Direct Instruction (DI) provides a clear path for evaluating instructional design. Here are 20 rules and recommendations for effective programs:
1. Maintain stable difficulty. Difficulty should rise slowly and predictably so students never hit a sudden cognitive spike.
1. Maintain stable difficulty. Difficulty should rise slowly and predictably so students never hit a sudden cognitive spike.
2. Tasks must allow high response frequency. Aim for roughly 9–20 learner responses per minute to keep attention, cognitive processing, and provide diagnostic data.
3. Lessons should contain multiple short “tracks” to coordinate and interleave knowledge and skills.
3. Lessons should contain multiple short “tracks” to coordinate and interleave knowledge and skills.
4. Roughly 10% of a lesson should be new material. Most of the block should be practice and application of already-taught content.
5. Every lessons should include cumulative review that integrates previously mastered content into current tasks.
5. Every lessons should include cumulative review that integrates previously mastered content into current tasks.
6. Organize units so later units become easier through design, not harder. Build on prior knowledge to reduce teaching time later.
7. Remove predictable question and answer patterns in tests so students cannot guess without knowing.
7. Remove predictable question and answer patterns in tests so students cannot guess without knowing.
8. Systematically control examples to teach sameness and difference.
9. Keep language minimal, direct, and consistent across instruction and tasks. Students should never be decoding new phrasing while learning content.
9. Keep language minimal, direct, and consistent across instruction and tasks. Students should never be decoding new phrasing while learning content.
10. Only test content that has just been taught or is already mastered. Do not surprise learners with unprepared formats.
11. Only model when needed. If a student is expected to respond independently, a model or prompt should not appear.
11. Only model when needed. If a student is expected to respond independently, a model or prompt should not appear.
12. Match group and individual tasks to the type of response required. Group response = one correct answer, individual = varied outputs.
13. Make responses diagnostic, not evaluative. Instruction must reveal what was and wasn’t learned, not just mark right or wrong.
13. Make responses diagnostic, not evaluative. Instruction must reveal what was and wasn’t learned, not just mark right or wrong.
14. Move from oral tasks to written tasks once oral control is confirmed.
15. Manage working memory load by breaking information into small, fully digestible steps. Do not force students to hold too much at once.
15. Manage working memory load by breaking information into small, fully digestible steps. Do not force students to hold too much at once.
16. Introduce new knowledge in amounts that can be mastered within minutes, not long exposures. Quick wins accelerate momentum.
17. Advance students on mastery, not seat time. When students do not master it, use remediation procedures.
17. Advance students on mastery, not seat time. When students do not master it, use remediation procedures.
18. Seating must be arranged so the teacher can see every student at a glance. If direct visibility isn’t guaranteed, the teacher can't adjust instruction.
19. Error correction procedures should be precise, designed based on common student errors and misconceptions.
19. Error correction procedures should be precise, designed based on common student errors and misconceptions.
20. Lessons must be designed and field-tested to actually take the time they claim—without spilling over or getting squeezed and rushed.
Source: zigsite.com/trainingvideos…
Source: zigsite.com/trainingvideos…
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