Tell it to Me Straight!

I loved seeing the highly varied lessons presented in our class. I think they were a fun reflection of us as individuals. Best of all, it was great to see Direct Instruction in action. It helped me mentally cement the steps.

I noticed that the most commonly missed step was guided practice with corrective feedback; therefore I would identify this as the "easiest to leave out". I can see how easy it is to present information, but forget to give the students opportunity to show you (as the teacher) what they heard you say. After all, this is time-consuming and sometimes a little tricky to set up. It is easier and faster to assign homework and correct it the next day. And yet like all good things that take time, I see the value in it. Students will only waste their time and possibly have to unlearn a skill if they independently practice something incorrectly. A brief period of guided practice with corrective feedback will make the step of independent practice more valuable.

I think the least natural step for me is the first step. I'm inclined to jump into things "head first", making it easy to skip the connection step. It's easy for me to review previously learned material, if the new information is a continuation of previously learned information. But, if the information is new (for example a new unit), reviewing the information would not happen naturally for me.

I think that independent practice would be miserable for students if guided practice was not done well. I have watched my own children agonize over homework that they had no idea how to do. In fact, I remember being a student feeling miserable and frustrated over homework that I didn't understand.

I believe the greatest weakness in the model of direct instruction is in its propensity to be boring! And yet, I also believe that it is possible to make the step of "presenting new material" engaging, but that it takes creative effort. And, for me, therein lies the fun!