CHAPTER 2 Instructional Planning LESSON 5: Instructional Planning Components Objectives In this lesson, you will be able to: + identify the basic components of instructional planning; + explain how these components contribute to effective instructional planning; and * create a sample instructional plan considering the components identified. Introduction Instructional planning is one of the most crucial skills teachers have in their arsenal in their teaching journey. It helps them reflect on their teaching, and make the necessary adjustments needed to ensure that learners attain the intended targets of the teachers and the curriculum. A common adage that says, “failing to plan is planning to fail,” highlights the importance of planning. This is especially true to teachers who are charged to mold young minds of the future. Thus, it is important for teachers to have a clear idea of how to plan for effective instruction. In this lesson, you will be introduced to the basic components of effective instructional planning. - THINK: Instructional Planning and Its Components Planning involves several factors to consider in order to make it effective. Teachers planning for their classroom instruction need to think about the Components prior to actually writing their plans. These would help them focus their energies toward creating more effective experiences for their learners. For 31these experiences to be more effective in helping create the optimal environment for learners to learn, Algozzine (2006) suggests three major components of instructional planning namely (1) deciding what to teach; (2) deciding how to teach; and (3) communicating realistic expectations. The initial go-to for topics to teach is obviously the curriculum. However, since the standards set the in the K to 12 Curriculum are stated in standards and competencies, there is a need for the teacher to unpack these standards to less complex skills. Therefore, in order to decide what to teach, teachers undergoes the following process: 1. Assessing learners’ skills, Being a teacher, we have to consider that the tasks we provide our learners are within their abilities. As discussed in the previous chapter, the learners are at the center of our classroom decisions. As such, teachers need to ensure to gather pertinent data to assess the level of skill the learners. This could be done using various tool such as their diagnostic tests, achievement tests, or an assessment of the learners’ performance in previous activities. Analyzing instructional tasks. Other than analyzing the learners’ skills, the teachers also need to be sure of what they want the learners to do. Teachers analyze the task they want the learners to accomplish by breaking down complex tasks to simpler, manageable ones that are within the learners’ skills and abilities. Establishing logical sequence. Along with the analysis of the instructional tasks, the teacher then, needs to sequence these tasks in a logical and appropriate manner based again on the learners’ developmental abilities. This could be done by prioritizing the lower-level ‘ones to the more complex ones. Considering contextual variables. In deciding what to teach, teachers may need to look into the contextual variables, which may include how long the lesson will take, the availability of materials needed, or the time of the day the lesson will take place (class schedule). Analyzing instructional groupings. As language learning involves sociolinguistic interactions, creating opportunities for the learners to make meaningful interactions in the classroom needs consideration. Having an idea how learners work with each other helps in deciding how to give them instruction, keep them engaged, and have them perform - better.6. Identifying gaps in actual and expected performance. As the teacher understands the level of performance of the learners, it is now imperative to understand how to bridge their current understanding with the new material being presented to them. This goes to show how important the initial preparations are before the teacher can even decide what to teach the learners. Once the teacher has the grasp of what to teach, he/she then decides how to teach these identified skills. To do this, the following needs to be considered: 1. Setting instructional goals. Teachers need to present the goals of instruction to the learners in unambiguous terms. As mentioned before, the simple, lower-level skills need to be presented in logical manner that would be understandable at the level of the learners. 2. Selecting instructional methods and materials. Decisions that would be made for the method and materials would be guided of course by the topic selected, the activities or tasks for the learners, and the learners themselves. This might seem to be straightforward until we realize that some of our learners might have special needs such as tape recordings or higher level reading materials. 3. Pacing instruction appropriately. Pace is simply how slowly or how quickly the teacher goes through the material. Thus, the teacher should be able to set the appropriate pace when going through the material, basing this of course on the learners’ level and the activities the learner are tasked to accomplish. 4. Monitoring performance and replanning instruction. In planning how to teach, it is also important for the teacher to know how to monitor learners’ performance, and then use this information to plan the next instruction. Lastly, Algozzine identifies communicating realistic expectation as the last component of instructional planning. This involves grousing the teachers’ expectations around realistic goals that the learners can actually achieve given the time and their level of skills. Other models also present and highlight other components of instructional Planning. McClymont (2020) further forwards with related components of instructional planning namely: 1. Clear objectives. Learners must be able to have a clear view of what are expected of them in the lesson. Providing them with clear objects sets the tone of the class, gearing their thinking and expectations in the CHAPTER 2 Instructional Planning 33lesson toward a clear goal. In order to keep the objective clear, they should be SMART (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, Time- bound) objectives. Learning materials. Availability of necessary materials must be considered in planning instruction. This would help the teacher make adjustments to his/her instruction based on these, such as whether to use realia or to use models. Active background knowledge. Tapping into the learners’ prior knowledge about the topic, lesson, or material helps make a connection with the learners. It also makes the lesson, topic, or material relatable to the learners, enabling the teacher to engage the learners more and instill the new concepts easier. Direct instruction. This is the where the teacher presents the concepts or skills as indicated in the objectives. This is where various means are ‘employed by the teacher to deliver the learning to the learners. Learner practice. Learners must be given the opportunity to practice the concepts or the skills they learned in class. Practice should be designed to gradually let the learners become independent. This has a three-step process, including: a. Guided practice - where learners are given practice with the teacher leading them; b. Collaborative practice - where learners are provided with practice with their classmates. This can be through small or large groups. At this stage, the teacher could be going around the room, providing help to the learners who might be struggling; and c. Independent practice - where the learners are provided with activities that they will perform on their own. The teacher can still foam round the room to identify who among the learner really grasped the concepts taught, and who could use additional practice. Closure. After the lesson, the teacher then prepares to synthesize the concepts presented in the lesson. It can be in the form of an activity where the learners can participate. Demonstration of learning. This is in the form of an assessment that assesses the leamers’ understanding of the concepts presented in the lesson. This is also an opportunity to gather data about the learners’ performance.