Implicit vs. Explicit Instruction - Hallie Smith, MA CCC-SLP

Implicit vs. Explicit Instruction: Which is Better for Word Learning?

Does traditional or exploratory learning work better?

As educators, we are constantly faced with the question of how we can best present material so that it is optimally “learnable” for the different students we are trying to reach.

There is considerable evidence both for and against self-directed and exploratory learning, so there is a great opportunity for neuroscience to examine the ground-level differences between these and more traditional methods of instruction and how the brain reacts to each. One of those differences is the subject of current investigation: the divide between explicit and implicit instruction.

By explicit instruction, we mean teaching where the instructor clearly outlines what the learning goals are for the student, and offers clear, unambiguous explanations of the skills and information structures they are presenting.

By implicit instruction, we refer to teaching where the instructor does not outline such goals or make such explanations overtly, but rather simply presents the information or problem to the student and allows the student to make their own conclusions and create their own conceptual structures and assimilate the information in the way that makes the most sense to them.

Which is more effective?

One study out of Vanderbilt University recently looked at this question as it applies to word learning. In this study, principal investigator Laurie Cutting and her team examined 34 adult readers, from 21 to 36 years of age.

The subjects were taught pseudowords—words that are similar to real words but that have no meaning, such as “skoat” or “chote.” Then, through both explicit and implicit instruction, subjects were taught meanings for these words. (In the study, both of these pseudowords were associated with the picture of a dog.)

The goal was to gain a clearer understanding of how people with different skills and capabilities processed short-term instruction, how effectively they learned, and how those differences looked physiologically in the brain.

In the end, the subjects were all able to learn the pseudowords. But, through functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), the researchers learned that something deeper was actually taking place: subjects previously identified as excellent readers showed little difference between how they processed explicit vs. implicit instruction. Average readers, on the other hand, showed through their fMRIs that they had to work harder to learn through implicit instruction; for them, explicit instruction was the more effective method.

Granted, the study did focus on a group of adults, not school-age learners. Still, the Vanderbilt team’s preliminary results support the idea that, even in group situations where all students have roughly the same degree of previous experience, prior reading ability might be an important element to consider when choosing an instructional approach.

Why Prosody Matters: The Importance of Reading Aloud with Expression - Logan De Ley

Reading aloud with expression is a foundational reading skill students should be developing between grades 1 - 5. It is pretty easy to recognize when someone skillfully reads aloud in an expressive manner. However, to effectively teach or assess this skill, a closer examination of its features, development, and relationship to other reading skills is needed.

What is Prosody?

Prosody, the defining feature of expressive reading, comprises all of the variables of timing, phrasing, emphasis, and intonation that speakers use to help convey aspects of meaning and to make their speech lively. One of the challenges of oral reading is adding back the prosodic cues that are largely absent from written language.

Why is Prosody Important?

Researchers have found strong links between oral reading prosody and general reading achievement. For example, after comparing students’ reading prosody in first and second grades with their reading comprehension at the end of third grade, Miller and Schwanenflugel (2008) concluded that, “early acquisition of an adult-like intonation contour predicted better comprehension.” Another study, which included more than 1,750 fourth graders participating in the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), found a strong correlation between prosody and overall reading achievement (Daane, Campbell, Grigg, Goodman, & Oranje, 2005).

How Does Prosody Impact Reading Comprehension?

In the context of oral reading, prosody can reflect linguistic features, such as sentence structure, as well as text features, such as punctuation. Skilled readers pick up on these features, and respond to them when reading aloud, as when they pause briefly at relevant commas, pause slightly longer at sentence boundaries, raise their pitch at the end of yes-no questions, and lower their pitch at the end of declarative sentences.

While punctuation provides some cues to prosody, young readers can be misled by it. For instance, they may pause at every comma, even when the grammar of the sentence does not call for pausing (e.g., “He made his usual egg, cheese, and tomato sandwich.”). As young readers move toward adult proficiency, their pauses increasingly respect the grammar of the text rather than doggedly following the punctuation (Miller & Schwanenflugel, 2006).

Prosody can also reflect aspects of meaning. For instance, slight fluctuations in pitch, timing, and emphasis can change a simple question (e.g., “What did you do?”) into an expression of censure.  Learning to read dialog in a manner that reflects the intentions and emotional states of the characters is a great way for adolescent readers to delve deeply into literature. However, younger students may not understand this use of prosody well enough to apply it to oral reading (Cutler & Swinney, 1987). Notably, in the NAEP study, only 10% of fourth graders were judged as reading aloud with this level of expressiveness.

