Instructional Strategies

Instructional Strategies

Categories of Strategies

Direct Instruction • Teacher-directed • Most commonly used • Used for delivering information • Useful for introducing other teaching methods • How to: • Lecture • Demonstrations • Drill & Practice • Compare & Contrast • Reading, Listening, Viewing, Thinking

Indirect Instruction • Student-centered • Can complement direct instruction • Students observe, investigate, form hypotheses • Takes advantage of interests and curiosity • Encourages students to generate alternatives or solve problems • Teacher becomes facilitator and supporter • How to: • Case Studies • Reflective Discussion • Concept Mapping • Writing to inform

Experimental Learning • Student-centered • Activity oriented • Most effective when followed with personal reflection and other application • Focus is on the process of learning rather than the product • Process: experience, share, analyze, infer, apply • How to: • Field trip • Narrative • Conducting Experiments • Role-playing • Games • Surveys

Independent Study • Student-centered (individual) • Range of methods provided to foster self-reliance and self-improvement • Can be initiated by either the student or teacher • In MS, generally planned • How to: • Essays • Journals • Reports • Homework • Research projects

Interactive Instruction • Student-centered • Relies heavily on discussion and sharing withpeers • Learn from others to develop social skills, to organize thoughts, and to develop arguments • Teacher outlines the topic, gives amount of time and size of groups; then, students report • Teacher must be good at facilitating and structuring • How to: • Debates • Role playing • Brainstorming • Jigsaw • Interviewing • Discussion

Lecture • Teacher speaks to the class, usually followed with a discussion. Generally used to cover many facts in a short period of time. Very common method. • Pros: Teacher can convey a lot of information at once. • Cons: Can be very boring and monotonous.

Jigsaw • Students become expert on one assigned piece of a topic, then teach to their group of 4-5 • Pros: students learn to research and report most important facts. Students learn by teaching. • Cons: students may focus solely on their own topic, and may not absorb others. Students might not do their part.

Brainstorming • Teacher poses a question to students and students are free to respond with whatever first comes to mind without penalty. • Pros: Teacher can see where students are with a subject. Gets students thinking ahead. • Cons: Students may be unmotivated to brainstorm if there is no direct reward.

Field Trips • Students physically visit a location to experience a subject or topic • Subject or topic is limited in a classroom • Pros: Can learn things a classroom would limit. Learn from an expert in the subject. • Cons: May be expensive. Keeping kids focused and participating may be difficult.

Role-Playing • Students act out a theme, situation, or idea. • Pros: Initiates creativity. Can be fun. Helps students see through new perspectives. • Cons: Some students may be too shy.

Presentations • Student(s) research a topic and give an oral presentation/ demonstration to the class. • Pros: If in a group, students can learn to work with other students. Forces students to become an expert on a topic. • Cons: If in a group, work may be unbalanced between group members. Students may not complete the project or do enough research.

Guest Speakers • A person who comes to speak to a class about their skill(s), expertise(s), or experience(s). • Pros: Real world connection with topic. Exciting to have new person in the classroom. Expert on the subject. • Cons: Students may be disrespectful. Can be hard to find guest speakers.

Debates • Students discuss a topic with an opposing side. An argument facilitated and (if needed) mediated by the teacher. • Pros: Students learn to express opinions and learn others’ opinions. Students learn about research in the process. • Cons: Students could get too heated. Some students may not want to participate either out of indifference or fear of stating opinions.

Cooperative Learning • Students get together and try to work together to understand a topic or develop a skill. In other words, group work. • Pros: Informal; takes pressure off to work together. • Cons: Students may not participate or may be too shy to work with other students. Can get off topic quickly.

Games • An activity that utilizes play as a learning tool. • Pros: A break from regular teaching. Usually hands-on/visual. Fun! • Cons: Students can sometimes lose focus and not take away the things they should.

We need to add in some creativity to spice things up and to reach those who “think differently.” • This helps teach others to think outside the box, too!

Think Outside the Box • Connect ALL the dots, without lifting your pencil from the paper, using only 4 straight lines (use a straight edge!)

Solution!

Now… • Connect the dots using only 3 straight lines. Use a straight edge!

Solution!

Finally… • Can anyone think of a way to connect all the dots using only 2 or even 1 straight lines? (There are solutions)

Solutions! • Tear paper/cut paper with scissors into 3 pieces, so you have 3 columns of 3 dots ripped out. Line them up so they make on long line of 9 dots, and draw a line straight across. • If I had given you a thick paintbrush, you could paint one line over all the dots. • What else?

Are you Ready to Remember?

Review • Time to take out your handout of strategies! • Journal for about 3-5 minutes. Write down • Which strategies have worked best for you as a student • Which ones haven’t worked so well for you as a student • What ones you’d be interested in using as a teacher of a middle level • Some strategies: debate, field trip, guest speaker, game, jigsaw, journal, role-playing, presentation, brainstorm, lecture, cooperative learning

GNATS (Go Now and Tell Someone!) • Find a partner, tell them 2 things you learned from today’s seminar/workshop. • Repeat til we say stop!

Instructional Strategies