Making the Most of Informal Reading Inventories: Moving from Purposeful Assessment to Targeted Instruction

2012 ◽  
pp. 39-72 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jerry L. Johns ◽  
Susan K. L’Allier ◽  
Beth Johns
Keyword(s):  
Targeted Instruction ◽  
Informal Reading Inventories

The use of blocking and inhibition training in processing instruction

2021 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nick Henry
Keyword(s):  
Word Order ◽  
Training Session ◽  
Processing Instruction ◽  
Learner Performance ◽  
Structured Input ◽  
Targeted Instruction ◽  
Processing Strategies ◽  
Sentence Level ◽  
Case Markers ◽  
Slight Advantage

Abstract Previous research has suggested that L2 learners often use non-target processing strategies to understand sentences, but that these strategies can be changed through targeted instruction that directs their attention to different linguistic forms or structures. The present study explores the effects of pretraining ‘blocking’ practice—a novel type of training designed to help learners inhibit the application of a strict word-order based processing strategy—prior to receiving a traditional Structured Input (SI) training focused on OVS word order and accusative case markers in German. The study compares three groups of third-semester German learners who completed three different activities in one training session: (1) SI with blocking practice (+BP), (2) SI preceded by explicit information (+EI), and (3) SI without EI or blocking practice (−EI). The effects of training were measured by sentence-level interpretation and production tasks administered as a pretest, posttest, and four-week delayed posttest. Learner performance was also assessed during training. Results in all assessment measures indicated that EI was most effective, but that blocking practice lent a slight advantage over −EI groups during and after training. These results are discussed in the context of studies on processing instruction and learned attention.

Can camp get you into a better secondary school? A field experiment of targeted instruction in Kenya

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-56
Author(s):  
Beth E. Schueler ◽  
Daniel Rodriguez-Segura
Keyword(s):  
High Stakes ◽  
Secondary Schooling ◽  
Practice Test ◽  
Positive Effects ◽  
Targeted Instruction ◽  
Academic Instruction ◽  
Long Sleep ◽  
Eighth Grade Students ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Developing Settings

Access to quality secondary schooling can be life-changing for students in developing contexts. In Kenya, entrance to such schools was historically determined by performance on a high-stakes exam. Understandably then, preparation for this exam is a high priority for Kenyan families and educators. To increase the share of students entering these schools, some educational providers offer targeted instruction for students they believe have a chance of securing a spot. We use a randomized control trial to evaluate the impact of these “symposia” programs—week-long, sleep-away camps where eighth grade students receive a burst of academic instruction from teachers selected based on merit. While similar models have been tested in the U.S., less is known about this type of intervention in developing settings. We find these programs were not particularly effective for the average nominated student relative to a typical week of school. However, we find large, positive effects among students attending schools from which few students are nominated for symposia. We provide suggestive evidence that this was because students from lowrepresentation schools had less pre-camp practice test resources outside of school. The results have implications for program design and the growing literature on the effectiveness of appropriately targeted individualized instruction.

scholarly journals Crossing the Threshold: Bringing Biological Variation to the Foreground

2016 ◽  
Vol 15 (4) ◽  
pp. es9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Janet M. Batzli ◽  
Jennifer K. Knight ◽  
Laurel M. Hartley ◽  
April Cordero Maskiewicz ◽  
Elizabeth A. Desy
Keyword(s):  
Scientific Inquiry ◽  
Biological Variation ◽  
Threshold Concepts ◽  
Threshold Concept ◽  
Targeted Instruction ◽  
Core Concepts ◽  
Curricular Decisions

Threshold concepts have been referred to as “jewels in the curriculum”: concepts that are key to competency in a discipline but not taught explicitly. In biology, researchers have proposed the idea of threshold concepts that include such topics as variation, randomness, uncertainty, and scale. In this essay, we explore how the notion of threshold concepts can be used alongside other frameworks meant to guide instructional and curricular decisions, and we examine the proposed threshold concept of variation and how it might influence students’ understanding of core concepts in biology focused on genetics and evolution. Using dimensions of scientific inquiry, we outline a schema that may allow students to experience and apply the idea of variation in such a way that it transforms their future understanding and learning of genetics and evolution. We encourage others to consider the idea of threshold concepts alongside the Vision and Change core concepts to provide a lens for targeted instruction and as an integrative bridge between concepts and competencies.