Finally, when thinking about prosody, it is critical to remember the other aspects of reading fluency: word reading accuracy and reading rate. Inefficient word reading is the primary barrier to good prosody for many young readers (Schwanenflugel, Hamilton, Wisenbaker, Kuhn, & Stahl, 2004). Children who are struggling to decode individual words tend to pause too frequently and for too long, so that their timing and phrasing are seriously disrupted. Furthermore, they must put so much effort into decoding that they do not have the mental resources left for constructing meaning and conveying it expressively.

Providing Insight into a Learner's Reading Ability

Listening to the prosody of a child reading aloud provides parents and educators with a window into many aspects of reading skill. By reading aloud with appropriate timing, phrasing, and end of sentence intonation, younger readers can demonstrate their ability to:

·   Read words accurately;

·   Read at a reasonable rate;

·   Read most words automatically, so that mental resources are available for comprehension;

·   Use grammar and punctuation to help construct meaning;

   By reading aloud with increasingly adult-like intonation and expressiveness, adolescent readers can demonstrate their ability to:

·   Use discourse-level features, such as pronouns and signal words, to recognize relationships across and among the sentences in a text;

·   Understand characters and their intentions when reading fiction

·   Understand an author’s purpose or attitude.

Ultimately, all of these abilities must be brought to bear to achieve the ultimate goal of reading with comprehension.

What Weak Cognitive Skills Look Like in the Classroom - Linda Gajowski, M.Ed., MS

We all use cognitive skills every day to function successfully. Just driving to the supermarket and back requires four cognitive skills which are so ingrained that we are often not consciously aware of them.

Memory, attention, processing and sequencing are the major cognitive skills necessary to become a successful learner. When one or more of these cognitive skills is deficient, children will experience a difficult time in school. Without these essential cognitive skills working at an optimal level, intervention is required for children to learn.

Memory

Let's look at memory, often referred to as working memory. This cognitive skill allows us to remember information, an essential building block of learning. Without good recall, a child will struggle in the classroom. When kindergarteners are given directions to color the apples red, the tulips yellow, and the cats black on a worksheet, those with poor short-term memory may only remember the first color. Other children may have difficulty following a first grade morning routine which may include placing homework in the inbox, clearing desktops, and getting and completing morning worksheets. Although homework is handed in and desks cleared, some students may forget the next step in the routine. It is, therefore, imperative that memory evolves to optimal levels so that children may learn to the best of their ability.

Attention

Another important cognitive skill is attention. Children must be able to attend to (listen and understand) information for learning to occur. Without this cognitive skill at a high functioning level, reading acquisition along with school success will be adversely affected. Normal classroom movements or noises may not bother most children. Those students with poor attention may find themselves watching a seat mate or looking for the noise being made on the other side of the room.  Such distractions may interfere with their ability to hear and comprehend information. When students cannot pay attention well and assimilate new information, they become frustrated and lose interest in the lesson. Even small distractions that others ignore will then become the focus. Let's build good attention skills in the early grades to optimize children's school success!

Processing

Next, the cognitive skill of processing allows our brains to understand and assign meaning to incoming information. Most information is received either visually or aurally.  Students with poor visual processing skills may find themselves interpreting visual cues inaccurately. As a result,  math computation, hand writing, and oral reading may be adversely affected. Children with poor auditory processing skills may be unable to accurately discriminate between sounds. They might appear reluctant to answer a question since their brains are busy trying to figure out what was asked of them. Reading and comprehension as well as math then become very real challenges for students with poor cognitive processing ability.

Sequencing

Lastly our brains arrange information in a particular order with the cognitive skill of sequencing. Students need this skill to alphabetize, count, and organize information. When children's brains meld new information with previously stored Information, they have a solid base for learning. Children with weak sequencing skills may not be able to compose or outline a story. Even doing a simple word search game depends on good cognitive sequencing skills. Some children who are weak in sequencing may become disinterested in the lesson, perceiving it as "boring" or too difficult. On occasion disruptive behavior may occur due to a child's academic frustration.

Fast ForWord program is a well-documented educational program geared toward improving these essential cognitive skills. To know more please visit : www.sparklearning.in or write to sbg@sparklearning.in