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TEAL Center Fact Sheet No. 8: Effective Lesson Planning 2010

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Effective Lesson Planning

 About Ef fec tive Lesson Planning

Planning ahead to identify a course of action that caneffectively reach goals and objectives is an importantfirst step in any process, and education is no excep-tion. In education, the planning tool is the lesson plan,which is a detailed description of an instructor’scourse of instruction for an individual lesson intendedto help learners achieve a particular learning objec-tive. Lesson plans communicate to learners what theywill learn and how they will be assessed, and theyhelp instructors organize content, materials, time, in-structional strategies, and assistance in the class-

room. Lesson planning helps English as a secondlanguage (ESL), adult basic education (ABE), adultsecondary education (ASE), and other instructorscreate a smooth instructional flow and scaffold instruc-tion for learners.

The Lesson Planning Process

Before the actual delivery of a lesson, instructors en-gage in a planning process. During this process, theydetermine the lesson topic  (if states have imple-mented content standards, the topic should derivefrom them). From the topic derive the lesson objec-tive  or desired results –the concepts and ideas thatlearners are expected to develop and the specificknowledge and skills that learners are expected toacquire and use at the end of the lesson. Objectivesare critical to effective instruction, because they helpinstructors plan the instructional strategies and activi-ties they will use, including the materials and re-sources to support learning. It is essential that the ob-

 jective be clear and describe the intended learning

outcome. Objectives can communicate to learnerswhat is expected of them–but only if they are sharedwith learners in an accessible manner. Instructionalobjectives must be specific, outcome-based, andmeasurable, and they must describe learner behavior.Heinich et al. (2001) refer to the  ABCD’s of writingobjectives:

•   Audience – learners for whom the objective iswritten (e.g., ESL, ABE, GED);

•

  Behavior – the verb that describes what the au-dience will be able to do (e.g., describe, explain,locate, synthesize, argue, communicate);

•  Condition – the circumstances under which theaudience will perform the behavior (e.g., when alearner obtains medicine from the pharmacy he orshe will be able to read the dosage); and

•  Degree – acceptable performance of the behavior(i.e., how well the learner performs the behavior).

Learner assessment follows from the objectives.Based on the principles of backward design  devel-oped by Wiggins and McTighe (1998), instructors

identify the lesson objective or desired results andthen decide what they will accept as evidence oflearners’ knowledge and skills. The concept of back-ward design holds that the instructor must begin withthe end in mind (i.e., what the student should be ableto know, understand, or do) and then map backwardfrom the desired result to the current time and the stu-dents’ current ability/skill levels to determine the bestway to reach the performance goal.

The WIPPEA Model for Lesson Planning

The WIPPEA Model, an acronym that stands forWarm-up, Introduction, Presentation, Practice, Evalu-ation,  Application, is a lesson plan model thatrepresents a continuous teaching cycle in which eachlearning concept builds on the previous one, servingas an instructional roadmap for instructors. The WIP-PEA lesson plan model is adapted from the work ofHunter (Mastery Teaching, 1982). This six-step cyclic-al lesson planning approach has learners demonstratemastery of concepts and content at each step before

Planning ahead to identify a course of action that caneffectively help learners reach their goals and objec-tives is an important first step in effective instruction.Lesson planning communicates to learners what theywill learn and how their goals will be assessed, and ithelps instructors organize content, materials, time,instructional strategies, and assistance in the class-room.

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the instructor proceeds to the next step. See TEALCenter suggestions in italics  below for incorporating

each of these elements.

Warm-up  – Assesses prior knowledge by reviewingprevious materials relevant to the current lesson. In-troduce an activity that reviews previously learnedcontent (e.g., for a vocabulary lesson, the warm-upmay be a quick matching exercise with words pre-viously learned and their definitions), and also includean activity that focuses on the topic to be taught.

Introduction – Provides a broad overview of the con-tent and concepts to be taught and focuses the learn-ers’ attention on the new lesson. Introduce the pur-pose of the lesson by stating and writing the objec-

tives for learners and discussing the lesson contentand benefits by relating the objective to learners’ ownlives. Assess learners’ prior knowledge of the newmaterial by asking questions and writing learners’ res-ponses on a chalkboard or flip chart.

