Towards Individualized Instruction with Technology-Enabled Tools and Methods

In this study we explored the effectiveness of individualizing instruction using a system that diagnosed students' knowledge gaps in pre-algebra and provided individualized instruction and practice. One hundred middle school students participated, and received either no instruction or individualized computer-based instruction. Diagnosis of individual student knowledge gaps was based on a rapid 90-item pretest that mapped to a Bayesian network of presumed knowledge dependencies among various pre-algebra concepts. Given a diagnosis, a student received computer-based direct instruction. Instruction was generally less than 5 minutes followed by practice opportunities and its design was based on empirically supported features. In 4 out of 6 posttest scales, compared to students receiving no instruction, students who were diagnosed as low-knowledge on a concept and received instruction on that concept performed higher on the posttest scale for that concept with effect sizes ranging from .76 to .91. This finding held only for students who were engaged in the task (i.e., compliant as measured by participants' clickstream). This finding provides support for the idea that very brief instruction can be developed for pre-algebra concepts, be matched to an individual, and be effective. Implications are discussed for the development of "dumb" instructional and assessment systems (vs. "smart" systems such as intelligent tutoring systems), empirically guided instructional design, instructional efficiency using technology-enabled techniques, and the importance of gathering process data to measure degree of implementation. (Contains 7 tables. The following are appended: (1) Summary of Design Guidelines Implemented in Instruction; (2) Student Background Detail; (3) Student Background Measures; (4) Sample of Pretest Items; and (5) Transfer Test Items.)