Drill+and+Practice

 Drill & Practice Drills can provide an important "practice phase" to instruction and can be useful for learning information that requires fluency such as math skills, vocabulary, spelling and foreign languages.

By Sandy Bordy

**Definitions:**  *A computer-assisted instruction technique in which a series of structured problems or exercises with immediate feedback to student responses is provided.  [|www.personal.psu.edu/bxb11/CBTGuide/Append/Gloss.htm]  *Drill and practice "refers to the structured, repetitive review of previously learned concepts to a predetermined level of mastery."  http://www.sasked.gov.sk.ca/docs/wellness/direct.html  *It "promotes the acquisition of knowledge or skill through repetitive practice." http://olc.spsd.sk.ca/de/pd/instr/strats/drill/index.html

**Purpose of Drill & Practice: ** Drill and practice software is one of the earliest types of educational software. Many educators have criticized the use of drill and practice software claiming they are boring and do not utilize the full capabilities of the computer for higher level learning objectives. However, drill and practice ** does **  have its place in the overall learning environment. Drill and practice software is not intended to teach new concepts, but instead reinforce concepts already taught through review and practice. It provides immediate, relevant feedback and prevents students from learning something incorrectly. Drill and practice allows students to work at their own pace while focusing on skills they need to work on rather than forcing them to work on concepts they already know. Drill and practice can also help identify mastery of a skill for both the student and the teacher.


 * <span style="color: #1fdb1f; display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 120%; text-align: left;"> Advantages and Disadvantages of Using Drill and Practice: **
 * ** Advantages ** || ** Disadvantages ** ||
 * * <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; text-align: left;"> Motivating
 * <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; text-align: left;">Provides immediate feedback
 * <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; text-align: left;">Individualized practice
 * <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; text-align: left;">Student can work at own pace
 * <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; text-align: left;">Increases acquisition and fluency of basic skills || * <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; text-align: left;"> Many are poorly designed
 * <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; text-align: left;">Usually lack high tech graphics and sound effects
 * <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; text-align: left;">Limited uses
 * <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; text-align: left;">Can lead to boredom through repetition
 * <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; text-align: left;">Does not promote higher level thinking ||

**<span style="color: #800080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 130%;">Research Findings: **
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Cognitive studies have shown that if basic skills become automatic, students will be able to concentrate on more difficult activities (Luik 2000).
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Immediate,simple feedback has the biggest influence in promoting learning (Luik 2000).
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">In a study conducted by Williams (2000), students who used drill & practice software to learn their multiplication facts made significant increases in the number of facts learned as compared to students who used traditional pencil and paper.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">In a study (Singleton & Simmons 2001), using //<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Wordshark, //<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 110%;"> a drill & practice computer program designed to improve children's spelling and word recognition skills, participants made significant improvement in their reading and spelling as reported by teachers. It was also reported that the participants enjoyed using the program and were more motivated when using the program than when doing other classroom work.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 130%;">** Important factors for teachers to consider when selecting drill & practice software to use in the classroom: **
 * (Oh 2001)**
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Does the software program focus on the skills you want your class to master?
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Does the program contain a range of levels to accommodate all of your students?
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Can children easily change skill levels and select an activity so they can work independently?
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Does the program keep track of a student's progress from one session to the next?
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Is the program engag ing?


 * (<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Sullivan 2004)**
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Is developmentally appropriate for the student
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Reinforces skills already taught
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Is based on individual student needs
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Meets curriculum outcomes
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Provides a positive learning experience for the student
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Provides appropriate stimuli, response required, and reinforcement for the student

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 120%;">**<span style="color: #800080; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 120%;">Features of good drill & practice software: ** <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">The best types of drill and practice software usually include an engaging mix of text, graphics,sound, and animation. These all help to keep the learner's attention. Many use a game format that features competition between students or the computer. According to Alessi &Trollip (2001), competition against other student's is the most effective in increasing motivation. Quality drill and practice programs give students some control over the presentation of the material, allowing them to select the range of topics and the speed at which they are presented. Feedback is a crucial component of drill and practice software. If a question is answered correctly, a congratulatory message is appropriate. When answered incorrectly, it is important that the program indicate that the response is incorrect, why it is incorrect, and how to get the correct answer. Good drill and practice software is able to isolate individual concepts and make sure the student has mastered them. It is after a concept is mastered that it proceeds to higher levels of learning.

**(Foshay 2000)**

Examples of math Drill & Practice Software: <span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 210%; text-align: center;">

<span style="color: #000000; display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 120%; text-align: left;">**The following links provide information about available Drill & Practice software**

[|http://seamonkey.ed.asu.edu/emc300/software/types.html] <span style="font-family: tahoma,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 11px; line-height: 11px;">** [] <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 140%;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 10.4pt;">[]

The following is a link to a video on integrating Drill & Practice [] **

<span style="color: #24db24; display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 180%; text-align: left;"> References: = =

Sandy Bordy <span style="-webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 2px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 2px; border-collapse: collapse; color: #777777; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: normal;"> sbordy5@gmail.com Last updated April 24, 2010