Individualized instruction
Individualized instruction is a method of instruction in which content, instructional materials, instructional media, and pace of learning are based upon the abilities and interests of each individual learner.
Individualized instruction is not the same as a one-to-one student/teacher ratio or one-to-one tutoring, as it may seem, also because neither of these is usually possible in real-world teaching paradigms (since economically, collective education in a school system is difficult, if not impossible to achieve individualized instruction. It may occur, however, in private tutoring schemes). Even the most expensive public school system in the United States (Washington, DC, 2003, approximately $11,000 per student per year) would require at least 5 students per teacher to pay teacher salaries, without anything left for buildings or non-teaching staff.
In a traditional classroom environment, lectures consume approximately 80% of an average teacher's in-class time, to say nothing of the time needed to prepare lessons. Yet lecturing is an inherently inefficient method of conveying information. The average student retains only approximately 10% of what is presented in a lecture, but without substantial reinforcement that figure falls to an abysmal 2%, or less, within 24 hours.
Therefore, throughout the history of education the notion of lecturing has been challenged as a time-effective method of teaching, and alternative pedagogical models have been proposed. For example the Educational Research Associates company has concluded that placing greater reliance upon well-designed instructional materials – whether audio, video, multimedia Computer-assisted instrution (CAI), or simply a good textbook – can hardly be less efficient than the lecture method, but yields a huge net benefit by freeing teachers to focus upon the needs and problems of individual students.
In this way, individualized instruction is like direct instruction, which also places greater reliance upon carefully prepared instructional materials and explicitly prepared instructional sequences. But where direct instruction is very rigidly structured for use with children in primary school, individualized instruction is recommended only for students of at least junior high school age, and presumes that they have greater self-discipline to be able to study more independently. Thus, individualized instruction has points of contact with the constructivism movement in education, started by Swiss biologist Jean Piaget, which states that the student should build his or her learning and knowledge.
The coming of Internet-based education has brought an enormous increase in the use of individualized instruction methodology.
Source
- Educational Research Associates, originators of individualized instruction methodology. The initial content for this article was provided by Educational Research Associates, Portland OR.