts

• Social studies lecture – facts and dates

• Safety issues

The End…