Transcript Document

Differentiating Instruction:
Beginning the Journey
"In the end, all learners need your
energy, your heart and your mind.
They have that in common because
they are young humans. How they
need you however, differs. Unless
we understand and respond to
those differences, we fail many
learners." *
* Tomlinson, C.A. (2001). How to differentiate instruction in mixed ability
classrooms (2nd Ed.). Alexandria, VA: ASCD.
Differentiated
Instruction
Defined
“Differentiated instruction is a teaching
philosophy based on the premise that
teachers should adapt instruction to
student differences. Rather than marching
students through the curriculum lockstep,
teachers should modify their instruction to
meet students’ varying readiness levels,
learning preferences, and interests.
Therefore, the teacher proactively plans a
variety of ways to ‘get at’ and express
learning.”
Carol Ann Tomlinson
Key Principles of a Differentiated Classroom
• The teacher is clear about what matters in subject matter.
• The teacher understands, appreciates, and builds upon student differences.
• Assessment and instruction are inseparable.
• The teacher adjusts content, process, and product in response to student
readiness, interests, and learning profile.
• All students participate in respectful work.
• Students and teachers are collaborators in learning.
• Goals of a differentiated classroom are maximum growth and individual
success.
• Flexibility is the hallmark of a differentiated classroom.
Source: Tomlinson, C. (2000). Differentiating Instruction for Academic Diversity. San Antonio, TX: ASCD
Assessment in a
Differentiated Classroom
• Assessment drives instruction. (Assessment information helps the
teacher map next steps for varied learners and the class as a whole.)
• Assessment occurs consistently as the unit begins, throughout the unit
and as the unit ends. (Pre-assessment, formative and summative
assessment are regular parts of the teaching/learning cycle.)
• Teachers assess student readiness, interest and learning profile.
• Assessments are part of “teaching for success.”
• Assessment information helps students chart and contribute to their
own growth.
• Assessment MAY be differentiated.
• Assessment information is more useful to the teacher than grades.
• Assessment is more focused on personal growth than on peer
competition.
Two Views of Assessment -Assessment is for:
Gate keeping
Judging
Right Answers
Control
Comparison to others
Use with single
activities
Assessment is for:
Nurturing
Guiding
Self-Reflection
Information
Comparison to task
Use over multiple
activities
FLEXIBLE GROUPING
Students are part of many different groups – and also work alone – based on the
match of the task to student readiness, interest, or learning style. Teachers may create
skills-based or interest-based groups that are heterogeneous or homogeneous
in readiness level. Sometimes students select work groups, and sometimes teachers
select them. Sometimes student group assignments are purposeful and sometimes random.
1
3
Teacher and whole
class begin exploration
of a topic or concept
Students and teacher
come together to share
information and pose
questions
5
7
9
The whole class
reviews key ideas and
extends their study
through sharing
The whole class is
introduced to a skill
needed later to make
a presentation
The whole class listens to
individual study plans and
establishes baseline
criteria for success
Students engage in further
study using varied materials
based on readiness and
learning style
Students work on varied
assigned tasks designed to
help them make sense of key
ideas at varied levels of
complexity and varied pacing
In small groups selected by
students, they apply key
principles to solve teachergenerated problems related
to their study
Students self-select interest
areas through which they will
apply and extend their
understandings
2
4
6
8
A differentiated classroom is marked by a repeated rhythm of whole-class preparation, review, and sharing, followed by
opportunity for individual or small-group exploration, sense-making, extension, and production
Differentiation of Instruction
Is a teacher’s response to learner’s needs
guided by general principles of differentiation
Respectful tasks
Flexible grouping
Continual assessment
Teachers Can Differentiate Through:
Content
Process
Product
According to Students’
Readiness
Interest
Learning Profile
for
Interest – Readiness – Learning Profile
by
Self – Peers - Teachers
Flexible Grouping
Students are part of many different groups (and
also work alone) based on the match of the
task to student readiness, interest, or learning
style. Teachers may create skills – based or
interest – based groups that are heterogeneous
or homogeneous in readiness level.
Sometimes students select work groups, and
sometimes teachers select them. Sometimes
student group assignments are purposeful and
sometimes random.
A Differentiated Classroom in Balance
F
L
E
X
I
B
L
E
Shared
Vision
Shared
goals
Inviting
Conceptbased
Shared
responsibility
Focused
Product
Oriented
Sense
Of
Community
Resource
Time
Groups
Approaches
to teaching
and learning
Safe
Affirming
Respect for
individual
Respect
For
Group
Shared
Challenge
On-going
assessment
to determine
need
Feedback
and
grading
ZPD
Target
Tomlinson-oo
How Does Research Support DI?
• Differentiated Instruction is the result of a
synthesis of a number of educational theories
and practices.
