What is explicit instruction?

Explicit instruction can help all students. But it can be especially beneficial for the following students:

Students who learn and think differently. Without explicit instruction, students who struggle with attention or working memory may not focus on the most crucial ideas in a lesson. With explicit instruction, you cue students in to the most essential information.

English language learners. When you use consistent and clear language in each step of instruction, English language learners (ELLs) aren’t overwhelmed with new language demands. Research has shown that explicit instruction can lead to achievement gains among ELLs. 

Educators: Learn more ways to support English language learners.

There are many reasons to use explicit instruction. Here are some of the most important.

1. Students get opportunities to practice. Explicit instruction helps students who need intensive intervention, including those with learning disabilities. In your school, you may call this support “Tier 3 intervention.” 

These students usually need to practice a skill 10 to 30 more times than their peers. Explicit instruction can give them those opportunities to practice. It also gives you a structure to make sure those learners are capable and successful as they practice.

2. It uses data collection and analysis. Each time students practice a skill, you have a chance to collect data. You can use that data to plan your next lesson, like re-teaching or moving on to the next progression of the skill. This data helps you meet the needs of each student.

3. It lightens the “cognitive load.” Students who learn and think differently often have trouble with working memory. That makes it hard to make sense of a long series of directions. 

Explicit instruction breaks up learning into smaller parts. This lightens the “cognitive load,” or how much brain resources a student needs to process information. A lighter cognitive load frees up working memory. That’s important because learning new skills requires a lot of working memory.

Read more about working memory and how attention is different from working memory. 

Explicit instruction follows a sequence of steps:

• Identify a clear, specific objective.

• Break the information into chunks.

• Model with clear explanations.

• Verbalize the thinking process.

• Provide opportunities to practice.

• Give feedback.

Learn more about how to teach using explicit instruction and how to use it during distance learning. 

It’s a myth that explicit instruction limits students from engaging in inquiry-based learning, project-based learning, and higher-order thinking. In fact, it’s the opposite. Explicit instruction gives students who are typically left out of these opportunities the information and skills they need to engage. 

Explicit instruction uses some of the same processes used for inquiry-based learning and project-based learning, including modeling, practice, and feedback. Students can transfer the processes they learn in explicit instruction to other types of learning.

Also, remember that explicit instruction isn’t just for basic academic skills. Students often need explicit modeling and feedback on higher-order skills, like decision making and social skills.

Find out how one school engages students who learn and think differently in project-based learning.

You may not be familiar with the term explicit instruction. It’s not something you would commonly use at home. 

But there are ways you can practice some parts of explicit instruction at home. The next time you tell your child to clean their room, try breaking down the task into very clear steps. You can model what it looks like to organize a closet. You can also give feedback after your child is done.

Get more tips for helping your child follow instructions.