In conclusion, Webster feels that differentiating instruction is not only going to help your special education students fully participate, it will also enrich and improve the experience of the general education students. He feels that differentiating instruction helps everybody win.
The basis for this article (which also happens to be the basis for implementing differentiated instruction) is that no two students enter a classroom with the exact same needs, the exact same abilities and experiences, the exact same learning style and proficiencies etc... Regardless of these differences, all students are expected to master the same content. While this is a challenge to educators, Jennipher Willoughby (the author of this article) believes if the proper foundation is laid down that the differentiated classroom can succeed in meeting the needs of every student in it.
Willoughby starts off by outlining some do’s and don’ts when differentiating your instruction. Her first do was to make sure you provide several learning options, or different paths to learning, which help students, take in information and make sense of concepts and skills. Her first don’t was make sure you do not come up with a separate lesson plan for each student. Her next don’t was do not “water down” the curriculum for students as well.
Next Willoughby talked about breaking down the foundation of differentiated instruction into three main components: getting to know your students, identify areas of your curriculum that could be adapted to differentiated instruction, and examine your role as teacher in the differentiated classroom.
The last component of differentiated instruction that Willoughby discusses was strategies for successfully implementing it. She focused her strategies on three general areas: the content of instruction, the process and techniques used to help make sense of a given topic, and the products produced by students that demonstrate their learning.
All in all, Willoughby feels that differentiated instruction does not happen by accident. It requires planning, commitment, and acknowledgment of the fact that diverse abilities, experiences, and interests have a tremendous impact on student learning.
In the next article I read by Tracey Hall, a senior research scientist at NCAC, she feels that the model of differentiated instruction requires teachers to be flexible in their approach to teaching and adjusting the curriculum and presentation of information to learners rather than expecting students to modify themselves for the curriculum. She believes that there are several key elements that guide differentiation in the education environment.
Hall believes that one of those key elements is content, and within content there are three elements of the curriculum that can be differentiated. Those three elements are instruction is concept-focused and principle-driven, align tasks and objectives to learning goals, and there must be several elements and materials used to support instructional content.
The next key element that she focuses on is the process of differentiating your instruction. Hall breaks down the process into two main factors: flexible grouping being consistently used, and classroom management that benefits teachers and students.
The last elements that Hall believes are key to implementing effective differentiated instruction are the products. Hall breaks down the products into three components that consist of: initial and on-going assessment of student readiness and growth are essential, students are active and responsible explorers, and vary expectations and requirements for student responses.
Lastly Hall concentrates on five guidelines that make differentiation possible for teachers. Those guidelines are: Clarify key concepts and generalizations, use assessment as a teaching tool to extend versus merely measuring instruction, emphasize critical and creative thinking as a goal in lesson design, engaging all learners is essential, and provide a balance between teacher assigned and student selected tasks.
In reading this next article the author broke down the reason for differentiating instruction into four main parts: no two children are alike, no two children learn the identical way, an enriched environment for one child may not be as enriched for another, and in the classroom we should teach children to think for themselves. The author also believes that it is important to offer students learning tasks that are appropriate to their learning needs rather than just to the grade and subject being taught. This means providing different options for different students (but not an option for every student in the class). Readiness, learning styles and interest vary between students and even within an individual over time. In a differentiated classroom all students have equally engaging learning tasks.
The author breaks down differentiating instruction into four ways: differentiating the content/topic, differentiating the process/activities, differentiating the product, differentiating by manipulating the environment or through accommodating different learning styles.
The focus on differentiating the content/topic is involved in pre testing your students in order gain an understanding of where they are at and determine which students need direct instruction and which can work independently ahead.
The focus on differentiating the process/activities is putting an importance on giving students alternate paths to grasp the concept being taught. Examples are having the kids use graphic organizers, maps, diagrams or charts to display their understanding of a concept.
Differentiating the product is focused on the different performance expectations of each student in your class. Some students might require mastery of a concept, while others may have reduced expectations.
Lastly, we have differentiating by manipulating the environment or through accommodating different learning styles. Many classrooms offer limited opportunities to change the lighting or sound levels, to eliminate visual distracters, or to provide a more casual seating arrangement for students. Varying teaching strategies makes sure that students will occasionally learn in a manner compatible with their own learning preference but also expands their repertoire of alternative learning strategies in turn.
In this article about differentiated instruction, Lee Rutledge talks about what is and what is not differentiated instruction. She also focused on the issue of colleges properly or not properly preparing future teachers for implementing differentiated instruction in their classrooms.
Rutledge started off by addressing the central issue of teachers being properly prepared to implement differentiated instruction in their classroom. The results of the study that was administered, were teachers found a mismatch in what they actually needed to teach kids of different backgrounds and skills and what skills their pre service program had prepared them for. Overall, the results of this study found that the general education programs are not preparing teachers for the increase in diversity of the children they are teaching.
The next part of the article focused on what differentiated instruction is and what differentiated instruction is not. What differentiated instruction is according to Rutledge is more qualitative rather than quantitative. Differentiated instruction is more proactive rather than reactive. Differentiated instruction is student centered and is engaging, relevant and interesting, it’s rooted in assessment, provides multiple approaches, dynamic, and is a blend of small group, whole class and individual instruction.
In the last part of the article, Rutledge discusses flexible grouping. She refers to flexible grouping as a critical component of the process. Rutledge says when cooperative learning is implemented correctly, five defining elements are present; positive interdependence, face to-face interaction, individual and group accountability, interpersonal and small group skills, and group processing. She also mentions how ability grouping students has different effects depending on your ability. Grouping low kids together usually has worse results because low kids perform worse when grouped with other low kids. The difference is that grouping medium and high kids together usually benefits them because they work off each other and it motivates them to do better.
Summary
In conclusion, Differentiated instruction, is the process of ensuring that what a student learns, how he/she learns it, and how the student demonstrates what he/she has learned is a match for that student’s readiness level, interests, and preferred mode of learning. Differentiation stems from beliefs about differences among learners, how they learn, learning preferences and individual interests. Research indicates that many of the emotional or social difficulties gifted students experience disappear when their educational climates are adapted to their level and pace of learning. Differentiation in education can also include how a student shows that they have mastery of a concept. This could be through a research paper, role play, podcast, diagram, poster, etc. The key is finding how your students learn and displays their learning that meets their specific needs.
Unfortunately, our images of school are almost factory images, so school is very standardized. But kids don't come in standard issue. The challenge is having teachers question the standardized notion of school and then helping kids realize there's a better way to do school. Effective teachers have been differentiating instruction for as long as teaching has been a profession. It has to do with being sensitive to the needs of your students and finding ways to help students make the necessary connections for learning to occur in the best possible way. In this day and age, we have extensive research available to us to assist us in creating instructional environments that will maximize the learning opportunities that will assist students in developing the knowledge and skills necessary for achieving positive learning outcomes.