Successful and Confident Students with Direct Instruction

by Siegfried Engelmann

Can all students be successful? Learn? Develop confidence in their abilities? Yes! There is an answer – an answer that has been proven many times over: Direct Instruction. Teachers can help their students catch up with their peers. Administrators can promote school environments that nurture achievement, appropriate behavior, and strong commitments to learning. Written by the developer of Direct Instruction, Successful and Confident Students with Direct Instruction will show you how!

138 pages, Paperback

First published October 6, 2014

About the author

Siegfried "Zig" Engelmann was an American educator and pioneer in the field of instructional design, best known as the co-developer of Direct Instruction (DI), a highly structured, research-based teaching method. As Professor Emeritus of Education at the University of Oregon and Director of the National Institute for Direct Instruction, Engelmann authored more than 100 curricula and several influential books. His work has profoundly shaped how reading, math, language, and reasoning skills are taught, particularly to struggling and disadvantaged students.
Engelmann began his career outside education, working in advertising and editing before turning his focus to how children learn. He initially studied how reinforcement affects learning and began testing educational strategies with preschoolers, including his own children. In 1964, he joined the University of Illinois, collaborating with Carl Bereiter on what became known as the Bereiter-Engelmann Preschool. There, he developed scripted lessons and systematic techniques to accelerate the learning of "culturally disadvantaged" children.
In 1970, Engelmann moved to the University of Oregon, where he expanded DI and helped launch the DISTAR (Direct Instruction System for Teaching and Remediation) programs in reading, math, and language. These materials were later implemented in Project Follow Through, the largest educational experiment in U.S. history. DISTAR produced the highest student gains in reading, math, and language development among all models tested.
Engelmann's programs evolved into Reading Mastery, Connecting Math Concepts, Corrective Reading, Reasoning and Writing, Spelling Mastery, and others. He also developed resources for parents, including Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons, and created computer-based programs such as Funnix and Direct Instruction Spoken English.
His 1982 book Theory of Instruction, co-authored with Douglas Carnine, laid the theoretical foundation for DI, explaining how learners form generalizations from examples and how instructional design must guide that process deliberately.
Engelmann's impact extended to national recognition. He received an honorary doctorate from Western Michigan University, the Fred S. Keller Award from the APA, and was named among the most influential figures in special education. He also gained unexpected attention when President George W. Bush was reading The Pet Goat, an Engelmann-authored story, during the events of September 11, 2001.
Siegfried Engelmann remained a passionate advocate for effective, evidence-based instruction throughout his life. His legacy continues through the enduring success of the Direct Instruction model and the thousands of educators and students it has empowered worldwide.