Using Explicit and Systematic Instruction to Support Working Memory

Fundamental Question: What is explicit and systematic instruction?

Explicit and systematic instruction is an instructional method of teaching that breaks down skills into smaller and more manageable tasks that are taught in a particular order. These instructional methods consist of strategically selecting and pacing examples of new skills, providing clear explanations and demonstrations, guiding practice opportunities and monitoring students’ progress while providing ongoing feedback (Smith., Sáez., & Doabler, 2016). It is easier for students to understand what is expected of them when they are explicitly told and shown what the expectation of them is. This teaching method enables students’ learning processes to become more accessible “during classroom activities rather than after lessons are complete” (Smith., et al, 2016), thus improving students’ working memory and learning capacity overall.

Part-Whole Question (1): What are the ways teachers can implement explicit and systematic instruction, while supporting the working memory of students?

There are ways teachers can assist students with their working memory. To reach the full potential of the students’ working-memory, there are four methods teachers can utilize. The following four methods are:

1. Strategically choose and order skills

Intentionally selecting and sequencing skills enables students to gradually apply their skills to the other skills they will be learning. Purposefully choosing and ordering the skills is an important step to take when supporting the students’ working memory because it will provide students with the prerequisite skills they will need to understand to “focus [their] attention on the essential objective of the lesson” (Smith., et al, 2016) that the teacher has taught. Strategically choosing and ordering skills can help prevent the students working memory function to become overwhelmed with too much information. Educators should teach their students “small amounts of information with adequate practice opportunities” (Smith., et al, 2016) for a skill to ensure students are absorbing what they are learning.

2. Provide clear explanations and models of what is expected

Many students do not fully understand what is expected of them if they are not told and shown what is expected of them. When a student is not entirely sure what is expected of them, their thinking becomes concealed, which creates “confusions that intrude on working-memory processing” (Smith., et al, 2016) for the students when they are learning. To promote the working-memory process educators must “use clear and unambiguous language” (Smith., et al, 2016) to describe exactly what is expected of the students. Secondly, visually demonstrating what is expected of the students alongside including clear and explicit language will enable students to further understand the expectations of a skill or task, thus promoting their learning experience and their ability to perform their best. An example of this could be speaking aloud the steps you are taking while demonstrating the steps to complete a task.

3. Carefully guide practice opportunities

Guiding practice opportunities ultimately means providing “scaffolded support as students practice a new skill, [then] systematically [withdraw] that support as students become more proficient” (Smith., et al, 2016) in a skill. Guiding practice opportunities for students provides students with the best possible learning opportunities to become more “successful and confident” (Smith., et al, 2016) when using the skills they have learned. It is important for educators to use consistent wording that they used during the explanation and demonstrations. Doing this enables students’ attention to focus more on the skill they are learning, rather than to figure out the prompt they were presented with (Smith., et al, 2016). It also ensures that the students know exactly what is expected of them and know the steps they need to take to achieve a particular skill level they are learning.

4. Monitoring student responses and providing immediate feedback.

Monitoring student responses and providing them with immediate feedback will assist students to correct mistakes and confusion early on in their learning. To monitor student responses educators must continuously be “checking for engagement and accuracy throughout an activity” (Smith., et al, 2016), so students understand if they are correct or not. Providing students with ongoing immediate feedback will assist students to intentionally “encode only relevant and accurate information as long-term memories” (Smith., et al, 2016) for use in the future. Examples of this method could be watching and listening to the students’ responses and modelling and using consistent and clear language to determine what is expected.

Part-Whole Question (2): Why are explicit and systematic instructions important?

Explicit and systematic instructions are important to implement within a classroom because the two instructional methods provide clarity and sequencing of tasks, evidently assisting students to complete tasks more efficiently and effectively. Students are often expected to achieve “multi-step tasks” (Smith., et al, 2016) throughout a school day, however, students’ abilities vary depending on their “working-memory capacity and the conditions under which they are expected to learn” (Smith., et al, 2016) within. These two instructional methods ensure that each student reaches their full potential to learn by preventing “confusion and misconceptions” (Smith., et al, 2016) early on in their learning. Students benefit from these instructional methods because they can “see and hear the steps” (Smith., et al, 2016) needed to achieve a task, thus preventing confusion surrounding what is expected of them.

Hypothetical Question: If explicit and systematic instruction is used within the classroom, what would happen?

Systematic and explicit instruction is important to assist students with creating a strong foundation of knowledge and skills throughout their learning. Since systematic and explicit instructions are “highly relevant for improving students’ working memory” (Smith., et al, 2016), implementing these two instructional methods within the classroom would enable students to learn and retain more information through various learning experiences and opportunities. Providing students with ongoing immediate feedback and various opportunities to practice a skill will “improve student achievement” (Smith., et al, 2016) and give students the opportunity to become more independent. This is because students become aware of where they are making mistakes early on and are making corrective actions to achieve a particular skill.

Critical Question (1): Is explicit and systematic instruction effective to prevent discrimination in the classroom?

Explicit and systematic instruction helps to prevent discrimination among those who have learning disabilities. When tasks are broken down to become more clear and attainable, students see that they, and others, are both capable of doing various tasks. Furthermore, explicit and systematic instruction does not single out students with learning disabilities if the tasks are being completed together as a class. Completing clear step-by-step instructions as a class is beneficial because “all students can benefit from intervention approaches” (Smith., et al, 2016), thus promoting the learning environment and goals for all students within the classroom.

Critical Question (2): What is my opinion on this article?

I believe that using explicit and systematic instruction can be implemented within a classroom to create a more inclusive learning environment for all students. These instructional methods help to prevent “mental overload” (Smith., et al, 2016) in students, especially for students with learning disabilities, therefore I believe it is important to adapt your teaching to these instructional methods. Some ways I can assist students with their working-memory process in my classroom are using “simple, brief, and concise language”, providing immediate and “specific feedback to catch misconceptions” (Smith., et al, 2016) and sequencing the steps needed to complete a task to make the task more manageable and attainable for the students. I intend to utilize explicit and systematic instructions throughout my teaching career because I believe it will support my students’ lifelong learning and working-memory process.

References:

Smith, J. L. M., Sáez, L., & Doabler, C. T. (2016). Using explicit and systematic instruction to support working memory. Teaching Exceptional Children, 48(6), 275-281.