Transcript Research Evidence to Support the Consultation Model in Itinerant Early Childhood Special Education Services Distributed Instruction vs.

Research Evidence to
Support the
Consultation Model in
Itinerant Early
Childhood Special
Education Services
Distributed Instruction
vs. Massed
Instruction……
The Spacing Effect
What It Is and Why It Should
Matter to Itinerant Early
Childhood Special Education
Professionals
Research and
Development Support
Margie Spino, M.A.
Doctoral Student - U. Toledo
Consultation vs. One-to-One and
Small Group Instruction in Itinerant
ECSE Services: Which is More
Efficient ?
• The adoption of a consultation model as
the primary mode of intervention in
IECSE services must be based on the
the effectiveness of instruction vs.
traditional patterns of practice
Rationale for Consultation /
Coaching in IECSE Services
If periodic or episodic intervention (usually 60-90
minutes per week in traditional IECSE service
delivery) is as efficient as distributed or spaced
instruction (or practice), then there is no need to
adopt a consultation model as the primary mode
of intervention
• However….. if distributed or spaced instruction or
practice is a more efficient model of learning, then
adoption of a consultation approach to IECSE
intervention is warranted

Rationale for Consultation /
Coaching in IECSE Services

If consultation is to be considered as a preferred
alternative to 60-90 minute, one-to-one or
teacher-directed small group instruction, then
the research base related to efficiency of child
learning must be examined
Research Support:
Distributed Instruction and Practice
Adults
 Ebbinghaus,
1885/1964
 Donovan & Radosevich, 1999, meta-analysis
 Cepeda, Pashler, Vul, Wixted & Rohrer, 2006,
meta-analysis
Children - ages 3 months to 8 years old
 Childers
& Tomasello, 2002 (word learning)
 Rea & Modigliani, 1985 (spelling, math)
 Rovee-Collier, 1995 (visual recognition)
 Seabrook, Brown, & Solity, 2005 (phonics)
Massed vs. Distributed Practice
Massed Practice
• Child instructed with
same materials,
multiple times in
single session, without
a break
• EXAMPLE:
Identifying basic
shapes for 20 minutes
in one day
Distributed Practice
• Child practices with same or
different materials, multiple
times, with breaks between
instruction/ practice
• EXAMPLE: Practice
identifying basic shapes for
10 mins. during sessions
scheduled several times per
week
Research with Children
Rea and Modigliani,1985
 3rd graders (8.5 years) taught spelling words and
math facts


Students ranked as Level 1 (top half of class) or Level 2
(bottom half of class)
Results:


Better on spelling and math tests when had spaced
instruction rather than massed instructions
Spaced instruction was better for both Level 1 and 2
students (ability level didn’t matter)
Seabrook, Brown & Solity, 2005

Experiment

Task: 34 children (mean age 5 years.6 mos.) taught
phonics over two weeks

Schedule:



Clustered = one, 6-minute session per day within a
regular classroom setting.
Distributed = three, 2-minute sessions per day within a
regular classroom setting
Results: Children in distributed condition had test
scores 6 times greater than children in clustered
condition
Childers and Tomasello, 2002

How many times (and how many days) does
a 2-yr old need to hear a word to learn it?

In 2 experiments, 2 yr olds were taught ‘silly’
nouns and verbs (words they had never
seen) over the course of a month in sessions
lasting 5 - 10 min
Childers and Tomasello, 2002
Results:
• Best learning occurred when teaching was distributed
• The more days that children heard the words, the better
able they were to learn the words
 Best = 4 days, 3 days
 Worst = 1 day, 2 days
•
Children learned words better if they heard the words
1x/day for 4 days rather than 8x/day for I day
Major Findings

Spacing (distributing) instruction benefited
children and adults whether the tasks were
physical or cognitive.

Spacing instruction within the day (e.g., three
2-min sessions/day) or across days (e.g.,
1x/day for 4 days) helped children learn.
Implications for
Education Practice

Current laws state that educational practice needs
to be research-based (NCLB; IDEIA, 2004)

How should we schedule instruction for young
children?


Massed vs Spaced ? Research supports Spaced
How should we schedule the Itinerant ECSE
teacher’s time?

Direct instruction vs. Consultation / Coaching ?
Research suggests Consultation/Coaching
Distributed
Practice
Research
Results
Better
Learning
with
Distributed
Practice
Project DIRECT Web Site
http://www.utoledo.edu/education/direct/
Web Site Includes:
• Training Modules related to Itinerant ECSE Services
• Articles and Links to Resources
• Professional Development Tool (P.I.E.C.E.S.)
• Information re: Training Sessions
Contact Information:
Laurie Dinnebeil, Ph.D. – [email protected]
Bill McInerney, Ph.D. – [email protected]
Lyn Hale, Ph.D. – [email protected]
Margie Spino, M.A. – [email protected]
Judith Herb College of Education - MS 954
The University of Toledo
2801 W. Bancroft St.,
Toledo, OH 43606