Instructional Design
D. Lemon
NC Teach II
April 4, 2009
Teaching is Complex
Teaching involves much more than
telling students information.
 It involves classroom management,
short and long term planning,
knowledge of content, knowledge of
learning styles, use of materials, and
an understanding of varied
instructional skills and strategies

Are you good enough?

Estimates of teacher effect revealed
that highly effective teachers tended to
be effective with all groups of students
regardless of initial achievement level,
while highly ineffective teachers
produced unsatisfactory gains among
all groups of students (Sanders &
Rivers, 1996).
Moreover, results were additive and cumulative,
so that the contributions of both highly effective
and ineffective teachers to students’ learning
gains could be measured for at least four years
after students left their classrooms (Sanders &
Rivers, 1996). Simulations revealed that
students who were assigned to highly effective
teachers after having been assigned to a series of
highly ineffective teachers made greater than
expected gains, but not enough to make up for
lost ground.
Children assigned to three effective teachers in a row scored at
the 83rd percentile in math at the end of 5th grade, while
children assigned to three ineffective teachers in a row scored at
the 29th percentile.
This figure illustrates results from an
equivalent study on math performance in
Dallas (Jordan, Mendro, & Weerasinghe,
1997). The results are very similar.
Planning for Instruction

The instructional
decisions we make
will increase the
probability that our
students will learn.
Elements of Effective Instruction

Teachers make hundreds of decisions
every hour. The decisions that are made
make the difference in the learning that
occurs in the classroom.
 A teacher can motivate students and can
get through to the most difficult students.
Teaching Makes a Difference!
Planning for Instruction
Planning is the key to effective
instruction
 Effective teachers spend
necessary time deciding on
how to facilitate an
environment where varied
learning styles are met.

Define Instructional Goals
An objective may be defined as a
general statement of desired
accomplishment.
Example: Given peanut butter, jelly, and
bread, the learner will follow the steps
to create a delicious sandwich.
Conduct a Task Analysis
Identify which prerequisite skills need
to be mastered to reach the
objective. The task analysis is
performed by asking "What are all of
the things the student must know
and/or be able to do to achieve the
goal?"
Prerequisite skills needed to make a
sandwich
Open the jars
 Use a knife
 Spread the peanut butter without tearing
the bread
 Spread the two ingredients evenly so
that the sandwich is not overpowered by
one taste

Select the Objective: Level of
Difficulty

If we start instruction at a level that is either
too easy or too difficult for the learners, we are
wasting their time and ours.
 Task analysis can add precision to a
teacher’s diagnosis of students’ learning
needs.
 A task analysis is done by listing the subskills
or prerequisites that are necessary for a
student to accomplish a given objective.
Select the objective at the correct
level of difficulty

Once the sublearnings are
listed, eliminate
any learnings not
essential and
sequence the
learnings.
Select an objective at the correct
level of difficulty

Make task analysis part of your daily
thinking and planning
 Before you teach, consider what your
students will need to know before you
begin
 Do they know the necessary prerequisite
skills needed to be successful?
 How can you give your students a quick
assessment to determine what they
know?
Your Turn

Think about a task that you know how to do
well. It can be something you perform each
day such as driving, cooking, changing
diapers, etc., or a task you do occasionally
such as decorating a tree or dancing
 Write the name of the task at the top of your
paper and think about all of the prerequisite
skills you need to understand and be able to
do to accomplish the task
 List all of these skills and be prepared to
discuss the process
Designing Instruction
Step One – Decide on your objective
Think:
What will the students be able to “do”
when demonstrating mastery of this
objective?
Designing Instruction
Review the lesson plan for today’s
lesson and discuss
 Using the lesson plan format given,
choose an objective you are going to
teach to others and write this goal
under “Statement of Objective”

Selecting an objective: Level of
complexity
Students have the most difficulty
with problems requiring higher levels
of thinking.
 When teachers understand the
various levels of cognition,
(domains) it is easier to write plans
that encourage mastery learning of
the objectives.

Defining Higher Levels of Thinking
Benjamin Bloom developed a
classification of thinking skills:
Bloom’s Taxonomy
 Consider the difference in difficulty
between memorizing and singing a
song and creating the words and
melody for an original one!