Presentation – Teaches the lesson content and con-cepts. Create an activity to introduce the concept orskill (e.g., introduce new vocabulary by asking learn-ers to work in groups to identify words related to tak-ing medications) and then introduce informationthrough a variety of modalities using visuals, realia,description, explanation, and written text. Check forlearner understanding of the new material and make

changes in lesson procedures if necessary. 

Practice  – Models the skills and provides opportuni-ties for guided practice. Introduce a variety of activitiesthat allow learners to work in groups, in pairs, or inde-pendently to practice the skills, concepts, and informa-tion presented. Integrate technology into activities asavailable.

Evaluation  – Assesses each learner’s attainment ofthe objective. Include oral, aural, written, or appliedperformance assessments. For example, ask studentsto fill in the blanks on a cloze activity using the fourmedicine warning labels that were discussed in class.

For lower level learners, provide a word bank at thebottom of the worksheet. Omit the word bank for moreadvanced students.

 App licat ion  – Provides activities that help learnersapply their learning to new situations or contextsbeyond the lesson and connect it to their own lives.Choose activities that learners can relate to or haveexpressed concern about. For example, have learnersread the label of a medication they or a family mem-

ber may use at home to make certain they understandthe meaning of the words on the label. Gather feed-

back from learners in follow-up classes and help themassess what additional support, if any, they may re-quire.

The following graphic integrates the WIPPEA processwith backward design in a lesson planning wheel. Inthis cyclical approach, teachers assess prior know-ledge, provide a broad overview of the con-tent/concepts to be taught, introduce vocabulary,teach content/concepts, check comprehension, com-bine the content and vocabulary through guided prac-tice, evaluate student performance, and provide anapplication activity. Instructional strategies vary de-pending on the lesson content and skill areas, and the

needs of the learners.

Planning for differentiated instruction requires variouslearner profiles to inform the process; see the TEALCenter fact sheet, No. 5. Students demonstrate mas-tery of concepts/ content in each step before theteacher proceeds to the next step.

The relationship of the objective to the evaluationkeeps the lesson focused and drives instruction. Bykeeping the end in mind (backward design) and creat-

Figure 1. Planning Wheel

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ing the evaluation activity at the beginning of the les-son, the teacher has a clear destination for the lesson

and a roadmap to get there. Instructors can then se-lect materials and activities that will best prepare stu-dents to successfully complete the evaluation activityin the lesson. The process is repeated for each learn-ing objective. Lesson planning is an ongoing processin which instruction flows from one objective to thenext. This cyclical process is repeated for each learn-ing objective.

How Does Lesson Planning Benefit Learners and

Instructors?

Instructors and learners benefit from thoughtful lessonplanning. It provides a framework for instruction, and it

guides implementation of standards-based education.Lesson planning establishes a road map for instruc-tors of what has been taught and what needs to betaught. It allows them to focus on one objective at atime and communicate to learners what they will learnin each lesson. Because lessons incorporate ongoingassessments that determine how well learners under-

stand concepts and skills, instructors are able to makemid-course changes in instructional procedures or

provide additional support to learners. Additionally, thepractice and application components of the lessonhelp learners use the new skills and knowledge ineducational and other settings, thus promoting gene-ralization and relevance.

References

Barroso, K., & Pon, S. (2005). Effective lesson planning, Afacilitator’s guide. California Adult Literacy Professional De-velopment Project. American Institutes for Research, Sac-ramento, CA.

Heinich, R., Molenda, M., Russell, J., & Smaldino, S. (2001). 

Instructional media and technologies for learning. EngleCliffs (7th edition), NJ: Prentice Hall.

Hunter, Madeline. (1982). Mastery teaching. El Segundo,CA: TIP Publications.

Wiggins, G., & McTighe, J. (1998). Understanding by de-sign. Association for Supervision and Curriculum Develop-ment, Alexandria, VA.

 Authors: TEAL Center Staff.

 Adapted from CALPRO Professional Development Module, Effective Lesson

Planning. by Barroso, K. & Pon, S. (2004). AIR: Sacramento, CA.

 About the TEAL Center: The Teaching Excellence in Adult Literacy (TEAL) Cen-

ter is a project of the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Vocational and

 Adult Education (OVAE), designed to improve the quality of teaching in adult

education in the content areas. 

This publication was prepared with funding from the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Vocational and Adult Education,

under contract No.ED-VAE-09-O-0060. The opinions expressed herein do not necessarily reflect the opinions or policies of the

U.S. Department of Education. This document is in the public domain and may be reproduced without permission.