Differentiating Instruction: Meeting the Needs of ALL Students

1
Differentiating Instruction Meeting the Needs of
ALL Students
Suzanne Arnold Professional Learning
Coordinator NIUSI suzanne.arnold_at_cudenver.edu
Dr. Elizabeth Kozleski Project Director NIUSI Eliz
abeth.kozleski_at_asu.edu
2

• The biggest mistake of past centuries in teaching
  has been to treat all children as if they were
  variants of the same individual and thus to feel
  justified in teaching them all the same subjects
  in the same way.
• -Howard Gardner

3
Outcomes

• Define what it means to differentiate instruction
• Explain some key attributes of differentiated
  instruction
• Review what research and theory reveal about
  differentiated environments
• Develop an understanding of how to organize
  curriculum for differentiated instruction
• Expand your repertoire of strategies for
  differentiating content and activities

4
What Does it Mean to Differentiate Instruction?
5
Activity Differentiated Instruction
Pre-Assessment

• Differentiated Instruction - developed by Carol
  Ann Tomlinson
• Assistant Professor of Educational Studies
• Curry School of Education
• Department of Educational Studies
• University of Virginia

6
Differentiated Instruction

• Provides different avenues for students to
• Build on what they already know
• Take in information
• Express what they learn
• Acquire context
• Process or make sense of ideas
• Develop products

7
4 Elements of Differentiating Instruction

• Content
• Process
• Products
• Learning Environment

8
Student Considerations when Differentiating

• Level of readiness - Pre-assessment
• Interest - Survey
• Learning Profile - Learning Style Inventory

9
Video Clip Creating Multiple Paths for Learning

• See how some teachers have responded to varied
  learner needs in academically diverse classrooms.
• Handout Observations of Differentiated
  Classrooms
• Jot down your reactions on the organizer as you
  view the video segment

10
8 Key Attributes of Differentiated Instruction
11
Differentiated Instruction is

• 1 Student centered
• Learning experiences are based on students
• readiness, interest, or learning profile
• Enables students to learn at their own pace
• Students are focused and engaged in the learning
  task

12
Differentiated Instruction

• 2 Teacher is a facilitator.
• Organizes classroom time, space and activities

13
Differentiated Instruction

• 3 Starts with Assessment
• Assess student readiness and growth
• Assessment as a teaching tool (formative) ongoing

14
Differentiated Instruction is

• 4 Proactive - Designing appropriate tasks for
  students
• Provides learning tasks that are appropriately
  challenging
• Different learners have different needs

15
Differentiated Instruction

• 5 Offers several avenues for learning
• Allows teachers to tailor instruction to meet
  various learning speeds and styles
• Provides multiple approaches to content, process,
  product, and learning environment.

16
Differentiated Instruction

• 6 Uses multiple grouping strategies
• Flexible, heterogeneous
• Groups may be either teacher or student selected
• Students may move in and out of groups

17
Differentiated Instruction is

• 7 About quality rather than quantity
• The nature of learning tasks appropriately
  challenge students
• Work is respectful of students

18
Differentiated Instruction is

• 8 Organic
• Teachers collaborate with students and plan
  lessons that meet their learning needs

19

• What Does a Differentiated Classroom Look Like?

20
Traditional vs. Differentiated ClassroomAssessmen
t

• Traditional Classroom
• Most common at the end of learning to see who
  got it
• A single definition of excellence exists
• Single form of assessment is often used
• Single option assignments are the norm
• Teacher provides whole-class standards for
  grading

• Differentiated Classroom
• Ongoing and diagnostic to understand how to make
  instruction more responsive to student needs
• Excellence is defined in large measure by
  individual growth from a starting point
• Students are assessed multiple ways
• Multi-option assignments are frequently used
• Students work with teacher to establish both
  whole-class and individual learning goals

21
Traditional versus Differentiated
ClassroomInstruction/Curriculum

• Traditional Classroom
• Whole class instruction dominates
• Coverage of texts and curriculum guides drives
  instruction
• Mastery of facts and skills out of context are
  the focus of learning
• A single text prevails
• Single interpretations of ideas and events may be
  sought
• Relatively narrow sense of intelligence prevails
• Time is relatively inflexible

• Differentiated Classroom
• Many instructional arrangements are used
• Student readiness, interest and learning profile
  shape instruction
• Use of essential skills to make sense of and
  understand key concepts is focus of learning
• Multiple perspectives on ideas and events are
  routinely sought
• Focus on multiple forms of intelligence is
  evident
• Time is used flexibly based on student need

22
Traditional versus Differentiated ClassroomRole
of the Teacher

• Traditional Classroom
• Student differences are masked or acted upon when
  problematic
• Teacher directs student behavior
• Teacher solves problems

• Differentiated Classroom
• Student differences are studied as basis for
  planning
• Teacher facilitates students skills at becoming
  more independent learners
• Students help other students and the teacher
  solve problems

23
Current Status of Differentiation in
Heterogeneous Settings

• Classrooms are becoming more inclusive and
  heterogeneous
• Most teachers do not substantially modify
  instructions in response to student differences
• Most modifications made use tailoring rather than
  differentiation
• Still view students as variants of the same
  individual, granting ourselves permission to
  teach them all the same things.
• A near absence of consistent pre-assessment
  promotes illusion that all or most students need
  the same instruction on a given topic.