• Brain research indicates that learning occurs
when the learner experiences moderate
challenge and relaxed alertness –readiness
• Psychological research reveals that when
interest is tapped, learners are more likely to
find learning rewarding and become more
autonomous as a learner.
Checklist for Brain Based Classrooms
Brain organization and
Building safe environments:
 Do students feel safe to risk and
experiment with ideas?
 Do students feel included in the
class and supported by others?
 Are tasks challenging enough
without “undo distress?”
 Is there an emotional “hook”
for the learners?
 Are there novel, unique and
engaging activities to capture
and sustain attention?
Checklist for Brain Based Classrooms
Recognizing and honoring
diversity:
 Does the learning experience
appeal to the learners’ varied
multiple intelligences and
learning styles?
 May the students work
collaboratively and
independently?
 May they “show what they
know” in a variety of ways?
 Does the cultural background of
the learners influence
instruction?
Checklist for Brain Based Classrooms
Assessment:
 Is there enough time to explore,
understand and transfer the
learning to long term memory
(grow dendrites)?
 Is there time to accomplish
mastery?
 So they have opportunities for
ongoing, “just in time” feedback?
 Do they have time to revisit ideas
and concepts to connect or extend
them?
 Is metacognitive time built into the
learning process?
 Do students use logs and journals
for reflection and goal setting?
Checklist for Brain Based Classrooms
Instructional Strategies:
 Are the expectations clearly stated
and understood by the learner?
 Will the learning be relevant and
useful to the learner?
 Does the learning build on past
experience or create a new
experience?
 Does the learning relate to their
real world?
 Is it developmentally appropriate
and hands on?
 Are the strategies varied to engage
and sustain attention?
 Are there opportunities for projects,
creativity, problems and
challenges?
Checklist for Brain Based Classrooms
New Models:
 Do students work alone, in pairs
and in small groups?
 Do students work in learning
centers based on interest, need or
choice?
 Are some activities tiered to
provide appropriate levels of
challenge?
 Is compacting used to provide
enrichment and challenge?
 Is integrated curriculum, problem
based and service learning
considered?
 Are contracts negotiated to provide
appropriate learning activities for
students?
Best Practices for
Standards-based Instruction
Best Practice, New Standards for
Teaching and Learning in America’s
Schools
Zemelman, S., Daniels, H. & Hyde, A.
(1998). Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann
Best Practices for
Standards-based Instruction
Within these recommendations, growth does not necessarily
mean moving from one practice to another, discarding a
previous instructional approach and replacing it forever.
Instead, teachers add new, effective alternatives to a widening
repertoire of choices, allowing them to alternate among a
richer array of activities, creating a richer and more complex
balance of instruction.
Best Practices for
Standards-based Instruction
From:
Physical Facilities
To:
•Set-up for teachercentered instruction
(separate desks)
Set-up for studentcentered instruction
(tables or groupings)
•Rows of desks
Clusters, centers, etc.
•Bare, unadorned space
Student work, friendly
•Textbooks and handouts
Purposeful materials
Best Practices for
Standards-based Instruction
Classroom Climate / Management
From:
To:
•Punishment and
rewards
Engagement and
community
•Teacher-created and
enforced rules
Students help set and
enforce norms
•Passive learning
Purposeful engagement
•Solely ability grouping
Flexible grouping
•Rigid schedule
Flexible time based on
activity
Best Practices for
Standards-based Instruction
Student Voice and Involvement
Balanced with teacher-chosen and teacher-directed activities:
Students often select inquiry topics, books, writing topics, etc.
Students maintain their own records, set goals, and self-assess
Some themes / inquiries are built from students’
own questions
Students assume responsibility and take roles
in decision making
Best Practices for
Standards-based Instruction
Activities and Assignments
From:
To:
•Teacher presentation
Students experiencing concepts
•Whole-class instruction
Centers, groups, variety
•Uniform curriculum
Topics by students’ needs or
choice
•Short-term lessons
•Memorization and recall
•Short responses, fill-in-theblank
•Same assignments
Extended activities
Application and problem solving
Complex responses, evaluations
and writing
Multiple intelligences, cognitive
styles
Best Practices for
Standards-based Instruction
Language and Communication
From:
To:
•Forced constant silence
Noise, conversation
alternates with quiet
•Short responses
Elaborated discussions
•Teacher talk
Student-teacher, studentstudent
•Focus on facts
Skills, concepts,
synthesis, evaluation
Best Practices for
Standards-based Instruction
Student Work and Assessment
From:
To:
•Products for teacher / grading
Products for real events / audience
•No student work displayed
High quality / all students
•Identical, imitative products
Varied and original products
•Feedback = scores or grades
Substantive, varied, formative
feedback
•Seen / scored only by teacher
Public displays and performances
•Teacher grade book
Student-maintained portfolios,
assessments
•Standards set during grading
Standards co-developed with
students
Best Practices for
Standards-based Instruction
Teacher Attitude and Initiative Toward Students:
From Distant, negative, fearful or punitive To Positive, respectful,
encouraging and warm
From Blaming students to Reasoning with Students
From Directive to Consultative
Best Practices for
Standards-based Instruction
Teacher Attitude and Initiative Toward Self:
From Helpless victim To Risk taker, experimenter, creative agent
From Solitary adult To Member of team within school and
network beyond school
From Staff development recipient To Directing
own professional growth
From Role of expert or presenter To Coach,
mentor, model and guide
Have you ever said …
’I just don’t know what to do with that kid’?
