What are instructional methods?

Instructional methods are ways that information is presented to students. Such methods fall into two
categories: teacher-centered approaches and student-centered approaches. There is not one "best"
approach to instruction. Some goals are better suited to teacher-centered approaches while others clearly need
student-centered approaches (Shuell, 1996). Teacher-centered instruction has been criticized as ineffective and
grounded in behaviorism; (Marshall 1992, Stoddard, Connell, Stgofflett, and Peck 1993) however, this is not the
case if delivered effectively (Eggen & Kauchak, 2001). Let's take a closer look at these approaches.
demonstration | direct instruction | lecture | lecture-discussion | case study | cooperative
learning | discussion | discovery learning | K - W - L | journals (blogs) | learning centers | role-
play | simulation | scaffolding |storytelling | problem based/inquiry learning
Teacher-centered Teacher-centered approaches include instruction where the teacher's role is to
Approaches present the information that is to be learned and to direct the learning process of
students (Shuell, 1996). The teacher identifies the lesson objectives and takes the
primary responsibility for guiding the instruction by explanation of the information
and modeling. This is followed by student practice. Methods that fall into the
teacher-centered approaches include demonstration, direct instruction, lecture and
lecture-discussions.
Demonstration Demonstration involves the teacher showing students a process or procedure
such a science process, a cooking procedure or a computer procedure. Involving
students in demonstrations allow this method to be less passive.
Direct Instruction Direct Instruction is used to help students learn concepts and skills. There are
various models of Direct Instruction but all include similar steps: 1) intro &
review, 2) presentation of new information, 3) guided practice, 4) independent
practice.
Lecture Lecture is the most criticized of all teaching methods AND the most commonly
used because 1) planning time is limited, 2) lectures are flexible and can be applied
to any content and 3) lectures are simple. The most critical fact about lecture is that
it puts students in a passive role.
Lecture-Discussions Lecture-discussion is a combination of lecture and teacher questioning of
students.

Learner-centered Grounded in constructivism, learner-centered approaches involve instruction

