Dear WA colleagues,
Learning ‘Thought Night’
Effective Instruction
Guiding questions
What are the characteristics of effective classroom instruction?
What makes the most effective teaching instruction and why?
What makes the least effective teaching instruction and why?
Linking memory to instruction
In a recent book, I read Cognitive load theory in practice Examples for the classroom (CESE (2018). the book highlights research that indicates that the less knowledge pupils have in long-term memory, the more support and guidance they will need from the teacher. Thinking back to the simple model of memory (Willingham, 2009), without long-term memory knowledge, new information can quickly feel overwhelming, and the learner may experience cognitive overload (Sweller et al., 2019). Pupils lacking prior knowledge benefit from fully guided, explicit instruction to manage the load on working memory (Kirschner et al., 2006). This means methodically taking pupils through an explanation or process step-by-step, leaving no gaps. Without this explicit, fully guided instruction, pupils lacking prior knowledge are prone to developing misconceptions (Kirschner et al., 2006).
To teach explicitly, we can break down explanations and models into steps, deliver them explicitly, and regularly check pupils' understanding (Rosenshine, 2012).
Working memory, where information is consciously processed, is limited in capacity. When pupils are processing information, distractions may cause pupils to completely lose track of what is being explained (Gathercole et al., 2006).
Explicit teaching coupled with good behaviour for learning is likely to focus pupils' attention on the critical knowledge, skills, and concepts they need to know. It helps to manage pupils' cognitive load, which should be a key consideration when as teachers, we deliver our lessons.
Fully guided, explicit instruction when successful carried out, will help pupils gain:
more organised knowledge in long-term memory,
Stronger mental models and
Greater expertise.
As pupils gain expertise, we can look to reduce scaffolding and support (CESE, 2018; Kalyuga, 2007). Pupils can be shown how to tackle more complex problems and questions (Pashler et al., 2007).
Pupils need subject-specific knowledge of what they are evaluating if they are to do it well. For example, these pupils will not be able to evaluate the most important cause of the Great War without subject-specific knowledge of it.
teachers need to build pupils’ subject-specific knowledge so pupils can use skills in relation to this knowledge.
the method of instruction his teachers use should depend on the prior knowledge of their pupils.
Pupils will benefit from a lot of support and guidance (scaffolding) which can be gradually removed as they become more knowledgeable.
Take Aways:
For effective practice, there is the need to improve the way as teachers we explain new concepts to pupils to avoid pupils being cognitively overloaded.
We need to develop our understanding of how to best manage pupils’ cognitive load through teachers’ instructional practices backed by research.
Research Explanations
Learners understand new material in relation to what they already know (Willingham, 2009).
Application:
Teachers should start by explicitly linking the concept they are explaining to pupils’ prior knowledge (Rosenshine, 2012).
Avoid giving pupils too much information simultaneously (Deans for Impact, 2015).
Make it obvious and explicit precisely what you want pupils to take from the explanation.
Breaking down explanations into bite-sized chunks may help pupils focus better on the content and avoid cognitive overload.
Use examples. Teachers' examples during their explanations are essential for pupils’ understanding (Wittwer & Renkl, 2010). Abstract concepts are particularly challenging for pupils to understand.
Select examples carefully to make abstract concepts such as ‘urbanisation’ in geography or ‘covalent bonding’ in chemistry more concrete for pupils. It can then be effective when delivering these examples to interleave (alternate) the concrete and abstract examples and help pupils draw links between them so they understand the abstract concept.
When explaining concepts directly and explicitly, do not talk about everything (Deans for Impact, 2015). Get input from pupils and ask questions to check that they understand.
Effective instruction relies on pupils knowing what success looks like. Using models and questioning to support pupils’ understanding helps us as teachers develop our practice. There is a need to continue to provide learners with high-quality models and expose the key features and thinking behind them.
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