(Remember, don’t over generalize. There’s great diversity in all groups!!!)
Persistent Underachievement
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All Learners in Academically Diverse
Classrooms
Help the student accept control over his/her
decisions and life.
•
Help students understand that everyone has
strengths and weaknesses.
Be clear and specific about tasks and
requirements.
•
Celebrate and understand student learning
differences.
Use appropriate consequences for work
done/not done.
•
Help students learn the power of controlling
what they can in their lives.
•
Help them understand our shared needs for
success, to belong, to trust, the future, etc.
Break tasks into small segments.
•
Check in with the student often.
•
Be firm but warm.
•
Help them see that each person is
irreplaceable – uniqueness is a plus.
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Don’t tell him/her you know he/she can do
the work.
•
Help students learn to set their own goals
and chart their progress.
•
Coordinate approaches with a counselor
and parents when possible.
•
Teach in varied readiness levels, interest and
ways of learning;
(Remember, don’t over generalize. There’s great diversity in all groups!!!)
Students with Learning Disabilities
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Students with Retardation or
Similar Struggles
Emphasize strengths.
•
Focus on essential concepts and
principles as a context for applying
IEP skills.
•
Use IEP goals in ways that integrate
students with their peers rather than
isolating them.
•
Whenever possible, teach for meaning
rather than rote – build frameworks of
meaning.
•
Spotlight the student’s legitimate
successes and contributions.
•
Use small groups for teaching needed
skills, re-teaching by need.
Develop ways to compensate for
weaknesses so they don’t inhibit what
the student can do.
Help the student distinguish between
and explain both strengths and
weaknesses, as well as plans for both.
•
Shoot high and then scaffold the
weakness.
•
Be clear about what the student should
know, understand, and be able to do –
but offer options for explanation,
expression and assessment.
(Remember, don’t overgeneralize. There’s great diversity in all groups!!!)
•
Advanced Learners
Emphasize quality of thought and
expression vs. accuracy.
•
Students with Behavior Problems
Coordinate efforts and strategies with
specialists.
•
Balance student choice and teacher
choice tasks to allow independence
but still ensure encounters with rigor.
•
Help the student articulate difficult
areas and learn to look for signs of
them.
•
Help the student learn to compete
against him/herself.
•
Be sure the student has an easy “way
out” of tough spots.
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Necessitate and commend intellectual
risk and perseverance.
•
Provide “safe” spaces to be alone /
work alone.
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When “raising the ceiling,” support
the climb! Teach for success.
•
Acknowledge successes.
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Allow choices when feasible.
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Be flexible about movement.
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Be flexible. Invite student imput.
Use small groups to extend thought
and skills levels.
(Remember, don’t over generalize. There’s great diversity in all groups!!!)
Second Language Learners
Culturally Diverse Learners
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Link classroom & ESL resource work.
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Help build peer-support systems.
•
Ensure that the student has useful tasks
at all times and is accountable for them
(listening/reading with tapes, writing,
translating, vocabulary practice).
•
Be sure you offer varied working
arrangements and modes of
expression.
•
Don’t let the student sit idle and
isolated.
•
Invest time in the student in ways that
communicate your belief in his/her
success.
•
Use students who can bridge the two
languages.
•
Help the student develop “school
skills” that may be weak.
•
Plan specific ways each day to involve
the student in conversation &
contribution.
•
Teach from whole to part.
•
Be clear about expectations and that
students both understand and know
how to achieve them. Don’t let work
slide.
•
Emphasize contextualized learning.
•
Chart growth vs. only comparison
•
Use small groups for teaching next-step
skills.
