Does this reflect your classroom? The solution is . . .

Easier said than done . . . Differentiation A teacher process to modify teaching methods, learning activities, assessment & student products according to the diverse population of the classroom

What do teachers really say and do about differentiation? Adapting instruction for individual learner needs draws attention to student differences “It’s not my job” “What? There are differences in learner needs?” Don’t know how to modify curriculum Adapting instruction for learner variance sounds great but it’s not feasible More likely to plan for whole-class instruction

Downside experiences of some teachers : Modifications were improvised or reactive Too much to cover made modifications ineffective Modifying materials, changing instructional strategies, making long range plans, and adapting assessment/grading criteria too overwhelming Unable to address ways culture and race impact student interest and learning preferences

More challenges … Most gifted students receive no differentiation in the classroom Dually identified more likely to be negatively perceived by teachers and peers Modifications more likely to focus on deficits than strengths Differences viewed as problematic

From Mehlinger, 1995 . . . “Most teachers teach every child the same material in the same way, and measure each child’s performance by the same standards…. Thus, teachers embrace the value of treating each child as a unique individual while instructing children as if they were virtually identical.”

What have we learned? That instruction responsive to student readiness, interest, and learning profile stands the best chance for successful differentiation. That teachers need to reconstruct their understanding of how students learn, how learning varies and how students should be taught. That consistent, reflective, proactive teacher attention to differentiation makes the difference. That teachers can’t do it alone. They need each other and they need the support of leadership.

The answer is NOT . . . another “this too shall pass” mandate a formula of “right” models and strategies a reform that leaves teachers disconnected from what each other is doing a “talking head” with minimal schools-teachers-students contact

“Learning at its best … … is a result of sharing information and ideas, challenging someone else's interpretation and having to rethink your own, and working on problems in a climate of mutual support.” Alfie Kohn

Lesson Study: The means to address “Learning at its best” Puts control into the hands of those most closely connected to the action – teachers Focuses on the questions that drive improved teaching and learning. Its success lies in its utter simplicity: teachers meet, they design lessons to address agreed upon goals, they teach and observe each other, then they refine and re-teach their lessons.

Differentiation Strategies The web links to the strategies that follow represent some, but not all, of research-based strategies that work for differentiation. You should pick and choose those strategies that best support your lesson’s success Next Page

Web Links to Differentiation Strategies Reciprocal Teaching Reflective Discussion Research Projects Response Journal Role Playing Scaffolding Science Fairs Science Olympics Simulations Story Mapping Storytelling Structured Controversy Synetics Think Alouds Think, Pair, Share Visual Imaging Webbing WebQuests Word Walls Writing to Inform Interactive Journaling Inquiry Integrating the Arts Interdisciplinary Approach Jigsaw Journal Writing K-W-L Learning Contracts Learning Logs Lecture Literature Circles Mind Mapping Oratory, Public Speaking and Speech Writing Picture Books and Illustrator Studies Picture Word Inductive Model (PWIM) Quick Writes RAFT Read Aloud Reading for Meaning Readers' Theater Assigned Questions Author's Chair Balanced Literacy Bloom’s Taxonomy Questioning Book Talks Brain-Based Artistic Approaches Brainstorming Case Studies Categorizing Cloze Procedure Concept Attainment Concept Formation Concept Maps Cooperative Learning Debates Didactic Questions Discussion Drill & Practice Focused Imaging Graphic Organizers Guided & Assisted Reading Guided Reading & Thinking Return to Models of Instruction Accommodation Strategies

A number of online resources provide assistance and strategies for instruction for English learners, students with disabilities and advanced learners: English Learner Initiative: http://csmp.ucop.edu/csp/initiative.html SDAIE Handbook: Techniques, Strategies, and Suggestions for Teachers of LEP and Former LEP Students http://www.csupomona.edu/~tassi/sdaie.htm Inclusion Strategies for Students with Disabilities http://www.as.wvu.edu/~scidis/sitemap.html Multiple Links to Programs for High Ability Learners http://www.ericec.org/gifted/gt-diges.html Return to Models of Instruction