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Meeting the Needs of all Learners
Dr. Elana Milstein
“Diversity has become the norm among the students in the classrooms of today” (Johnson, 1990)
Languages Families Cultural backgrounds Economics Experiential background
Student Diversity
Aptitude Achievement Interest Motivation Needs Ability
Paradigm Shift in Education:
Curriculum
Traditional
Major focus on content Content acquisition Lock step progress
Evolving
Content & process balance
Learning to learn Continuous progress
Instruction
Traditional
Teacher-centered Single textbook Single instructional
approach Passive learning
Evolving
Child-centered Resource-based
learning Multiple approaches to
instruction Active learning
Environment
Traditional
Competitive System level management Supervision of learners Hierarchical structures
Evolving
Cooperative School-site
management Empowerment of
learners Professional/collegial
structures
Students need to become…
Independent Active Self-organizing Responsible Empowered
Brain ResearchConfirms what teachers have always known:
No two children are alike. No two children learn in the identical way. An enriched environment for one student is
not necessarily enriched for another. In the classroom we should teach children
to think for themselves.
--Marian Diamond
DifferentiationDifferentiation
is a philosophythat enables teachers to plan
strategically in order to reach the needs of diverse
learners in the classrooms.
is a philosophythat enables teachers to plan
strategically in order to reach the needs of diverse
learners in the classrooms.
Differentiation
IS NOT Tracking A New Strategy Static Teaching to the
Middle Synonymous
with Individualization
IS
Flexible Grouping Student Centered Based on Readiness For all Learners Changing all the Time Meeting Personal
Needs
Differentiate? What?
Content & MaterialsProcess & Strategies
Assessment & AssignmentsTime
Based on readiness and interests
When considering differentiating, all of the ELEMENTS must be considered and addressed.
Elements of
Differentiated Instruction
Climate
Knowing the Learner
Assessing the Learner
Adjustable Assignments
Instructional Strategies
Curriculum Approaches
Climate
Effective teachers believe that all children can learn and be successful.
Effective teachers create a climate where all students feel included.
Effective teachers feel that there is potential in each learner and commit to finding the key that will unlock that potential.
Knowing the Learner We need to know the learner so that
we can make sure that the curriculum fits.
We need to know how students access, process, and express information- We need to know their learning
styles. We need to know their thinking
styles.
Assessing the Learner
Just as one size of learning doesn’t fit all, one size of assessment doesn’t suit either.
We need to pre-assess the learner so that we can find out what they already know.
We need to assess during the learning- use ongoing assessments.
We need to assess after the learning.
Adjustable Assignments Allow teachers to help students focus
on essential skills and understanding key concepts, recognizing that they may be at different levels of readiness.
Students have the opportunity to develop essential skills and understanding at his or her appropriate level of challenge.
Adjustable
Instructional Strategies
Cooperative Learning
Graphic Organizers
Assignments
Content
Grouping Alone
Total Group
Partner
Small Group
Curriculum Compacting
Instructional Strategies
Teachers who use a variety of instructional strategies add novelty, choice, and individuality to learning.
As teachers build their repertoire of instructional strategies, they will see how they can adjust the learning for a group of learners and how different strategies appeal to different learners.
Curriculum Approaches
Curriculum can be delivered in many ways so that it will appeal to individual learners Centers or stations Projects Problem-based learning Inquiry Contracts
Adaptations in…
Content Process Product
Content
Multiple texts Varied time Contracts Compacting Group investigation
Process
Learning centers Multiple intelligences Graphic organizers Simulations Learning logs
Product
Independent study Community–based projects Multiple intelligence-based orientations Presentations Arts Multimedia
A New Direction
“Teachers guide students down many paths to a common
destination”
Mary Anne Hess
“If children can’t learn the way we teach, we should teach them
the way they learn”.
“Differentiated instruction means shaking up what goes on in the classroom so that students have multiple options for taking in information,
making sense of ideas, and expressing what they learn”.
Carol Ann Tomlinson
Differentiated Classroom: What is it?
“Differentiated instruction is not a strategy to be used from time to
time, not a bag of tricks approach .
It’s a way of thinking about teaching and learning”.
~Carol Ann Tomlinson~
“Differentiated instruction is not a strategy to be used from time to
time, not a bag of tricks approach .
It’s a way of thinking about teaching and learning”.
~Carol Ann Tomlinson~