THINKING ABOUT
ON-GOING ASSESSMENT
STUDENT DATA SOURCES
1. Journal entry
2. Short answer test
3. Open response test
4. Home learning
5. Notebook
6. Oral response
7. Portfolio entry
8. Exhibition
9. Culminating product
10. Question writing
11. Problem solving
TEACHER DATA
MECHANISMS
1. Anecdotal records
2. Observation by checklist
3. Skills checklist
4. Class discussion
5. Small group interaction
6. Teacher – student
conference
7. Assessment stations
8. Exit cards
9. Problem posing
10. Performance tasks and
rubrics
Learner Profile Card
Gender Stripe
Auditory, Visual, Kinesthetic
Analytical, Creative, Practical
Modality
Sternberg
Student’s
Interests
Multiple Intelligence Preference
Gardner
Array
Inventory
Some Traits of Quality
Curriculum & Instruction
• Promotes understanding
• Engaging (mentally and affectively)
• Focuses on Knowledge, concepts, understandings, &
skills valued by experts in a discipline
• Rich, deals with profound ideas
• Tightly focused goals & components
• Joyful / satisfying
• Coherent (sensible to the learner, organized to
promote retention & use)
• Seems real (is real) to the student
• Helps learner feel more powerful & purposeful in
his/her world
• Requires high level thinking
• Fresh, surprising, curiosity-provoking, interesting
• Provides choices
• Clear in expectations
• Allows meaningful collaboration
• Focused on products meaningful to students & others
• Connects with students’ lives & world
• Calls on students to use what they learn in interesting
& important ways.
• Involves students in setting goals for their learning &
assessing progress toward those goals
• Stretches the student
Some Traits of Quality Differentiation
• Rooted in student need
• an extension of high quality curriculum
• Derived from on-going assessment
• Respectful of each learner
• Builds community
• Involves students as decision –makers
• Demonstrates teacher-students partnerships in teaching &
learning
• Growth focused
• Scaffolds growth for each learner
• Supports successful collaboration
• Stretches each learner
• Promotes & rewards individual excellence
• Addresses readiness, interest, & learning profile
• Attends effectively to gender & culture
• Spans content, process, & product
• Effective & varied use of instructional approaches
• Teaches students to take responsibility for own learning
• Flexible use of time, space, materials, groupings
• Maximizes opportunity to “show what you know”
• Balances student & teacher choice
• Planned (proactive) plus tailoring
• Occurs when either teacher or student is on center stage
• Includes whole class, small group, & individual instruction
• Supports success for each learner & the class as a whole
• Builds collaborations with parents
Tomlinson/UVa/2000
Planning a Focused Curriculum
Means Clarity About
What Students Should:
Facts (Columbus came to the “New World”
Vocabulary (voyage, scurvy)
Know
Understand
Concepts (exploration, change)
Principles/Generalizations (Change can be both positive and negative.
Exploration results in change. People’s perspectives affect how they
respond to change).
Be Able to Do
As a Result of a Lesson, Lesson
Sequence, Unit, and year
Skills
Basic (literacy, math)
Thinking (analysis, evidence of reasoning, questioning)
Of the Discipline (graphing/math/social studies)
Planning (goal setting; use of time)
Social
Production
*Exception--linear skills and information
which can be assessed for mastery in the
sequence (e.g. spelling)
These are the
facts, vocabulary, dates, places,
names, and examples you want students to give
you.
The know is massively forgettable.
“Teaching facts in isolation is like trying to pump water
uphill.” Carol Tomlinson
Major Concepts and
Sub-concepts
These are the written statements of truth, the core to the
meaning(s) of the lesson(s) or unit. These are what connect the
parts of a subject to the student’s life and to other subjects.
It is through the understanding component of instruction that we
teach our students to truly grasp the “point” of the lesson or the
experience.
Understandings are purposeful. They focus on the key ideas
that require students to understand information and make
connections while evaluating the relationships that exit within
the understandings.
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A Student who UNDERSTANDS
Something can…
Explain it clearly, giving examples
Use it
Compare and contrast it with other concepts
Relate it to other instances in the subject studies, other subjects and
personal life experiences
Transfer it to unfamiliar settings
Discover the concept embedded within a novel problem
Combine it appropriately with other understandings
Pose new problems that exemplify or embody the concept
Create analogies, models, metaphors, symbols, or pictures of the
concept
Pose and answer “what-if” questions that alter variables in a
problematic situation
Generate questions and hypotheses that lead to new knowledge and
further inquiries
Generalize from specifics to form a concept
Use the knowledge to appropriately assess his or her performance, or
that of someone else.
Adopted from Barell, J. (1995) Teaching for thoughtfulness: Classroom Strategies
Skills
These are the basic skills of any discipline. They include the
thinking skills such as analyzing, evaluating, and synthesizing.
These are the skills of planning, the skills of being an
independent learner, the skills of setting and following criteria,
the skills of using the tools of knowledge such as adding,
dividing, understanding multiple perspectives, following a
timeline, calculating latitude, or following the scientific method.
The skill portion encourages the students to “think” like the
professionals who use the knowledge and skill daily as a matter
of how they do business. This is what it means to “be like” a
doctor, a scientist, a writer or an artist.
to Differentiate Content
• Reading Partners / Reading Buddies
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Read/Summarize
Read/Question/Answer
Visual Organizer/Summarizer
Parallel Reading with Teacher Prompt
Choral Reading/Antiphonal Reading
Flip Books
Split Journals (Double Entry – Triple Entry)
Books on Tape
Highlights on Tape
Digests/ “Cliff Notes”
Note taking Organizers
Varied Texts
Varied Supplementary Materials
Highlighted Texts
Think-Pair-Share/ Preview-Midview-Postview
Tomlinson – ‘00
TO DIFFERENTIATE PROCESS
• Fun & Games
• RAFTs
• Cubing, Think Dots
• Choices (Intelligences)
• Centers
• Tiered lessons
• Contracts
USE OF INSTRUCTIONAL
STRATEGIES.