24
Students and the Need for Differentiated
Environments

• When students see that Effort Success, they
  become eager and effective learners
• When students believe success is due to innate
  ability, they are afraid to make mistakes
• When tasks are too easy or too hard, students
  learn to get by or give up
• When task is appropriate for student readiness,
  task becomes satisfying

25
Students and the Need for Differentiated
Environments

• When task is too difficult, brain goes into
  escape (fight or flight) mode
• When task is too easy, brain goes into relaxation
  (sleep-like) mode
• Students function best when the task is slightly
  difficult for them
• Matching difficulty level of task to student
  readiness leads to feelings of student competence
  students select more challenging tasks in the
  future

26

• Where do I begin?
• Organize your Curriculum

27
Guiding Questions about Organizing Curriculum

• What are the pressures that prompt us to stick
  with a coverage-driven approach to teaching?
• How should we determine what is essential
  learning in a given body of knowledge?
• How do we convey to students what is essential
  learning in a given body of knowledge?
• What might the pros and cons be for you and your
  students of predominately concept-based teaching
  rather than predominantly fact-based teaching?
• If you know your students were likely to really
  retain a half dozen or so facts or ideas from
  your teaching this year, what would you want them
  to be? Why?

28
How Students Learn

• Learning is more natural when
• Students see the big picture, understand the
  purpose and grasp how the parts fit together.
• It is interesting and relevant to the learner
• Students feel empowered by what is being learned
  and when what is being learned has a use and
  purpose.
• The brain likes
• Pattern-laden learning experiences.
• Sense-making activities rather than rote-learning
  ones.
• Learning that is deep meaning rather than surface
  meaning.
• Retention
• Most of use retain only a few bits of information
  from even an extended learning experience.

29
Activity Reorganizing Your Curriculum for
Improved Learner Sense-making

• Part 1 List Topics
• List all the things you teach your students
  during the year.
• Examine the list from the Kindergarten teachers

30
Activity Reorganizing Your Curriculum

• Part 1 Reflection Questions
• What is your initial response to the list of
  topics generated by the kindergarten teachers? Do
  you feel it is unusual or relatively typical in
  its scope?
• What is your initial response to your list? Does
  it differ in important ways (other than content)
  from the list generated by the kindergarten
  teachers?
• Based on the overview of how students learn what
  are the strengths and pitfalls of either list?

31
Activity Reorganizing Your Curriculum

• Part 2 Create Categories
• The kindergarten teachers decided organize the
  topics into categories so they appeared more
  connected and coherent for students.
• Organize your topics into categories

32
Activity Reorganizing Your Curriculum

• Part 2 Reflection Questions
• What problems may have been addressed with the
  second list?
• What problems do you feel still remain?
• Based on your current understanding, list a few
  items on the second list that you feel are
  examples of the following headings
• Topic
• Concept
• Skill
• Subject

33
Activity Reorganizing Your Curriculum

• Part 2 Group Jigsaw Discussion Questions
• Why did you place the samples in the columns you
  selected? How did you decide what is a skill
  versus a topic versus a subject?
• What difference in teaching and learning might it
  make if teachers do not distinguish between
  information, ideas and skills?

34
Activity Reorganizing Your Curriculum

• Part 3 Identify Theme Key Concepts
• Analyze categories and identify
• Theme for the school year,
• Key concepts related to theme
• Skill focus
• Attitude/Feeling focus
• Restate curriculum

35
Part 3 Example Theme and Key Concepts

• Theme Caring and Sharing
• Key Concepts patterns and change
• Attitude/Feeling appreciation
• Skill communication
• Curriculum
• Patterns in themselves, in others, and in nature
• Change in themselves, in others, and in nature,
  for the purpose of
• Appreciating themselves, others, and nature, and
• Developing the skills of communicating both to
  learn and to share knowledge and appreciation
  with themselves, with others, and with nature.

36
Activity Reorganizing Your Curriculum

• Part 3 Reflection Questions
• How do you feel a kindergarten or your classroom
  might seem to a student
• Before the change in approach?
• After the change in approach?
• What might teachers find easier as a result of
  the concept-based approach to teaching? What
  might seem more difficult, at least initially?