Cyberbullying and the Gifted: Considerations for Social and Emotional Development

2018 ◽  
Vol 41 (3) ◽  
pp. 130-135 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bronwyn MacFarlane ◽  
Keri Mina
Keyword(s):  
Well Being ◽  
Emotional Awareness ◽  
High Ability ◽  
Social Emotional ◽  
Online Bullying ◽  
Social And Emotional ◽  
Targeted Instruction ◽  
Use Of Technology ◽  
Teachers And Parents ◽  
High Ability Students

The use of technology can promote learning, higher-order thinking, deeper understanding, collaboration, and student engagement. But if unchecked and unfacilitated, online cyberbullying can become an impediment to learning and threaten young people’s sense of well-being. Cyberbullying is a type of youth aggression that teachers and parents must consider how to integrate technology for educational purposes and decrease online bullying scenarios with targeted instruction and strategies in an online culture. This article examines cyberbullying and relevant concerns to educating high-ability students. Motivation will be discussed with suggestions, resources, and considerations for working with high-ability young people in developing their social–emotional awareness and strategies for addressing bullying.

scholarly journals L1–L2 differences in the L2 classroom: Anticipating Anglophone learners’ difficulties with French pronoun interpretation

2017 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 259-277 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elena Shimanskaya ◽  
Roumyana Slabakova
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Instructional Materials ◽  
Targeted Instruction ◽  
French And English ◽  
Beginning Learners ◽  
Pedagogical Literature

In this article, we address the issue of targeted instruction on interpretive contrasts between native and second-language grammatical meanings. Such mismatches are predicted to create challenges for learners. We illustrate this with French and English pronouns. In French, clitic pronouns ( le, la) point to human as well as inanimate referents, while English pronouns distinguish between human ( him, her) and inanimate ( it) referents. While other grammatical differences between English and French pronouns are taught, this interpretive mismatch attracts less attention in instructional materials. We review the pedagogical literature and report the results of a study investigating this knowledge in Anglophone learners of French as a second language (L2). We document that the mismatch is indeed challenging, particularly to beginning learners, and propose ways to overcome this difficulty.

scholarly journals Preservice and Inservice Teachers' Noticing of Explicit Instruction for Self-Regulated Learning Strategies

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tova Michalsky
Keyword(s):  
Preservice Teachers ◽  
Learning Strategies ◽  
Large Body ◽  
Teaching Experience ◽  
Monitoring And Evaluation ◽  
Inservice Teachers ◽  
Self Regulated Learning ◽  
Targeted Instruction ◽  
Regulated Learning ◽  
Actual Use

Contemporary theories of learning and instruction as well as a large body of research have pinpointed the benefits of effective self-regulated learning (SRL) for students' academic achievements, yet research findings indicate that teachers' actual promotion of students' SRL strategies and students' actual use of such strategies are less common than expected. To extend the investigation of how and when teachers' expertise develops regarding SRL instruction practices in authentic classrooms, the current study compared preservice vs. inservice teachers' “noticing” of explicit SRL teaching behaviors in videotaped classroom vignettes. Preservice teachers in a university teacher training program (N = 296) and inservice elementary, junior high, and high school teachers (N = 305) were presented with six online video cases accompanied by questions about the videotaped teachers' instruction of SRL planning, monitoring, and evaluation strategies. The results suggested that, overall, both preservice and inservice teachers failed to notice the expert teachers' explicit SRL teaching. Furthermore, their noticing ability failed to increase over the career span, with growing teaching experience. Thus, targeted instruction is recommended during both preservice training and inservice development programs to promote all teachers' application of evidence-based explicit SRL teaching strategies.

Lexical features in argumentative writing across English writers from different language backgrounds

2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 82-110
Author(s):  
Xiaoli Yu
Keyword(s):  
Academic Writing ◽  
Vocabulary Instruction ◽  
Low Frequency ◽  
Argumentative Writing ◽  
Vocabulary Size ◽  
Lexical Diversity ◽  
Lower Performance ◽  
Targeted Instruction ◽  
Learner Needs ◽  
Nonnative English Writers

Abstract This corpus-based research analysed three lexical features (lexical diversity, lexical sophistication, and cohesion) in English argumentative writing and examined the potential differences in lexical performance (1) between native and nonnative English writers and (2) across all writers from various language backgrounds. The findings revealed that nonnative English writers demonstrated significantly lower performance in lexical sophistication than did native English writers. Significant differences in all three lexical aspects exist between writers from different language backgrounds. Pedagogical implications for vocabulary instruction in academic writing for nonnative writers include emphasizing the mastery of academic, low-frequency, and discipline-specific vocabulary. Additionally, improving nonnative writers’ vocabulary size and lexical diversity is essential for building deeper level cohesion in writing. The results suggest unique writing characteristics of different nonnative writers and their varied learner needs should be acknowledged. Thus, targeted instruction is essential to provide effective enhancement to nonnative English writers’ lexical performance in academic writing.

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