Some people say drill and practice is really "drill and kill." What can teachers do to make sure this kind of use doesn't happen and drill and practice can serve a useful function?
There are two things a teacher needs to do when they’re evaluating a drill and practice situation. The first is to assess whether or not this is the best way to learn the skill, and the second is to find an appropriate software program. Certain skills, especially ones that require automaticity, work especially well for drill and practice (think typing, grammar, multiplication tables). The best thing a teacher can do is to sit down with various software options and use them or test them on a few students for a short period of time to see if they fulfill the promise of skill mastery. The software must be interesting enough that students will stay interested in it, but not overly complicated or too stimulating.
Another thing to keep in mind is the age of the children and their normal attention span. Expecting children in kinder to work at such a program for more than about 10 or 15 minutes would be inappropriate, even though they may zone out in front of television or video games at home for much longer. In order to be a true learning experience, a developmentally appropriate time-frame needs to be addressed.
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I agree that a teacher should take a test drive of any program to be used in the classroom. A great idea might be to allow a few the "priveledge" of being beta testers. this would be a great way to allow kids who may benefit the most from the program to give feedback on what their likes and dislikes about the program are.
ReplyDeleteTime is another issue I strongly agree with. Assuming students will sit in front of a computer and drill and practice for extended periods is unrealistic.
Dorothy, I totally overlooked the process of using drill and kill. When teaching this process to a non-educator or a new teacher, it is important that assess whether or not this is the best way to lean the skill. After the initial assessment, one has to find the most appropriate software program to use. Unfortunately, not all drill and practice programs are able to meet the specific need of a class. I agree that the program must be interesting. If students are not captivated by the program, it will easily become a drill and kill process.
ReplyDeleteDorothy,
ReplyDeleteCongrats!!! on your induction to Delta Kappa Pi. I was pleased to see you there. Now about the discussion on software evaluations. I believe finding an appropriate software program is crucial. I agree that it would have to work with the content it was intended and age group as well. Remember one thing... whom ever is reviewing and evaluating the software has to also see what other schools have the program and how it worked for them. By only going along with what is written is not always right. To ask for testimonials and where does matter as well.