Transcript Increasing Explicitness in Phonemic Awareness and Phonics Instruction Sharon Walpole University of Delaware Michael C.

Increasing Explicitness in
Phonemic Awareness and
Phonics Instruction
Sharon Walpole
University of Delaware
Michael C. McKenna
University of Virginia
Today’s Goals
Learn about direct instruction techniques
to teach early reading skills
Consider instructional procedures in direct
instruction
Consider chances to incorporate these
techniques in your whole-group and
needs-based instruction
Back in School
Apply concepts from our book study to
increase explicitness in first-grade
lessons
Test your modified plan for three days in a
first-grade classroom
Consider strategies to share what you
learned with the rest of the first-grade
team
Let’s look at teacher directions for four
lessons, each taken from a different
core program, to introduce the sound of
the letter B.
Think about your struggling readers.
Teacher reads poem
Teacher rereads and asks students to clap
when they hear a word beginning with /b/
Teacher models /p/ + /ig/ = /pig/
“Now you blend; what word is: /b/+/ig/ /f/+/ig/
/r/+/ig/
“I need four volunteers to hold up letter cards.”
“What letter do I need to add to /ig/ to get /big/?
Who should hold up their card?”
“What letter do I need to add to …”
(ran/hat/get/bit)
“b,g,r can also be heard at the end of a word”
“What letter do I need to add to the end of /ka/
to get cab? /tu/ to get tub? /be/ to get beg?”
Read sentence and exaggerate the /b/
“Baby Bobby blows big bubbles.”
Underline each B while reading.
“What’s the sound of B?”
“Read this sentence with me.”
Touch each B while they read with you.
“What other words begin with the letter B?”
List their words and add others for variety.
If they offer a word that does not begin with /b/,
record on different list and contrast with list of
/b/ words.
Have all read through list of /b/ words together.
Underline B in each word as it is read.
Record letters on chart as you discuss the
sound of each.
Write Bb on chart.
“The sound for B is /b/.” “What is the
sound for B?”
“Let’s review.” Record Hh and repeat
lesson.
Continue with Dd Ll Gg Cc
If they get it wrong, correct immediately
and have students repeat.
“My turn. When I touch it I’ll say it.”
Touch b quickly say /b/ - repeat 3 times
“Your turn. When I touch it you say it.”
Pause.
“Get ready.”
Touch b.
“Again.”
Touch b. Repeat until all are firm with sound
“Get ready to say two sounds when I touch
them.”
Alternate b and p.
How do these letter-sound lessons
compare?
How do they differ?
Some GARF Assumptions
 First-grade achievement is critically
important in our schools.
 Our state-wide data indicate that firstgrade achievement varies widely.
 We must consider improvements in our
whole-group and in our needs-based
instruction to improve achievement.
What experience do you have
with direct instruction?
“Big DI”
Direct Instruction
“Little di”
direction instruction
Nickname for a set of
commercial programs
often used in special
education.
General concept, with a
long history, that can be
used to inform
instructional design or
delivery.
What does research say about
direct instruction?
 There is evidence that direct instruction can
be effective (CSRQ Center Report).
 There is evidence that it is not always
effective (e.g., Ryder, Burton, & Silberg,
2006).
 There is controversy over the role of the
curriculum designers in the program
evaluations (e.g., Stahl, Duffy-Hester, & Stahl,
1998).
A Closer Look at Direct Instruction
During the 1970s and 80s, researchers worked to identify the
characteristics of effective teaching. They asked two key
questions:
1. What do more-effective teachers do that less-effective
teachers don’t?
2. If less-effective teachers learn and apply these
techniques, will the learning of their students increase?
In 1986, a now-classic article by Barak Rosenshine
appeared in Educational Leadership. In it, he
summarized the findings of the huge body of
effectiveness research.
The result is a teaching model called “explicit instruction,” or
sometimes “direct instruction.”
The explicit teaching model is sometimes divided into
three phases:
1
Introduction of new
material, organized
into clear objectives,
tied to previous
learning, and accompanied by modeling
and monitoring by the
teacher
2
Guided
Practice
3
Independent
Practice
Keep in mind that most of the researchers who
studied effective teachers were not specifically
interested in reading instruction. This is why the
model sounds generic. It can be applied to nearly
any content subject!
When reading researchers, such as the National
Reading Panel, say that research favors “explicit,
systematic” instruction, this is the model they
mean.
Now let’s look more closely at the characteristics
Rosenshine extracted from the research.
For your teaching to be explicit, you should …
 Begin the lesson with a short statement of goals.
 Begin the lesson with a short review of previous, prerequisite
learning.
 Present new material in small steps, with student practice after each
step.
 Give clear and detailed instructions and explanations.
 Provide active practice for all students.
 Ask many questions, check for student understanding, and obtain
responses from all students.
 Guide students during initial practice.
 Provide systematic feedback and corrections.
 Provide explicit instruction and practice for seatwork exercises and,
where necessary, monitor students during seatwork.
 Continue practice until students are independent and confident.
