This document describes a study that aims to teach tutors effective teaching behaviors for Direct Instruction curriculum through virtual training in Second Life. Three tutors from an adult literacy program will receive training in Second Life on scripted Corrective Reading lessons while their teaching behaviors are measured. The study will evaluate if skills developed through virtual training in Second Life generalize to improved fluency and accuracy when tutors do live, face-to-face instruction with students. Dependent variables include the tutors' fluency in instructional pacing, error corrections, and praise, as measured before, during, and after the virtual training.

1. Building effective teaching
behaviors in Second Life
Lee Mason
Teacher Education & Leadership
Peter Blair
Instructional Technology & Learning Sciences
Nancy Glomb
Special Education & Rehabilitation
Utah State University

2. Allen & Seaman, 2008
• Over 3.9 million students were taking at least one online
course during the fall 2007 term; a 12 percent increase over
the number reported the previous year.
• The 12.9 percent growth rate for online enrollments far
exceeds the 1.2 percent growth of the overall higher
education student population.
• Over twenty percent of all U.S. higher education students
were taking at least one online course in the fall of 2007.

3. Virtual education is defined as instruction in a learning
environment where the teacher and the student are
separated by time, space, or both; and the teacher
provides course content via course management
applications, multimedia resources, Internet, video
conferencing, or other alternatives to traditional face-to-
face education (Muller, 2009).

4. Corrective Reading
• Direct Instruction curriculum published by SRA
• Research has shown CR to be effective for adult
learners (Edmondson, 2004; Hempenstall, 2006)
• Requires specific teaching behaviors to manage students
and present tasks

5. DI Teaching Techniques
• Setting up the lesson
• Following scripted presentations
• Correcting errors
• Pacing the exercises
• Using signals
• Teaching to low performers
• Switching between group and individual turns
• Reinforcing correct responses

6. Reinforcing Effective Teaching
Behaviors
Engelmann (2004), senior developer of Direct Instruction
programs, states that the average teacher requires at least two
years of training to become proficient with low performing
students.

7. Research Questions – Multiple
Baseline
1. To what extent can specific teaching behaviors be effectively
trained in Second Life?
2. To what extent do skills developed in a multi-user virtual
environment generalize to live, face-to-face instruction?

8. Participants
Three tutors from a volunteer-based adult literacy program.
• Tutors have no formal instruction in teaching.
• One male, two female
Three adult students receiving instruction in reading.

9. Setting
Face-to-face tutoring takes place at the local library.
Tutor training takes place on a virtual island in Second Life.

10. Virtual Setting

11. Actual Text Scripted Errors

12. Dependent Variable
Tutor performance will be measured using the Direct Instruction
Supervision System (Marchand-Martella, Lignugaris/Kraft,
Pettigrew, 1990)
Fluency will be determined by counting the number of correct
and incorrect teaching behaviors over a five minute observation
Teaching behaviors consist of instructional pacing, error
corrections, and praise

13. Measures - Fluency of Presentation

14. Procedures - Baseline
Tutors deliver a Corrective Reading for each live tutoring
session throughout the study
Data collected on fluency of instructional delivery
No feedback provided to tutors on their performance

15. Procedures - Virtual Training
Students deliver a Corrective Reading lesson in Second Life
Data collected on fluency of instructional delivery
Feedback provided to tutors on their performance

16. Example lesson in Second Life

17. Results - Pacing
Daily SUCCESSIVE CALENDAR WEEKS
Count per
Minute
1000
500
COUNTING TIMES
100
50
10 p
COUNT PER MINUTE
10-sec
5
20-sec
30-sec
1 1-min
0.5 2-min
5-min
0.1 10-min
0.05
30-min
1-hr
0.01 Virtual Training
2-hr
0.005 4-hr
8-hr
0.001 16-hr
0 7 14 21 28 35 42 49 56 63 70 77 84 91 98 105 112 119 126 133 140
SUCCESSIVE CALENDAR DAYS

18. Results - Pacing
Daily SUCCESSIVE CALENDAR WEEKS
Count per
Minute
1000
500
COUNTING TIMES
100
50
10 p
COUNT PER MINUTE
10-sec
5
20-sec
30-sec
1 1-min
0.5 2-min
5-min
0.1 10-min
0.05
30-min
1-hr
0.01 Virtual Training
2-hr
0.005 4-hr
8-hr
0.001 16-hr
0 7 14 21 28 35 42 49 56 63 70 77 84 91 98 105 112 119 126 133 140
SUCCESSIVE CALENDAR DAYS

19. Results - Error Corrections
Daily SUCCESSIVE CALENDAR WEEKS
Count per
Minute
1000
500
COUNTING TIMES
100
50
10
COUNT PER MINUTE
10-sec
5
p 20-sec
30-sec
1 1-min
0.5 2-min
5-min
0.1 10-min
0.05
30-min
1-hr
0.01 Virtual Training
2-hr
0.005 4-hr
8-hr
0.001 16-hr
0 7 14 21 28 35 42 49 56 63 70 77 84 91 98 105 112 119 126 133 140
SUCCESSIVE CALENDAR DAYS

20. Results - Praise
Daily SUCCESSIVE CALENDAR WEEKS
Count per
Minute
1000
500
COUNTING TIMES
100
50
10
COUNT PER MINUTE
10-sec
5 p
20-sec
30-sec
1 1-min
0.5 2-min
5-min
0.1 10-min
0.05
30-min
1-hr
0.01 Virtual Training
2-hr
0.005 4-hr
8-hr
0.001 16-hr
0 7 14 21 28 35 42 49 56 63 70 77 84 91 98 105 112 119 126 133 140
SUCCESSIVE CALENDAR DAYS

21. Contact Information:
Lee Mason - lee.mason@usu.edu
Peter Blair - peter.blair@aggiemail.usu.edu
Nancy Glomb - nancy.glomb@usu.edu
This project was supported through funds from a U.S. Department
of Education Special Education Preservice Improvement Grant
(CFDA 84.325T).