Interactive Instruction to Prevent Attention Problems in Class

This article reports the development and implementation of a strategy designed to bring persistent attention problems in class (off-task behaviour) under the control of teachers and students. The strategy enables the teacher to recognise the demotivating meaning that a task situation can have for a student. By pinpointing this situation in short dialogues with the student, the teacher encourages the student to make his or her own task proposal with the intention of turning the task into a feasible challenge. The strategy was designed from a cognitive-motivational interpretation of attention problems, and it is given shape in four programs for elementary schools. The theoretical frame of reference, the characteristics of the strategy, and the implementation of the programs are set out. Furthermore, an evaluation study is reported. The results indicate that teachers using the strategy can deal more effectively with students who have task behaviour problems. The students' on-task behaviour in this study increased in units of time from 60–70%. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.