Approaches where the teacher is a facilitator (or guide) as the learners construct their own
understandings. There are a number of methods in this category that are listed and
explained below.
Case Studies Case studies involve groups of students working together to analyze a "case" that
has been written on a particular situation or problem to find a solution. Case
studies allow students to apply new knowledge and skills for solving complex
issues. This method is not appropriate for use with elementary students. The case
study is completed by discussion of the case, allowing learners to debate their
conclusions.
Cooperative Learning Cooperative learning involves small heterogeneous student groups working
together to solve a problem or complete a task. All students in the group must
actively participate with each student maintaining some independence. The
success of the group depends on the input of each individual. This teaching
 method promotes active participation, individual accountability, students'
ability to work cooperatively and improvement of social skills.
Discussion/Discussion Designed to encourage thinking skills, discussion allows learners to increase
Boards interpersonal skills. Discussions may occur in the classroom or online. One way
to implement discussions with twenty-first century students is to use discussion
boards. Previously referred to as "bulletin boards" or "message boards", these
areas are places where a question can be posted by the teacher and students may
post "threads" (comments to the question) asynchronously (at various times).
Discussion boards vary in participation and good discussion may result from the
expertise of the facilitator. Incentives (bonus points) may be needed to motivate all
students and rules must be made clear. See more information about using
discussion boards. Course management software such as Blackboard have built
in a discussion board feature making it quite easy to implement.
Discovery Learning Discovery learning is an inquiry-based learning method in which learners use
prior knowledge and experience to discover new information that they use to
construct learning. This method is the most successful if the student has some
prerequisite knowledge and the experience is structured (Roblyer, Edwards, and
Havriluk, 1997).
Graphic Organizers Graphic Organizers are found in the form of diagrams, maps and webs and
illustrate information in a graphical format. Diagrams may be drawn by hand or
designed on the computer with programs such as Inspiration (grades 6-12) or
Kidspiration (grades K-5). This strategy/tool can be used when brainstorming
ideas, analyzing stories, analyzing characters, comparing and contrasting
information, storyboarding (planning projects) prewriting during the writing
process and breaking down concepts to show the relationships with
parts (such as the parts of a cell). These graphical representations of information
have been found to make information easier to learn and understand, especially
complex information (Dye, 2000). Further, using visual learning strategies have
been found to be effective with struggling learners (Bulgren, Schumaker &
Deschler, 1998; Gardill & Jitendra, 1999 cited in O'Bannon and Puckett, 2007).
Journals/Blogs Journals are often used in classrooms to allow students to record reflections and
ideas. Typically written in a notebook and recorded each day, the journal serves as
a method of communication between the student and the teacher. A blog is short
for web log and is simply an online journal or diary versus its more traditional
"notebook" cousin. A new method for reflective writing, blogs can be used to share
ideas and/or thoughts on various subjects. These reflections and ideas may be
private or public. Blogs are considered great motivators for student writing and
offer a novel way for students to engage in reflective writing and sharing
information on classroom topics. Read more about using blogs.
K-W-L (Ogle, 1986) Know - What to Know - Learned is a strategy that is typically used to provide
structure to the learning process to allow students to recall what they know about
a topic, what they want to know about the topic and what is to be learned. This
strategy allows students to become actively involved in their learning. Generally, a
chart is created on the board, overhead or hand-out. Students fill in the Know
column before they begin their study. The fill in the Want to Know column with all of
the information that they want to learn about the topic. After the study, they
complete the Learned column with their new knowledge. Find more about K-W-L.
An online generator of K-W-L charts can be found
at http://www.teachnology.com/web_tools/graphic_org/kwl/
Learning Centers Learning Centers are self-contained areas where students work independently or
with small groups (pairs or triads) to complete a task. Centers may take the form of
back to top chairs placed around a table for group discussion, display boards that present
questions/problems/worksheets, or computer/computers where students perform
hands-on activities or research on the web.
Role-Play Role-play deals with solving problems through action. A problem is identified,
acted out and discussed. The role-play process provides students with an
opportunity to 1) explore their feelings, 2) gain insight about their attitudes, and 3)
 increase problem solving skills.
Scaffolding Scaffolding, involves the teacher modeling the skill and thinking for the student.
As the student increases understanding, the teacher withdraws the assistance
allowing the student to take on more responsibility for the learning.
Problem-Based Learning Problem-Based Learning & Inquiry involves teacher giving the student a problem
(PBL) & Inquiry Learning where inquiry must be utilized to solve the problem. There are commonly four steps
in this model: 1) student receives the problem, 2) student gathers data,
3) student organizes data and attempts an explanation to the problem, and
4) students analyze the strategies they used to solve the problem.

A well known and highly successful inquiry-based strategy is Web Quests,

developed by Dr. Bernie Dodge at San Diego University. This technique requires
that answers to the problem in the Quest be drawn from the web. Read more
about Web Quests.
Simulations Simulations are used to put the student in a "real" situation without taking the
risks. Simulations are meant to be as realistic as possible where students are able
to experience consequences of their behavior and decisions. Simulations are
commonly used in social studies and science but can be used in other curriculum
areas. Computer simulations are quite common in today's virtual world. One
example is "dissecting a frog" using the computer.
Storytelling/Digital A great way to strengthen communication skills is to get students involved in
storytelling creating multimedia stories. Topics can range from biographical stories with
photo collections from family archives to community mapping projects, virtual field
back to top trips within the community, or more complex stories created by older students.
These digital stories can be planned, storyboarded and produced using slideshow
software such as PowerPoint or video editing software such as Imovie. This
strategy has become quite the rage in recent years with students loving the active
learning. Read more about multimedia storytelling.

Last updated on February, 2012 Created 2002 by B. O'Bannon.

http://edtech2.tennessee.edu/projects/bobannon/ • Funded by Innovative Technology Center • The University of Tennessee

Source: http://edtech2.tennessee.edu/projects/bobannon/in_strategies.html