Systematic Trial-Based Instruction: An Evidence-Based Approach to Presenting Remedial Instruction in a Multi-Tier System of Support

Abstract

Gersten et al. [5] provided data that reveal how many opportunities to respond may have to be afforded certain students. Gersten et al. remarked that, to learn new content, students presenting learning challenges frequently need to engage in 10-30 times more practice opportunities as compared to their peers who are performing at grade level. Shanahan [3] presented a specific example with respect to a specific outcome: learning a new word. Summarizing the work of others [6], Shanahan remarked that poor readers need up to three times as many repetitions as better readers to learn a new word. However, he also indicated that the number of repetitions could be much greater for certain students since variability exists across both students and the types of words to be learned.