To be considered a competent educator, there are almost 2000 strategies, concepts, and terms that you must know. However, since teachers wear so many hats, who has the time to learn them all? Don’t worry; we have you covered. In this series, we will discuss all the teaching and learning strategies, concepts, and terms that you need to know to be considered an effective educator. There are over 70 articles in this series, so pace yourself. We recommend reading one piece per weekday, which will allow you to complete the series in three to four months. We hope you enjoy it.

Click here to read all the articles in this series.

Dinner Party A small-group drama activity in which middle and high school students plan a guest list based on the content area they are studying through questions about guests and who might attend the dinner party. It can be used in all content areas.

Direct Analogy A problem-solving technique in which an individual is asked to consider the ways problems of this type are solved in nature.

Direct Analogy Method A method of problem-solving in which a problem is compared to similar problems in nature or other settings, providing solutions that could potentially be applied.

Direct Approach A method of teaching thinking skills in which the skill is presented and then examples of its use are given.

Direct Association Empathetic arousal based on an individual seeing someone in a difficult situation, thinking of a similar situation from his or her past, and feeling concern for the person.

Direct Observation A way to document social behaviors including individual behaviors and interactions within a group.

Direct Teaching Methods Refer to instances where the teacher is primarily regarded as the provider of information. The teacher is in full control of the pace, content, and structure of the lesson at all times, and students are required to follow.

Direct/Indirect Assessment How information is collected about a child by examiners and early intervention teams.

Directed Reading-Thinking Activity (DRTA) A teaching strategy, developed by Russell G. Stauffer, which aims to improve reading comprehension through a repeated prediction-making process.

Directive Context A specific situation or environment created to provide sufficient information for a learner to ascertain the meaning of a particular word.

Disciplinary Literacy The treatment by experts in various disciplines of students’ reading, writing, and critical thinking abilities specific to the different disciplines.

Discipline A division of academic study.

Discourse Any extended conversation more than a single utterance. Discourse can include both monologues and dialogues.

Discovery Teaching  A teaching style which provides students with an environment that encourages them to find general patterns for themselves. It is also called inductive teaching.

Discrepancy The disparity between two assessments, as in between assessments of a child’s IQ and actual academic achievement.

Discriminant Validity The act of determining whether subtests measure separate and distinct skills.

Discrimination The denial of freedoms or rewards to members of a certain group for an arbitrary reason.

Discrimination The process of perceiving, differentiating, and responding accurately to various stimuli.

Discussion Circles A small group strategy where students read a text on their own and then share their personal interpretation, insight, or questions about that text. This can be used to prompt discussion on informational articles, sections of text, or novels.

Discussion Web A reading comprehension strategy that provides students with a specific format and structure to discuss an expository text. To make a discussion web, students must think critically about both sides of a topic from multiple points of view.

Dispositions Traits such as morals, attitudes, and obligations that guide the work of teachers and school personnel.

Dissertation A comprehensive research study or writing project on a specific subject of inquiry that usually submitted at the end of a doctoral program.

Distance Learning Refers to the use of technology, such as video or webcams, allowing large numbers of teaching students to observe classrooms without disrupting the teaching or learning process. These can then be discussed afterward.

Distributed Practice A learning technique which involves the repetition of specific items at intervals over a designated period.

Divergent Questions Are questions that could have more than one answer. These require students to analyze responses before selecting.

Diversity A wide range of unique individual aspects, including race, language, ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual orientation, political ideology, socioeconomic level, and academic ability.