Support for Personalized InstructionDifferentiated Instruction

Presented by

Brenda ClarkRESA 5 Professional Growth Coordinator

A recorded version of this presentation will be posted tohttp://wvde.state.wv.us/osp/sebta2.html

“Our challenge as educators is to make sure that we provide all children in our public schools the opportunity for success. Teachers of children with special needs understand this challenge more than most. They are dedicated individuals who have a passion for teaching and high expectations that every child can learn given an opportunity.” – James B. Phares, Ed.D.

Differentiated InstructionSuccess for ALL

“Student differences matter and

effective teachers attend to those

differences thoughtfully and

proactively.”

http://wvde.state.wv.us/teacherevalpilot/evaluationpilot_guide.pdf

Easier said, than done.

Challenges Require more time Bring with them to the classroom great reservoirs of

knowledge that other students do not bring Need to move around more than others Seem to have given up on school – or themselves or adults

– and are angry or lethargic much of the time Have difficulty concentrating during whole-class discussions Are poor test takers but actually understand far more than

they show Will not engage with learning if they fail to see the point of

it

Today’s students…• Are accustomed to watching a particular TV

show when it is convenient rather than when it’s broadcast

• No longer buy entire albums to “own” a particular song but rather download just the selections they like

• Order computers specifically designed for their needs

• Get news on demand and information they need when they need it

• Etc. - Leading and Managing A Differentiated Classroom

by Carol Ann Tomlinson and Marcia B. Imbeau

Question????

“… the question is not whether teachers recognize that such differences exist in virtually every classroom, or even whether they impact student success.”

“The question that plagues teachers is HOW to attend to the evident differences in a room that contains so many young bodies.”

Leading and Managing A Differentiated Classroom by Carol Ann Tomlinson and Marcia B. Imbeau

Differentiated Instruction is_____________.

Differentiated Instruction

DI is a way for teachers to teach with individuals, as well as content, in mind. It supports the idea that high functioning DI depends on strong relationships and conversations between teachers and students, allowing them to co-design learning experiences and share the investment and the responsibility for the results.

What Experts Say about DI…

It is a comprehensive and flexible process that includes the planning, preparation and delivery of instruction to address the diversity of students’ learning needs within the classroom.

Through DI, teachers take into account who they teach, what they teach, where they teach and how they teach.

National Professional Resources, Inc.

“At its most basic level, differentiating 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 - HOW TO Differentiate Instruction IN Mixed-Ability Classrooms -2nd Edition

High functioning DI is an outcome of deep understanding of the principles of DI.

If we only learn methods, we are tied to those methods, but if we learn principles, we can develop our own methods. - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Misconception vs. Reality #1

Misconception : Differentiation is a set of instructional strategies.

Reality: Differentiation is a philosophy – a way of thinking about teaching and learning. It is, in fact, a set of principles.

Misconception vs. Reality #2

Misconception: It’s adequate for a district or school leader to tell, or even show, teachers how to differentiate instruction effectively.Reality: Learning to differentiate instruction well requires rethinking one’s classroom practice and results from an ongoing process of trial, reflection, and adjustment in the classroom itself.

Misconception vs. Reality #3

Misconception: Differentiation is something a teacher does or doesn’t do.

Reality: Most teachers who remain in a classroom for longer than a day do pay attention to student variation and respond to it in some way- especially with students who threaten order in the classroom. However, very few teachers proactively plan instruction to consistently address differences.

Misconception vs. Reality #4

Misconception: Differentiation is just about instruction

Reality: Although differentiation is an instructional approach, effective DI is inseparable from a positive learning environment, high-quality curriculum, assessment to inform teacher decision making, and flexible classroom management. To the degree that any one of those elements is weak, the others are also diminished.

If we only learn methods, we are tied to those methods, but if we learn principles, we can develop our own methods.

- Ralph Waldo Emerson

How can we influence student learning?

Readiness: A student’s current proximity to specified knowledge, understanding and skills.

Interests: That which engages the attention, curiosity, and involvement of a student.

Learning Profile: A preference for taking in, exploring, or expressing content.

Carol Ann Tomlinson, 2000

Student Learning Profile: Multiple Intelligences

Logical/mathematical - learning experiences that give the opportunity to think conceptually, use clear reasoning, look for abstract patterns and relationships, experiment, test things, classify and categorize.

Kinesthetic - processing knowledge through bodily sensations, communicating through gestures, learning by touching and manipulating, role playing, creative movement, and other physical activities. Kinesthetically dominant learners enjoy fixing and building things.

All Grades 2012

All Grades 2012

VisualReading

and Writing

KinestheticAural

Learning Styles - VARK Model by Neil Fleming

FOCUS

“Differentiation can be accurately described as classroom practice with a balanced emphasis on individual students and course content.”

