ABSTRACT
The practice of isolating just some parts that are appropriate to be learned and explicitly teaching them is a feature of the well-known and researched model of tutoring examined in the previous chapter, the teaching and learning ‘scaffold’. But the scaffolding model assumes that the sequencing and focusing don’t happen in isolation from trying to complete the whole task. The national panel recommended explicit instruction on foundational components, especially for students having difficulty learning and for children with limited mathematical knowledge entering school. In terms of our criteria for learning, the greater the alignment between components, the more robust, generalisable and developmentally significant. Deliberate practice has several features significant for the explanation of side effects, especially the learning and mastery of components. The implication for instruction, which reduces the risk of side effects, is making sure that components are related to the overall performance of the task.
