The strength of the direct teaching model is that instruction is focused on a specific set of objectives for teaching concepts and skills. As teachers plan for this approach, they must attend to linking the elements of the plan. The introduction to a topic is designed to gain students' attention and activate student motivation. This is followed by a presentation or modeling in which a concept or skill is presented.
Students then engage in guided practice, a two-way exchange with the teacher.
After the formal lesson ends, independent practice is provided so that students have an opportunity to apply the new knowledge. The strength of the lecture-discussion model is that it is structured to help students understand organized bodies of knowledge in terms of both concepts and how concepts are related. It begins by building on what students already know and systematically adds new, organized chunks of knowledge to build upon that base. The strength of the cooperative learning model is in engaging all students through collaborative work on common goals. This model increases student responsibility for learning.