Tomlinson & Imbeau (2010)- Leading and Managing A Differentiated Classroom

Critical Connections of Differentiated Instruction

Teachers can differentiate at least four classroom elements based on student readiness, interest, or learning profile:

•Content•Process•Product•Learning environment

Content

What does the student need to learn and how will the student get access to

the information?

Content Examples

Using reading materials at varying lexile equivalency levels

Providing Accessible Instructional Materials Using multiple means of representationHighlighting vocabularyProviding charts and modelsProviding interest centersProviding varied manipulatives and resourcesProviding peer and adult mentors

Process

What activities are best for this student to engage in to make sense of or master the content?

Process Examples• Using tiered activities through which all learners work with

the same important understandings and skills, but proceed with different levels of support, challenge, or complexity.

• Providing interest centers that encourage students to explore subsets, of the class topic , that are particular interest to them.

• Hands-on materials• Vary pacing according to readiness• Allow for working alone, in partners, triads, and small

groups• Allow choice in strategies for processing and for expressing

results of processing

Product

What culminating project(s) could you offer or develop with a student that would allow him/her to rehearse, apply, and/or extend what he/she has learned in a unit? And, how flexible is the project?

Product Examples

• Using multiple means of expression• Students determining individual or group status• Student made rubrics • Modeling, using and encouraging students to use

technology within products and presentations• Providing product choices from all multiple

intelligences, and options for gender, culture, and race

• Using related arts teachers to help with student products

Learning Environment

What changes in the classroom and/or school climate and culture would have a positive effect on how each student feels and functions?

Learning Environment Examples

• Making sure there are places in the room where students can work quietly and without distraction, as well as places that invite student collaboration.

• Providing materials that reflect a variety of cultures and home settings.

• Setting out clear guidelines for independent work that match individual needs

Evidence of Learning

Content Standards and Objectives

Directions: • Pick a NxG content standard from the cards• Decide what acceptable evidence of deep learning might

be• List a variety of end products, performance tasks and/or

assessments that would be acceptable

Video -Teaching ChannelNew Teacher Survival Guide: DI Science 9-12

1. Why is assessment a key part of differentiation?

2. What kinds of assessments could/should these be?

3. What aspects of your lesson can be tiered to meet students at their level?

4. What are simple ways you can start differentiating tomorrow?

5. More difficult ways you can work at over the year?

So what?

One differentiated idea per month for three years; that’s a teacher on pace for implementing this.” – Rick Wormeli

“I know that one day I will be an expert in differentiated instruction. It won’t be today, and it won’t be tomorrow. It just takes a lot of time.” – Laura Gurick

Principles of DI

Quality Curriculum

Continual Assessment

Respectful Tasks

Principles of DI

DI Tools for the Road Ahead…

In this refreshing addition to differentiated learning literature, Rick Wormeli takes readers step-by-step from the blank page to a fully crafted differentiation lesson. Along the way he shows middle and high school teachers and behind-the-scenes planning that goes into effective lesson design for diverse classrooms. http://www.stenhouse.com/html/wormelipodcast.htm

Flexible and Connected

…Your knowledge of your students, the relationships you have with them paired with your willingness and capacity to be instructionally flexible… will have impact.

We know this because…

“ In fact, research tells us that quality teaching can completely offset the devastating effects poverty has on students’ academic performance.” - The Economics of School Quality by E. Hanushek, 2005)

“If you are serious about helping kids succeed, stop wishing for a miracle. Five years of strong teaching is the miracle.” - Engaging Students with Poverty in Mind by Eric Jensen, 2013

Bibliography & ResourcesCampbell, Bruce. The Multiple Intelligences Handbook: Lesson Plans and More.

Stanwood, WA. 1996.Daniels, Harvey and Bizar. (2005). Teaching The Best Practice Way: Methods that Matter, K-12. Portland, Maine: Stenhouse Publishers.Gregory, Gayle. Differentiated Instructional Strategies in Practice. Thousand Oaks,

CA. 2003.Hanushek, E. The Economics of School Quality. German Economic Review., 6(3),

269-286. Jensen, Eric. Engaging Students With Poverty in Mind. Alexandria, VA: ASCD. 2013. Tomlinson, Carol Ann. The Differentiated Classroom. Alexandria, VA: ASCD. 1995. Wormeli, Rick. Fair Isn’t Always Equal: Assessment and Grading in the

Differentiated Classroom, Stenhouse Publishers, 2006.Office of Instructional Enhancement and Internal Operations/Office of Special

Education, Mississippi Department of Education

Thank you for your participation. At the

conclusion of this webinar,please download the

NCIPP mentor-mentee attachments.

If you require additional assistance please contact the Office of Special Programs

304-558-2696