The following findings related to
instructional strategies are supported by
the existing research:
• Techniques and instructional strategies have nearly as much influence on student
learning as student aptitude.
• Lecturing, a common teaching strategy, is an effort to quickly cover the material:
however, it often overloads and over-whelms students with data, making it likely
that they will confuse the facts presented
• Hands-on learning, especially in science, has a positive effect on student
achievement.
• Teachers who use hands-on learning strategies have students who out-perform
their peers on the National Assessment of Educational progress (NAEP) in the
areas of science and mathematics.
• Despite the research supporting hands-on activity, it is a fairly uncommon
instructional approach.
• Students have higher achievement rates when the focus of instruction is on
meaningful conceptualization, especially when it emphasizes their own knowledge
of the world.
RAFT
RAFT is an acronym that stands for
Role of the student. What is the student’s role:
reporter, observer,
eyewitness, object?
Audience. Who will be addressed by this raft: the teacher, other
students, a parent, people in the community, an editor, another object?
Format. What is the best way to present this information: in a letter, an
article, a report, a poem, a monologue, a picture, a song?
Topic. Who or what is the subject of this writing: a famous
mathematician, a prehistoric cave dweller, a reaction to a specific
event?
RAFT Activities
Role
Audience
Format
Topic
Semicolon
Middle School Students
Diary entry
I Wish You Really
Understood Where I Belong
N.Y.Times
public
Op Ed piece
How our Language Defines
Who We Are
Huck Finn
Tom Sawyer
Note hidden in a tree knot
A Few Things You Should
Know
Rain Drop
Future Droplets
Advice Column
The Beauty of Cycles
Lung
Owner
Owner’s Guide
To Maximize Product Life
Rain Forest
John Q. Citizen
Paste Up “Ransom” Note
Before It’s Too Late
Reporter
Public
Obituary
Hitler is Dead
Martin Luther
King
TV audience of 2010
Speech
The Dream Revisited
Thomas Jefferson
Current Residents of
Virginia
Full page Newspaper Ad
If I Could Talk to You Now
Fractions
Whole Numbers
Petition
To Be Considered A Part of the
Family
A word problem
Students in your class
Set of Directions
How to Get to Know Me
Format based on the work of Doug Buehl cited in Teaching Reading in the Content Areas: If Not Me Then Who?
Billmeyer and Martin, 1998
Developing a Tiered Activity
1
Select the activity organizer
•concept
Essential to building
•generalization
a framework of
2
• readiness range
• interests
• learning profile
• talents
understanding
3
Create an activity that is
• interesting
• high level
• causes students to use
key skill(s) to understand
a key idea
Think about your students/use assessments
skills
reading
thinking
information
4
Chart the
complexity of
the activity
High skill/
Complexity
Low skill/
complexity
5
Clone the activity along the ladder as
needed to ensure challenge and success
for your students, in
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materials – basic to advanced
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form of expression – from familiar to
unfamiliar
from personal experience to removed
from personal experience
equalizer
6
Match task to student based on
student profile and task
requirements
The Equalizer
1. Foundational
Transformational
Information, Ideas, Materials, Applications
2. Concrete
Abstract
Representations, Ideas, Applications, Materials
3. Simple
Complex
Resources, Research, Issues, Problems, Skills, Goals
4. Single Facet
Multiple Facets
Directions, Problems, Application, Solutions, Approaches, Disciplinary Connections
5. Small Leap
Great Leap
Application, Insight, Transfer
6. More Structured
More Open
Solutions, Decisions, Approaches
7. Less Independence
Greater Independence
Planning, Designing, Monitoring
8. Slow
Pace of Study, Pace of Thought
Quick
Designing a Differentiated Learning
Contract
A Learning Contract has the following
components
1. A Skills Component
Focus is on skills-based tasks
Assignments are based on pre-assessment of students’ readiness
Students work at their own level and pace
2. A content component
Focus is on applying, extending, or enriching key content (ideas, understandings)
Requires sense making and production
Assignment is based on readiness or interest
3. A Time Line
Teacher sets completion date and check-in requirements
Students select order of work (except for required meetings and homework)
4. The Agreement
The teacher agrees to let students have freedom to plan their time
Students agree to use the time responsibly
Guidelines for working are spelled out
Consequences for ineffective use of freedom are delineated
Signatures of the teacher, student and parent (if appropriate) are placed on the agreement
Differentiating Instruction: Facilitator’s Guide, ASCD, 1997
to Differentiate Product
• Choices based on readiness, interest, and learning
profile
• Clear expectations
• Timelines
• Agreements
• Product Guides
• Rubrics
• Evaluation
Creating a Powerful Product Assignment
1.