Bloom’s Taxonomy






Knowledge: recalling facts
Comprehension: comprehend the facts,
summarize
Application: solve a problem in a new
situation
Analysis: break down information and identify
relationships between the parts
Synthesis: bring together several pieces of
information, ideas, or skills and arrange them
into a creative new whole
Evaluation: make a judgement and give
reasons to support that particular position
Bloom’s Taxonomy
Knowledge: write, list, name, label,
define
 Understanding: summarize, explain,
describe, draw a picture, predict,
defend
 Application: develop, propose,
demonstrate, use

Bloom’s Taxonomy
Analysis: break into parts, clarify,
identify the patterns, issues
 Synthesis: design, create, compose,
invent
 Evaluation: conclude and support
that conclusion, select the best and
tell why, criticize, choose and justify
your decision

Revised Bloom
Original Terms
New Terms

Evaluation
•Creating

Synthesis
•Evaluating

Analysis
•Analysing

Application
•Applying

Comprehension
•Understanding

Knowledge
•Remembering
(Based on Pohl, 2000, Learning to Think, Thinking to Learn, p.
Sample Unit : Space
Remembering
Cut out “space” pictures from a magazine. Make a display or a
collage. List space words (Alphabet Key). List the names of the
planets in our universe. List all the things an astronaut would need
for a space journey.
Understanding
Make your desk into a spaceship, Make an astronaut for a puppet
play. Use it to tell what an astronaut does. Make a model of the
planets in our solar system.
Applying
Keep a diary of your space adventure (5 days). What sort of
instruments would you need to make space music? Make a list of
questions you would like to ask an astronaut.
Analyzing
Make an application form for a person applying for the job of an
astronaut. Compare Galileo’s telescope to a modern telescope.
Distinguish between the Russian and American space programs.
Evaluating
Compare the benefits of living on Earth and the moon. You can
take three people with you to the moon. Choose and give reasons.
Choose a planet you would like to live on- explain why.
Creating
Write a newspaper report for the following headline: “Spaceship out
of control”. Use the SCAMPER strategy to design a new space suit.
Create a game called “Space Snap”. Prepare a menu for your
spaceship crew. Design an advertising program for trips to the
moon.
Your Turn
Complete the Bloom’s
Taxonomy activities in your
group
 Each group must reach
consensus on the answers and
be able to defend your
reasoning

Teach to the Objective

Teachers must plan instruction around clearly
defined objectives NOT activities
 Think about what the learning will look like if it
is accomplished. Are you teaching what you
are assessing?
 Teacher and learner time should be spent on
the task
 There is a direct relationship between the
amount of time a student spends working on a
task and the achievement of that task
Teach to the Objective
To increase student achievement in your
classroom:
 specify what the student is to learn
(clearly define the objective)
 find ways to keep the student involved
with the specific learning (plan teacher
and student behaviors that lead to the
accomplished task of that objective)
Teach to the objective
When selecting your activities, ask yourself the
following questions:
 What new learning(s) do I want my students to
be able to do at the end of class?
 What is the thinking skill needed to achieve this
objective?
 Does my objective match the thinking level
required of the task?
 What percent of time will be devoted to student
engagement of the pursuit of the intended
learning?
Designing Instruction
Focus and Review
Think…..
How will I generate interest in the
objective I am going to teach? What
prerequisite skills will students need
to know to be successful?
Your Turn





Review the objective you listed on your lesson
plan
Quickly complete a task analysis to review the
prerequisite skills required for success
Decide on the thinking level required for
students to successfully master the objective
Decide on a way to introduce the task and
generate interest
Complete the section for focus and review on
your lesson plan form
Monitor and Adjust
Porter and Brophy (1988):
“Effective teachers continuously monitor
their students’ understanding of
presentations and responses to
assignments. They routinely provide timely
and detailed feedback…”

Research states that the most effective
teachers ask an average of 24 questions
during a 50-minute period: the least
effective asked an average of 8.6.
Monitor and Adjust
Mager (1968): “If telling were the same as
teaching, we’d all be so smart we could
hardly stand it.” Without the monitoring
and adjusting, we’d be simply telling!

Of the variables influencing learning,
frequent assessment and feedback are
ranked among the most important.
Teaching Strategies

A traditional view of the teacher is of
someone who dispenses knowledge:
someone who Lectures, tells, disseminates,
covers material. The students sit passively
while the teacher does all of the work.
Consider the amount of information
available to students through technology.
Teaching has to change!
Effective Teaching Strategies

Demonstrations allow students to experience more
fully the information and concepts the teacher
wants to impart during the lesson. Although the
teacher is still the center of the action and the
dispenser of knowledge, students can more easily
see what they need to know and more efficiently
link it to prior knowledge in their own ways.
Students remember much better what they have
both heard and seen (or even touched, smelled, or
tasted)!
Effective Teaching Stragegies
Mastery occurs when students are able
to use the information when they need
it!
 Students need to be actively involved in
learning – what are they doing to
demonstrate the new learning?
 A great way to assess mastery is to ask
students to teach others.

