What Every Teacher Needs to Know
Jade Pearce
Tips for Teachers: Explicit Instruction for Novice Learners
Jade was interviewed on Craig Barton’s podcast, Tips for Teachers.
You can find Jade’s book here - I am reading it now - it is really useful.
My thoughts are in the block quotes.
Introduction
This podcast episode discusses the importance of explicit instruction for novice learners.
What is Explicit Instruction?
Explicit instruction is a teacher-led approach where the learning process is clearly guided.
It is the opposite of discovery learning, where students are expected to figure things out for themselves.
Explicit instruction is most effective for novice learners who lack background knowledge on a topic.
A novice learner is anyone learning something new - so it is not linked to age or intelligence.
Apparently there is still a great debate in schools between teachers who want students to be taught explicitly, and teachers who believe students will be much more motivated and engaged if they find things out for themselves.
Why is Explicit Instruction Effective for Novice Learners?
Cognitive Load:
Our working memory has limited capacity.
Explicit instruction reduces cognitive load by breaking down complex information into smaller chunks.
This allows learners to transfer information from working memory to long-term memory for better recall.
Expertise Levels:
Experts have well-developed schemas (knowledge structures) in long-term memory.
Novice learners lack these schemas and need explicit guidance to build them.
Strategies for Explicit Instruction
Chunking: Break complex material into small, manageable pieces.
Clear Explanations: Deliver concise explanations that highlight key points.
Examples: Use examples and non-examples to illustrate concepts.
Modelling: Demonstrate skills through teacher-led modeling, class deconstruction of examples, or scaffolding.
Scaffolding: Provide temporary support (e.g., graphic organizers) to help learners complete tasks.
Extended Practice: Move from fully guided practice with scaffolding to independent practice as learners gain mastery.
This should be a checklist for your schemes of work and lesson planning. It is incredibly useful.
The fashion for planning individual lessons on PPT slides makes it very difficult to get an overview of this.
PPT destroys learning from within:
They include extraneous imagery, or branding, or information
You can’t easily go back to learning from previous lessons, or signpost where the learning is going in future lessons
What students have in their books is often different to the PPT slide, causing split attention
Teachers often have to turn their back to the class, as they want to add things in the lesson, and use a white board to the side
Students cannot revise from them, or learn from them independently
The Solution is Booklet Design
Booklets get rid of each of those problems.
But they are also perfect as a way to build those 6 essential components.
Addressing Concerns about Explicit Instruction
Myth: Explicit Instruction = Making Everything Easy
Explicit instruction is about clearly introducing new content, not making things effortless.
It allows for deeper exploration of challenging material later.
Myth: Discovery Learning = Productive Struggle
There's a difference between productive struggle and struggling because of a lack of direction.
Explicit instruction ensures all learners, especially those who struggle, gain a solid foundation.
Myth: Productive Failure is Necessary for Learning
Briefly activating prior knowledge can be beneficial.
Extended struggle can lead to misconceptions. Explicit instruction can be used to address these misconceptions effectively.
Chunking and Explanation:
Break complex information into smaller, manageable pieces (chunking).
Deliver clear explanations that highlight key points.
Questioning Techniques:
Use a variety of questioning techniques to ensure all students participate:
Wait Time: Give students enough time to think before responding (3-5 seconds for factual questions, longer for open ended questions).
Everybody Writes: Have all students write down their answer before responding.
Cold Calling: Select a student to answer the question, not just those who volunteer.
Positive Reinforcement: Encourage participation by acknowledging students who raise their hands.
Planning Effective Questions:
Effective questioning requires careful planning.
Consider:
What do you want students to understand?
What questions will assess their understanding?
How will students respond (written, verbal, etc.) to maximize participation?
Effective Retrieval Practice: Key Takeaways for Teachers
1. Retrieval Looks Different Across Subjects and Grade Levels
Retrieval practice should be adapted to the specific content and age of the learners.
For younger students, the focus might be on factual recall with games and activities.
As students progress through school, retrieval practice can include higher-order thinking skills and can be delivered in formats like quizzes or homework assignments.
One of Jade’s ideas was that factual recall should be done for homework, while higher order thinking should be the kind of recall tested in class - for example, combining facts to solve a problem or answer a larger question.
This is an intriguing and logical idea - the teacher’s expertise is what will make the difference in giving feedback.
But I think it is a mistake to see this as either/or. When we map out what students actually need to know, it is impossible to fit retrieval exclusively into homework.
2. Retrieval from Long-Term Memory
Retrieval practice should assess information stored in long-term memory, not short-term memory.
This means students should not be allowed to use notes or resources during retrieval practice.
It is recommended that retrieval practice is done individually, not collaboratively.
3. Effective Retrieval Practice Strategies
Corrective Feedback: Provide feedback to address misconceptions and confirm correct answers.
Spacing: Space out retrieval practice sessions to optimize retrieval strength and storage strength.
Allow for Forgetting: Some forgetting is expected before retrieval practice to maximize gains.
Challenge and Support: Balance the challenge of retrieval practice with providing support through hints or cues as needed.
Factual and Higher-Order Retrieval: Incorporate both factual recall and higher-order thinking skills in retrieval practice.
Success and Repetition: Allow students to experience success and repeat retrieval practice to solidify knowledge in long-term memory.
What does success look like?
Jade’s summaries of the most important research are really interesting and useful. But anyone’s summaries are also biased and partial.
For me, the most important takeaway from Rosenshine is that students (or indeed adults) need 80% success rate.
It is the most important because it is not a feature of learning much mentioned in any other studies. The implications of this 80% figure are huge. I won’t go into them all here - but it means that you have to be very intentional in what you retrieve and when.
It also means that the most important data your knowledge testing gives you is whether you need to change the curriculum.
If hard working students aren’t getting 80% on factual recall, your curriculum is wrong.
4. Scheduling Retrieval Practice
A retrieval practice curriculum can be helpful to plan retrieval alongside new content.
A general guideline is to revisit information after about four weeks, but this can be adjusted based on the complexity of the material and student performance.
Retrieval practice for teachers. Here are the key takeaways:
Scheduling retrieval practice in advance is important to ensure all topics are covered.
Feedback should focus on improvement, not grades. It should also be actionable and timely.
Consider using live marking or whole-class feedback to improve efficiency and quality.
Written feedback is not always necessary and can be a waste of time.
Focus on what students are learning, not just what they are writing down in their books.
Teachers should be empowered to choose the methods that work best for them and their students.
Encouraging teachers to read research can greatly improve their teaching practice.
Providing teachers with time and resources to access and understand research is essential.
I’ve never been able to persuade teachers to read research - not at scale. I wish I could.
I always ask myself, ‘how can I make the research work for teachers who have no time or interest for it?’ Perhaps I will find out more in the last third of the book - I’m looking forward to it.
Podcasts and posts like these are perhaps a useful bridge. But, if you want to know more, Jade’s book is a fantastic resource.