Identify the essentials of the unit/study
What students must:
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2.
As a result of the unit/study
Identify one of more format or “packaging options” for the product:
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3.
Know (facts)
Understand (concepts, generalizations)
Be able to do (skills)
Required (e.g. poetry, an experiment, graphing, charting)
Hook
Exploratory
Talent/passion driven
Determine expectations for quality in:
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Content (information, ideas, concepts, research materials)
Process (planning, goal-setting, defense of viewpoint, research,
editing)
Product (size, construction, durability, expert-level expectations, part
Creating a Powerful Product Assignment, cont’d
4.
Decide on scaffolding you may need to build in order to promote
success:
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5.
Develop a product assignment that clearly says to the student:
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6.
You should show you understand and can do these things
Proceeding through these steps/stages
In this format
At this level of quality
Differentiate or modify versions of the assignments based on:
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•
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7.
Brainstorming for ideas
Developing rubrics/criteria for success
Timelines
Planning/goal-setting
Storyboarding
Critiquing
Revising-editing
Student readiness
Student interest
Students learning profile
Coach for success!
It is your job, as teacher, to make explicit,
that which you thought was implicit!
Map
Diagram
Sculpture
Discussion
Demonstration
Poem
Profile
Chart
Play
Dance
Campaign
Cassette
Quiz Show
Banner
Brochure
Debate
Flow Chart
Puppet Show
Tour
Lecture
Editorial
Painting
Costume
Placement
Blueprint
Catalogue
Dialogue
Newspaper
Scrapbook
Lecture
Questionnaire
Flag
Scrapbook
Graph
Debate
Museum
Learning Center
Advertisement
Book List
Calendar
Coloring Book
Game
Research Project
TV Show
Song
Dictionary
Film
Collection
Trial
Machine
Book
Mural
Award
Recipe
Test
Puzzle
Model
Timeline
Toy
Article
Diary
Poster
Magazine
Computer
Program
Photographs
Terrarium
Petition Drive
Teaching
Lesson
Prototype
Speech
Club
Cartoon
Biography
Review
Invention
ASSESSING TEACHER CREATED PRODUCTS
1. Product designed to expand on all key concepts
2. Product designed to expand on all key principles / generalizations
3. Product designed to expand on all key skills.
4. Product facilitates students use and extension of key knowledge.
5. Product rationale is made clear to students.
6. Clear directions are provided that are both thorough and open.
7. Product provides clear criteria for successes at a high level of expectations for content, process and
product.
8. Product assignment necessitates creativity.
9. Product assignment supports creativity.
10. Product challenges a full range of readiness levels.
11. Product allows/encourages pursuit of student interest.
12.. A menu of product options and/;or working arrangements supports varied learning profiles.
13. On going support is provided as needed throughout product assignment.
14. Product uses timelines, check in dates or process logs.
15. Product encourages varied forms of research, expressions, and technology.
16. Product provides formative and summative evaluation by peers.
17. Product provides formative and summative evaluation by self.
18. Product provides formative and summative evaluation by teacher.
Differentiated Report Cards
On report cards, I need to find a way to show individual growth and
relative standing to students and parents
A = Excellent Growth
B = Very Good Growth
C = Some Growth
D = Little Growth
F = No Observable
Growth
1 = The student is
Above Grade
Level
2 = The student is
Working At
Grade Level
3 = The student is
Working Below
Grade Level
Tomlinson, 2001
A = Excellent Growth
B = Very Good Growth
C = Some Growth
D = Little Growth
F – No observable growth
1 = Above grade level
2 = At grade level
3 = Below grade level
A = Excellent
B = Very Good
C = Average
D = Poor
F – Unsatisfactory
1 = Above grade level
2 = At grade level
3 = Below grade level
A-1 = Excellent performance; working above grade level
A-2 = Excellent performance; working at grade level
A-3 = Excellent performance; working below grade level
Personal grade & Traditional grade:
B = Personal grade
D = Traditional grade
C = Personal grade
A = Traditional grade
Grades are supposed to:
1. Motivate students
2. Report accurately to parents
Begin Slowly – Just Begin!