Your Turn

Think about a teacher
who made an impact on
your learning
 What teaching strategies
did the teacher use to
make learning effective?
 List any strategies or
activities you remember
and be ready to share and
list on the board.
Select an Instructional Method
The purpose of selecting an
instructional method is to
identify and employ
teaching strategies and
techniques that most
effectively achieve the
performance objectives.
Active Learners
Current educational theory and research
support the use of instructional methods
that make students active learners (e.g.,
lecture, lab, small group discussion, casebased study, simulations, independent
study, etc.).
Designing Instruction
Design teaching and learning strategies to
teach the objective.
Think…..
What should the students do to effectively
learn the objective?
Designing Instruction
Teacher Input – What information do
students need to know? How will you
disseminate this information?
 Guided Practice – How will you assess if
students understand the knowledge
before assigning independent practice?
 Independent Practice - How will students
apply and practice the new knowledge?

Your Turn

Think about the objective you have
chosen to teach and decide on what
information you must provide
 How will you facilitate an environment for
students to learn this information?
 Complete the teacher input, guided
practice and independent practice part of
your lesson plan form
Monitoring Strategies

Choral responses
 Signals (thumbs
up or down)
 Write answer
down
 Discuss answer
with a partner
Steps in Monitoring and Adjusting

Elicit overt behavior:
 Check the behavior
 Interpret the behavior
 Act on the interpretation
 -Adjust the level of difficulty
 -Move on
 -Reteach
 -Abandon
Curriculum and Assessment to
Improve Teaching and Learning

Focus on standards as the basis for developing
curriculum and developing assessments
 Backward Design: Identify the NCSCOS
objectives that define what students should
know and be able to do,
 Determine the assessments that will allow the
students to demonstrate what they’ve learned,
 Decide on the instructional strategies that will
prepare students to show what they have
learned
Designing Instruction
Closure
What will students do to help them
remember the new learning?
Think……
Research tells us that the brain easily
remembers the first and last parts of a
task. How will I close the lesson to
promote further retention?
Your Turn
Review the strategies you listed to
teach your students the objective you
have chosen to teach
 How will you know they understand?
 Complete the closure section of your
lesson plan

Assessment

Should provide ongoing feedback to
students and teachers regarding what
students have learned
 Should be used to improve teaching and
learning, not simply judge and/or rank
student performance
 Should include a wide range of methods
such as traditional paper/pencil tests,
projects, performance tasks, rubrics,
portfolios, etc
Plan and Reflect
It is important to remember that sometimes
the plans that look so good on paper
actually fail in practice. Remember to
reflect on each lesson by analyzing the
teaching methods implemented and the
course materials provided. Did students
learn the intended objective? What will
you do differently next time?
Elements of a Lesson Plan





Objectives--what students will be able to do as a result of
the lesson
Standards--which state content and developmental
standards are addressed in the lesson
Procedures--what the teacher will do to get the students
there
Assessment --what the teacher can do to see if the lesson
was taught effectively: watching students work,
assigning application activities, getting feedback, etc.
Modifications/accommodations for any special needs
students in the class
Elements of Lesson Plans

Additionally, many lesson plans
also include:
Materials needed for the
class period and any special
equipment
Time estimates, and of
course procedural subpoints.
Planning for Instruction

Anticipatory Set (setting the stage)--attention-getter
and focuser
 Statement of Objectives--tell students what they'll be
able to do as a result of the lesson
 Instructional Input--lecture, but not necessarily
lecture: demo, explanation, instructions
 Guided Practice--help students start practicing new
skills, applying new knowledge
 Check for Understanding--watch faces, ask questions
 Independent Practice--turn them loose to work on
their own, homework assignment, etc.
 Closure—summarize the main points that students
should remember
Your Turn

Review and refine the plan you have written.
 Exchange plans with a partner and critique
the lesson plans using the rubric provided.
Effective Instructional Skills

The teacher in the classroom makes the
difference
 Teacher behaviors have a direct link to
student achievement
 Classroom instruction and climate have
nearly as much impact on learning as
student aptitude
 Detailed planning is imperative to
successful teaching
Lesson Plan Assignment
Review the lesson plans and be
prepared to ask questions and/or
discuss
 What new learning is to occur and
how will the students demonstrate
the new learning?
 Are students actively involved in the
learning process?

Lesson Plan Assignment

Choose an objective from the curriculum
you plan to teach
 Work in groups to brainstorm and analyze
available resources

Use the lesson plan format provided and
develop a detailed plan for one of the
objectives
 Submit to me via Taskstream and share
with classmates for feedback
Lesson Plan Resources

www.ncpublicschools.org
 http://www.gaston.k12.nc.us/dep
artments/eleminstr/pacing.htm
 http://www.gaston.k12.nc.us/dep
artments/secinstr/index.htm
 http://www.learnnc.org/