The Handbook for the New Art and Science of Teaching. Robert J. Marzano

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      CHAPTER 3

      Conducting Direct Instruction Lessons

      In a direct instruction lesson, a teacher is presenting new content. Teachers generally teach simpler content, including factual information, vocabulary, and details from the proficiency scales directly. This method of instruction is most effective at communicating new and simpler content because it allows teachers to guide students through unfamiliar concepts and lays the foundation for more complex explorations of the topic.

      The goal of this design area is for students to understand, when content is new, which parts are important and how the parts fit together. Teachers are able to meet that goal by answering the question, When content is new, how will I design and deliver direct instruction lessons that help students understand which parts are important and how the parts fit together? The three elements and associated strategies in this chapter help the teacher do just that.

Element 6: Chunking Content

      Based on student needs, an effective teacher breaks the content into small chunks (that is, digestible bites) of information that students can easily process. Research has shown that information in small pieces allows students to hold it in working memory long enough to process it (Good & Brophy, 2003; Linden et al., 2003; Mayer, 2003; Rosenshine, 2002). The teacher should present chunks of information in a logical sequence, and he or she should determine the size of each chunk by how much students already know about the content (Marzano, 2007).

      There are three strategies within this element.

      1. Using preassessment data to plan for chunks

      2. Presenting content in small, sequentially related sets

      3. Allowing for processing time between chunks

      The following sections will explore each strategy to provide you with guidelines to effectively implement this element. Read through each before creating a plan for your classroom. Teachers may use the strategies individually or in combination. Remember, these are not merely activities to be checked off; they are methods of creating a practice that combines your art with the science of chunking content. Reflect on your use of each strategy by filling out the “Strategy Reflection Log” on page 331.

       Using Preassessment Data to Plan for Chunks

      Based on students’ initial understanding of new content, the teacher presents new content in larger or smaller chunks. How much the students know about the topic determines how big, or small, the chunks will be. Preassessments can be either informal (such as those presented in element 4) or more structured, hardcopy assessments that include problems that represent the levels of the proficiency scale.

      If students scored well in a specific area on a preassessment, the teacher presents that information as part of a larger chunk. When presenting information about which students displayed misconceptions or little prior knowledge on the preassessment, the teacher can use smaller chunks.

       Presenting Content in Small, Sequentially Related Sets

      Next, the teacher delivers the chunks. If presenting new declarative knowledge, the chunks include concepts and details that logically go together. If presenting new procedural knowledge, the chunks include steps in a process that go together. While executing the chunking process, the teacher monitors student understanding. If the students seem confused, before moving to the next chunk, the teacher stays with the content until understanding is achieved.

       Allowing for Processing Time Between Chunks

      The teacher provides a structured time for students to work together to process chunks of content. For example, a teacher has students work in groups of three. Students decide who will be member A, member B, and member C. The teacher presents the first chunk of information, and member A summarizes it. Members B and C add to what A has already said, and each group identifies elements of the chunk they are still confused about. The teacher takes questions from the whole class to clarify these confusions and then asks each group to predict what the next chunk will be about. The teacher presents the next chunk, and groups repeat the process, except that member B summarizes and members A and C add information. After the teacher presents the third chunk, groups repeat the process again, with member C summarizing, and members A and B adding information.

       Monitoring Element 6

      Specific student responses and behaviors allow the teacher to determine whether this element is being implemented effectively and producing the desired effects.

      • Students actively engage in processing content between chunks.

      • Students can explain why the teacher stops at specific points during a presentation of new content.

      • Students appear to understand the content in each chunk.

      Use this list to monitor student responses to element 6.

      To monitor your own use of this element, use the scale in figure 3.1 in combination with the reproducible “Tracking Teacher Actions: Chunking Content” (page 62). As with other proficiency scales, level 3 or higher is the goal.

      The following examples describe what each level of the scale might look like in the classroom.

      • Not Using (0): A teacher introduces a new unit by giving a class-long lecture. She only pauses when a student raises his hand to ask a question and does not give the students time to process new or difficult knowledge.

      • Beginning (1): A teacher does not plan in advance where he will pause when reading a short story with his students. He decides to pause every few sentences, which disrupts the narrative and causes his students to lose track of the story’s plot.

      • Developing (2): A teacher purposefully presents the introduction to a new unit in small chunks by breaking the important concepts of the unit into categories. However, she does not use any techniques to verify that the students are processing and understanding each chunk of information.