Low-Prep Differentiation
Choices of books
Homework options
Use of reading buddies
Varied journal Prompts
Orbitals
Varied pacing with anchor options
Student-teaching goal setting
Work alone / together
Whole-to-part and part-to-whole explorations
Flexible seating
Varied computer programs
Design-A-Day
Varied Supplementary materials
Options for varied modes of expression
Varying scaffolding on same organizer
Let’s Make a Deal projects
Computer mentors
Think-Pair-Share by readiness, interest, learning profile
Use of collaboration, independence, and cooperation
Open-ended activities
Mini-workshops to reteach or extend skills
Jigsaw
Negotiated Criteria
Explorations by interests
Games to practice mastery of information
Multiple levels of questions
High-Prep Differentiation
Tiered activities and labs
Tiered products
Independent studies
Multiple texts
Alternative assessments
Learning contracts
4-MAT
Multiple-intelligence options
Compacting
Spelling by readiness
Entry Points
Varying organizers
Lectures coupled with graphic organizers
Community mentorships
Interest groups
Tiered centers
Interest centers
Personal agendas
Literature Circles
Stations
Complex Instruction
Group Investigation
Tape-recorded materials
Teams, Games, and Tournaments
Choice Boards
Think-Tac-Toe
Simulations
Problem-Based Learning
Graduated Rubrics
Flexible reading formats
Student-centered writing formats
OPTIONS FOR DIFFERENTIATION OF INSTRUCTION
To Differentiate
Instruction By
Readiness
To Differentiate
Instruction By
Interest
To Differentiate
Instruction by
Learning Profile
‫ ٭‬equalizer adjustments (complexity,
open-endedness, etc.
‫ ٭‬add or remove scaffolding
‫ ٭‬vary difficulty level of text &
supplementary materials
‫ ٭‬adjust task familiarity
‫ ٭‬vary direct instruction by small group
‫ ٭‬adjust proximity of ideas to student
experience
‫ ٭‬encourage application of broad
concepts & principles to student interest
areas
‫ ٭‬give choice of mode of expressing
learning
‫ ٭‬use interest-based mentoring of adults
or more expert-like peers
‫ ٭‬give choice of tasks and products
(including student designed options)
‫ ٭‬give broad access to varied materials &
technologies
‫ ٭‬create an environment with flexible
learning spaces and options
‫ ٭‬allow working alone or working with
peers
‫ ٭‬use part-to-whole and whole-to-part
approaches
‫٭‬Vary teacher mode of presentation
(visual, auditory, kinesthetic, concrete,
abstract)
‫ ٭‬adjust for gender, culture, language
differences.
useful instructional strategies:
- tiered activities
- Tiered products
- compacting
- learning contracts
- tiered tasks/alternative forms of
assessment
useful instructional strategies:
- interest centers
- interest groups
- enrichment clusters
- group investigation
- choice boards
- MI options
- internet mentors
useful instructional strategies:
- multi-ability cooperative tasks
- MI options
- Triarchic options
- 4-MAT
CA Tomlinson, UVa ‘97
Thinking About the Role of Instructional Strategies in Differentiation
Strategy for
Differentiation
Primarily Used to
Differentiate
Positives
Cautions
Tiered Assignments
Readiness
Meat & Potatoes differentiation
Must use as only part of a flexible grouping
pattern
Tiered Products
Readiness, Interest,
Learning Profile
Can be passion-producing
Must provide coaching for quality
Learning Contracts
Readiness
Encourage student autonomy
Be sure to blend skill and content
Drill-Focused
Cooperative Tasks
Low End Readiness
Deals with coverage and mastery
issues
May aggravate have/have not status
Thought/Production
Focused Cooperative
Tasks
Interest, Learning
Profile
Involves all students with high level
tasks
Be sure tasks call for varied intellectual skills
Alternative
Assessments
Readiness, Learning
Profile
More of a real-world way of
measuring student learning
Be sure assessment focus on essential
understandings and skills
Graduated Rubrics
Readiness
Clear coaching for quality and success
Take care to stress ideas and process more
than mechanics
Choice Boards
Readiness, Interest
Balances teacher choice and student
choice
Teacher choice should target readiness
Learning Centers
Readiness
Can target varied skills levels in a class
Don’t send all students to all centers
Thinking About the Role of Instructional Strategies in Differentiation, cont’d
Strategy for
Differentiation
Primarily Used to
Differentiate
Positives
Cautions
Interest Centers
Interest
Can link classroom topics to areas of
student talent and interest
Be sure centers provide depth or breadth (vs
cute)
Enrichment clusters
Interest, Learning
profiles
Stresses student choice and students
as producers of useful products
Lose their punch without teachers skilled in
the cluster domain
Compacting
High End
Readiness
Can reduce unnecessary redundancy
for advanced or eager learners
Loses its punch unless Column 3 is rich and
challenging
Peer Tutoring
Low End
Readiness
Gives struggling learners additional
explanation opportunities
Can over-use high end learner in teacher
role and may short change struggling
learner if tutor is weak
Multi Ability
Options (MI,
Triarchic Theory)
Interest, Learning
Profile
Encourages teachers to be flexible in
planning routes to learning
Can easily become just a learning style vs.
