Chapter 5 Using and Evaluating Instruction Materials

You may have selected your instructional material well. This is no guarantee that the instructional material
will be effectively utilized. It is one thing to select a good instructional material; it is another thing to use it well.

To ensure effective use of instructional material,

Hayden Smith and Thomas Nagel, (1972) book
authors on Instructional Media, advise us to abide by
the acronym PPPF.

Prepare yourself. You know your lesson

objective and what you expect from the class after the
session and why you have selected such particular
instructional material. You have a plan on how you will
proceed, what questions to ask, how you will evaluate
learning and how you will tie loose ends before the
bell rings.

Prepare your students. Set reasonably high class

expectations and learning goals. It is sound practice to
give them guide questions for them to be able to
answer during the discussion. Motivate them and
keep them interested and engaged.

Present the material under the best possible

conditions. Many teachers are guilty of the R.O.G
Syndrome. This means “running out of gas” which
usually results from poor planning (Smith. 1972).
Using media and materials, especially if they are
mechanical in nature, often requires rehearsal and a
carefully planned performance. Wise are you if you try
the materials ahead of your class use to avoid a fiasco.
Follow up. Remember that you use instructional material to achieve an objective, not to kill time or to give
yourself a break, neither to merely entertain the class. You use the instructional materials for the attainment
of lesson objective. Your use of the instructional material is not the end in itself. So, there is need to follow up to find
out if objective was attained or not.
To ensure that instructional materials serve their purpose in instruction, we need to observe some guidelines
in their selection and use. The materials that we select must:
 • Give a true picture of the ideas they present
• Contribute to the attainment of the learning objective
• Be aligned to curriculum standards and competencies
• Be appropriate to the age, intelligence and experience of the learners
• Be in good and satisfactory condition
• Be culture-sensitive and gender-sensitive
• Provide for a teacher’s guide
• Help develop the critical and creative thinking powers of students
• Promote collaborative learning
• Be worth the time, expense and effort involved
For optimum use of the instructional material, it is necessary for teacher to prepare:
• Herself
• Her students
• The instructional material and does follow up
• Promote independent study