– Rosenshine (1986), pp. 60, 62
Direct
Explicit
Some confusion can occur when the phrase, “direct
instruction” is used interchangeably with “explicit
instruction.” This is because a publishing company
has long used “Direct Instruction” in the name of its
commercial products. One way to avoid confusion
is to say “Little d-i” when referring to explicit
teaching and “Big D-I” when referring to the
product. Of course, you can also avoid confusion
by using the phrase “explicit instruction.”
Our study group book
today is designed for
teachers who want to
apply specific procedures
from “little d-i” to their own
core scope and sequence.
Some of the authors have
been associated with Big
D-I curriculum design, and
they have written this book
specifically for an
audience not using D-I.
If we are adapting the procedures of
direct instruction, why not just use
their commercial materials?
You are likely to recognize that
some di procedures are
already built in to your core;
others may be unnecessary
for your children. In GARF,
you can use both materials
and instructional strategies
based on research findings.
Criticisms of core programs
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Too many activities.
Vague directions.
No assessment or progress monitoring.
Too much too fast for struggling readers.
Teacher language too difficult.
Carnine, Silbert, Kame’enui, Tarver, & Jungjohann, 2006,
Chapter 2.
Little di teaching procedures
1. Model (teacher demonstrates directly)
2. Lead (teacher responds with the
students, as in choral reading)
3. Test (students respond on their own)
4. Plan teacher talk so that students
understand it and it is repetitive
Carnine, Silbert, Kame’enui, Tarver, & Jungjohann, 2006,
Chapter 3.
Basic di lesson characteristics
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Homogeneous small group
Choral response
Teacher hand signals
Brisk instructional pacing
Procedures for teacher monitoring the
learning of each child
6. Error correction strategies
Carnine, Silbert, Kame’enui, Tarver, & Jungjohann, 2006,
Chapter 4.
Coaches’ Corner
To what extent are these instructional
design concepts already in your core?
What specific areas do you think could
be improved?
As we work on collaborative study group
tasks this year, we have two goals:
1. To wrestle with new content and
consider ways to use that content to
improve teaching and learning
2. To wrestle with our own presentation
skills and consider ways to present the
content clearly and meaningfully to
other adults
Ground Rules for Jigsaw Activities
 Form groups that cross districts and programs.
 Do not engage anyone in sidebar conversations.
 Work for consensus as well as completeness in
your group; take responsibility for everyone’s
understanding.
 Be sure that everyone has a role in your final
presentation.
 We will begin by planning 45 minutes to read
and prepare and 1 hour to share.
Group #1: Rhyming,
Segmenting, and Blending
1. Read chapter 5, pp. 35-53.
2. Discuss the main ideas in the chapter, and
prepare a chart paper summary to share.
3. Prepare a teaching demonstration for the
chart on page 51 (segmenting and
blending) and one for the chart on page 52
(teaching rhyming)
Group #2: Teaching LetterSound Correspondence
1. Read Chapters 7 and 8, pp. 65-86.
2. Discuss the main ideas in the chapters, and
prepare a chart paper summary to share.
3. Prepare a teaching demonstration for the
chart on page 80 (teaching letter-sound
correspondence) and one for the chart on
page 86 (teaching common letter
combinations).
Group #3: Beginning Word
Reading
1. Read Chapter 9, pp. 87-112.
2. Discuss the main ideas in the chapters, and
prepare a chart paper summary to share.
3. Prepare a teaching demonstration for the
chart on page 111 (sounding out regular
words) and one for the chart on page 112
(sight-word reading with regular words).
Group #4: Primary Word
Reading
1. Read Chapter 10, pp. 113-139
2. Discuss the main ideas in the chapters, and
prepare a chart paper summary to share.
3. Prepare a teaching demonstration for the
chart on page 137 (reading words with
common letter combinations) and one for
the chart on page 138 (reading words with
affixes).
Let’s Plan . . .
Critically examine the language and procedures in
your core to identify areas that could be improved.
Consider ideas from the teaching demonstrations
and the book to increase explicitness in first-grade
lessons.
Use data and your core to decide what to teach.
Use procedures we’ve reviewed today to decide
how to teach – if improvements are necessary.
Back in School
Apply concepts from our book study to increase
explicitness in first-grade lessons
Test your modified plan for three days in a firstgrade classroom
Consider strategies to share what you learned
with the rest of the first-grade team
And we’ll begin our next session with your
report!
References
Comprehensive School Reform Quality Center and American Institutes
for Research (no date). CSRQ Center Report on Elementary School
Comprehensive School Reform Models. csrq.org/reports.asp
Carnine, D. W., Silbert, J., Kame’enui, E. J., Tarver, S. G., &
Jungjohann, K. (2006). Teaching struggling and at-risk readers: A
direct instruction approach. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.
Rosenshine, B. V. (1986). Synthesis of research on explicit teaching.
Educational Leadership, 43(7), 60-69.
Ryder, R. J., Burton, J. L., & Silberg, A. (2006). Longitudinal study of
Direct Instruction effects from first through third grades. The Journal
of Educational Research, 99, 179-191.
Stahl, S. A., Duffy-Hester, A. M., & Stahl, K. A. D. (1998). Theory and
research into practice: Everything you wanted to know about phonics
(but were afraid to ask). Reading Research Quarterly, 33, 338-355.