intelligence approach
4-MAT
Learning Profile
Helps teachers be more conscious of
student learning style/mode
Can become formula-like – does not address
readiness
Independent Study
Interest
Encourages student autonomy in
planning and problem-solving
Students need an amount of independence
suited to their readiness for it
Small Group Direct
Instruction
Readiness
Cuts down size of class and increases
student participation
Students not being taught must be well
anchored
Differentiated Schools
Schools that promote and support DI
include classrooms and programs
that:
• Respond to variations in students’ readiness
• Respond to the myriad of students’ interest
• Respect the various students’ learning profiles
• Regard leadership as a cornerstone good
instruction
Administrative Roles in Achieving
Differentiation
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Introduce all teachers to concept
Provide opportunities for training
Establish expectations
Provide opportunities for training
Provide opportunities for teachers to demonstrate and
share
Provide support – resources, time, expect teachers
assistance
Encourage risk-taking
Observe and evaluate (develop tools to do this for my site’s
focus)
Provide feedback
Model lessons and team teaching
Reward progress
Leadership in Differentiation
To be effective in using differentiation, site administrators and
central office should be:
Consistent:
• Use vocabulary that is clear and commonly understood by
the principal, the parent, the teacher
• Articulate the philosophy: Kids differ. Professional teachers
act robustly to address the differences.
• State the expectations: all of us must g row in
responsiveness. That we must change / grow / differentiate
is non-negotiable; the path that we each may take is
negotiable.
• Incorporate umbrella image – these are overarching goals,
for everyone, and these can and do encompass other areas
like literacy in technology or reading competency.
Leadership in Differentiation
Persistent:
• State and follow long term goals at all levels: classroom,
school site, district
• State and follow short term goals at all levels
• Set time-lines so that everyone knows these goals are not
going away
• Connect with all initiatives: standards, math assessment,
technology
• Provide on-going sharing of “how”
• Provide on-going sharing of results throughout the school
and district
Leadership in Differentiation
Insistent:
• Require that differentiation be part of teacher
plans
• Require that differentiation be part of school plans
• Require that differentiation be part of all staff
development
• Link differentiation to observations, feedback,
peer review, mentoring, evaluations
PRINCIPALS SUPPORTING DI
• Capitalize on support from district-level
administrators, curriculum supervisors or
specialists, . . .
• Develop supervision techniques that motivate
and recognize efforts to initiate and/or
implement DI strategies
• Choose professional development opportunities
that provide follow-up coaching and allows time
to practice new skills
PRINCIPALS SUPPORTING DI
• Build professional learning communities:
job-embedded learning, study groups, action
research, peer coaching, collaborative
planning and review of student work
• Effectively use faculty meetings and noninstructional time
• Serve as coach: provide/receive feedback,
know role vs. evaluator, coaching practices
To support differentiation, leaders
should
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Establish clarity of definition
Provide an environment supportive of risk
Balance “seeing the light” & “feeling the heat”
Differentiate for teachers
Provide guidance in beginning sensible and progressing steadily
Provide materials and time
Examine impact of current policies and practices
Communicate with parents
Begin with those ready to start
Develop planning and teaching teams which routinely include g/t, remedial
and special ed. Personnel
Start small, build local leadership
Re-focus / re-energize local leaders with experts
Integrate differentiation into curriculum development
Maintain long term commitment to change
Understand that differentiation is part of range of services – not a panacea!
Carol Tomlinson
How to Assist Teachers in Professional
Growth in Differentiation
• Provide building-level staff development that matches
teacher / school goals (common experience)
• Provide time for on-going dialogue about
differentiation – both site workdays, release time,
faculty meetings
• Develop common understanding of differentiation and
related terms
• Observe and support teachers’ growth with specific
feedback (peer and admin)
• Tenured teachers set different goals than new teachers
• Give personal (yours, a specialist’s, an expert teacher’s)
time and support for modeling, mentoring, consulting,
collaborating, and discussing
In learning to differentiate, teachers
may need help with . . .
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•
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A rationale for differentiation
Pre-assessing student readiness
Effective work with classroom groups
Flexible grouping
Resolving issues regarding grading / report cards
Role of the teacher in a differentiated classroom
Appropriate use of varied instructional strategies
Using concept-based instruction
Develop carefully focused tasks and products
Knowing how to teach struggling learners without
“remedial expectations”
Carol Tomlinson
LOOK-FORS in the Classroom
• Learning experiences are based on student readiness, interest,
or learning profile.
• Assessment of student needs is ongoing, and tasks are adjusted
based on assessment data.
• All students participate in respectful work.
• The teacher is primarily a coordinator of time, space, and
activities rather than primarily a provider of group information.
• Students work in a variety of groups configurations. Flexible
grouping is evident.
• Time use is flexible in response to student needs.
• The teacher uses a variety of instructional strategies to help
target instruction to student needs.
• Clearly established criteria are used to help support student
success.
• Student strengths are emphasized.
Whatever it Takes!