Effective Instruction

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ED 1010

“We tend to teach the way we have been taught, not the way we have been taught to teach. Break the cycle.”

Peggy Saunders2

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Cognitive Learning Theory Principles• Learning depends on experiences. • Learners construct—they do not record—

knowledge in an attempt to make sense of their experiences.

• Knowledge that is constructed depends on and builds on knowledge that learners already possess.

• Learning is enhanced by social interaction.

• Learning requires practice and feedback.

Learning depends on experiences• What experiences do students

bring to the classroom?• What experiences do you need to

provide in the classroom?• Could this be different depending

on the community? Age of students? Content?

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Learners construct knowledge in an attempt to make sense of their experiences• Learners first try to fit new experiences

into existing mental frameworks (schemas) – even if they don’t logically (to you) fit

• If the mismatch is too great, they will construct new frameworks based on their understandings and experiences.

• The frameworks constructed by students may assist in their learning and understanding or be a stumbling block. 5

Knowledge that is constructed depends on and builds on knowledge that learners already possess. • As teachers, it’s important to

“activate prior knowledge” or help students remember ideas that relate to new knowledge.

• Teachers need to give students assistance in the accurate construction of knowledge.

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Learning is enhanced by social interaction• Social interaction helps students

make sense of their world• Social interaction helps student

refine their understandings. • How to do this? Discussions,

Think-Pair-Share, etc.

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Learning requires practice and feedback• Perfect practice makes perfect –

imperfect practice cements misunderstandings.

• Use feedback to help students arrive at more accurate and sophisticated understandings of the world around them.

• Lack of independent practice leads to lack of mastery. 8

Which Cognitive Learning Theory Principle?• Mrs. Smith asks her students to

talk to their partner about how division of fractions is like division of whole numbers.

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Which Cognitive Learning Theory Principle?• Mr. Jones, a fourth grade teacher,

takes his students on a field trip to the Bingham Canyon Copper Mine before studying about the influence of mining on Utah history.

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Which Cognitive Learning Theory Principle?• Ms. Jones has her students do an

experiment with water, alcohol, and ice to evaluate the density of each.

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Which Cognitive Learning Theory Principle?• Mr. Ali takes his students writing

papers home so he has the time to really read them well and give the students good comments.

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Motivation

• Extrinsic motivation- receive some incentive

• Intrinsic motivation- interest or enjoyment in the task itself

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Motivated students

• Have more positive attitudes toward school

• Persist on more difficult tasks• Cause fewer management

problems• Learn information to a deeper level• Excel in classroom activities

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Increasing motivation thru effective instruction• Attract and focus student attention

at the beginning of the lesson• Personalize the material with real

world applications• Involve students

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Planning for Effective Teaching• Select topics• Specify learning objectives• Prepare and organize learning

activities• Plan for assessment• Ensure instructional alignment

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Steps in Effective InstructionUnderstanding by Design

(Wiggins and McTighe)

1. Identify Desired Results

2. Determine Acceptable Evidence

3. Plan of Action

OBJECTIVES

ASSESSMENTS

LESSONSBackwards Design

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Identify Desired Results

• Learning Objective– What do you want students to know

and be able to do?

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Determine Acceptable Evidence• How will you know if students

“know and can do” the objective? – What types of assessments are there?

• Alignment: Assessment needs to assess the knowledge or skill listed in the objective

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Plan of Action

• What will you, the teacher, do to instruct students to help them be able to accomplish the objective and successfully complete the assessment?

• Alignment: Lesson needs to teach students the objective explicitly so they can be successful on the assessment.

Teacher Characteristics

• Personal teaching efficacy• Positive expectations• Modeling and enthusiasm

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Essential Teaching Skills

• Organization• Clear communication• Focus• Questioning• Feedback• Review and closure

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Teacher Organization

• Maximizes instructional time and minimizes possibilities for management problems

• Effective teachers:– Establish routines– Prepare materials in advance– Start on time– Make smooth transitions

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Essential Components of Clear Communication• Language clarity

– Precise terminology and elimination of vague terms in questions and explanations

• Thematic lessons– Topics are related and lead to a specific point

• Transition signals– Indicate when one idea is ending and another

beginning and how the two are related

• Emphasis– Alerts students to the most important ideas in

a lesson

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Effective Questioning

• Frequency– Actively involves all students

• Equitable distribution– Invites all students to participate in

the lesson• Wait-time

– Gives students time to think about and answer the question

• Prompting– Assists students when they are

unable to answer

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Benefits of Increased Wait-Time• The length and quality of student

responses improve.• Failures to respond are reduced.• Student participation in general, as

well as participation from minority students, improves.

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Effective Instruction in Urban Classrooms• Uses examples to illustrate

abstract and hard-to-grasp concepts

• Actively involves students through interactive questioning

• Provides ample opportunities for practice and feedback

VIDEO

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Four Basic Models of Instruction1. Direct instruction 2. Lecture-discussion 3. Guided discovery4. Cooperative learning

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In Your Group

• Learn about your assigned instructional model– Resources: Textbook, internet

• Be prepared to teach a small group about your model, using the model to instruct

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Instructional Model Summary

Direct Instruction• Designed to teach essential knowledge and

skills needed for later learning

Lecture-Discussion• Designed to help students acquire organized

bodies of knowledge and understand the relationships of ideas within them

• Organized bodies of knowledge connect facts, concepts, generalizations, and principles, and make the relationships among them explicit.

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Instructional Model SummaryGuided Discovery

• Designed to teach concepts and generalizations through the use of examples

• Provides more teacher guidance and assistance than “pure” discovery

Cooperative Learning• A collection of teaching strategies that uses

structured student social interaction to meet specific content goals and teach social interaction skills

• Essential components– Students work together in small groups.– Learning objectives direct the groups’ activities.– Social interaction is emphasized.– Students are held individually accountable for their

understanding.– Learners depend on one another to reach objectives.

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Teacher-Centered Versus Learner-Centered Instruction

• Major issue: How active a role should teachers play in directing student learning?

• Historically, classroom instruction has been teacher-centered, with teachers telling and lecturing, assuming major control of instruction.

• In learner-centered instruction, teachers guide learners toward an understanding of the topics they study.

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Teacher-Centered Versus Learner-Centered Instruction

• Criticisms of teacher-centered instruction– Based on antiquated views of learning– Emphasizes student verbalization and overt

performance versus true understanding• Criticisms of learner-centered

instruction– De-emphasizes learning of basic skills– Inefficient in terms of time and energy– Not compatible with current emphasis on

standards and accountability