37
Activity Reorganizing Your Curriculum

• Part 4 Developing Essential Learnings
• Patterns are made up of parts.
• Patterns involve repetition of parts.
• Each pattern is governed by a rule or plan.
• Patterns can be natural or human made.
• Patterns can be simple or complex.
• Patterns help us predict.

38
Part 4 Curriculum Plan with Essential Learnings

• Content Area The Animal Kingdom
• Rationale There are patterns and changes in all
  animals, including humans.
• Concept Change
• Essential Learnings
• Animals change as they grow.
• A metamorphosis is a major change.
• Ways in which animals move, protect themselves,
  eat, etc. change among classifications of
  animals.
• Changes in habitat and environment change
  animals.
• Animals that do not adapt to change in their
  environments become extinct.

39
Activity Reorganizing Your Curriculum

• Part 4 Develop a few essential learnings
• Try selecting a few key concepts in the
  subject(s) you teach. Which of those seem most
  important and powerful to you if you look at the
  ways people use your subject(s) in the world?
• Develop a definition of a concept that makes
  sense for you and your students. How does the
  definition begin to direct your thinking about
  some generalizations or principles that govern
  the concept?
• Try developing a few essential learnings that
  seem to govern the concept. How might you use
  them in planning lessons?

40
Reorganizing Curriculum The Planning Pyramid
41
Memphis City Schools Curriculum Guides
42
Memphis 4th Grade Geography Map Skills
Map Skills
Identify and use key geographical features on
maps
Geographic Features, Physical Map, Mountains,
rivers, plains, valleys, forests
43
McREL www. Mcrel.org
Benchmark/ Standard
Content Objectives
Knowledge/Skill Statements Vocabulary
44
McREL
Understands the characteristics and uses of maps,
globes, and other geographic tools and
technologies
Interprets topography using aerial photos and
maps

•  Vocabulary terms topography, aerial
  photograph, topographical map
• Knowledge/skill statements
• Interprets topography using aerial photos, maps
• Understands the concept of topography

45
Memphis 4th Grade Science Force Motion
Gravity

• Describe the effects of gravity on or near the
  earth
• Investigate the effects of friction on the motion
  of objects

Gravity, Friction
46
McREL
Understands Forces and Motion
Knows that the Earth's gravity pulls any object
toward it without touching it

• Knowledge/skill statements
• Knows that gravity is not a physical object, but
  affects physical objects
• Knows that gravity is a property of the Earth

47
McREL
Understands Forces and Motion
Knows that when a force is applied to an object,
the object either speeds up, slows down, or goes
in a different direction

• Knowledge/skill statements
• Knows that when force is applied to an object,
  the object might speed up     
• Knows that when force is applied to an object,
  the object might slow down    
• Knows that when force is applied to an object,
  the object might go in a different direction

48
What do I need to do?Differentiate Content and
Activities
49
Providing Access to Content

• Align tasks and objectives to learning goals
• Instruction is concept-focused and
  principle-driven (essential learnings)
• Determine student readiness, interest or learning
  profile.

50
Differentiating Instructional Elements

• Introductory Transformational
• Concrete Abstract
• Simple Complex
• Single Facet Multi-faceted
• Structured Undefined/Open Ended
• Guided Learning Independent Learning
• Gradual Swift

51
Strategies for Differentiating Content and
Activities

• Tiered Activities
• Differentiated Learning Centers
• Compacting Curriculum
• Learning Contracts

52
Activity Analyzing a Tiered Lesson

• Part I
• With a partner, analyze the tiered lesson and
  determine how the various tiers escalate in
  difficulty, using language on the Differentiated
  Instructional Elements handout to do so.

53
Activity Designing a Tiered Lesson

• Part II
• Return to your list of essential learnings and
  develop a tiered lesson activity that you might
  use with your students.
• It should have at least 3 tiers based on
  different student readiness levels or learning
  styles
• It should ensure that all learners are working
  with the same key understandings and all are
  working with interesting and respectful tasks.

54
Part II - Differentiating Instruction Meeting
the Needs of ALL Students
Suzanne Arnold Professional Learning
Coordinator NIUSI suzanne.arnold_at_cudenver.edu
55

• When a teacher tries to teach something to the
  entire class at the same time, chances are,
  one-third of the kids already know it one-third
  will get it and the remaining third wont. So
  two-thirds of the children are wasting their
  time.
• Lilian Katz

56
Guiding Questions

• What concerns might students have in a newly
  differentiated classroom? What solutions would
  you pose?
• What classroom routines and guidelines would you
  need to establish as differentiation begins?
• How might you handle grading in a differentiated
  classroom?
• What concerns might parents have about a newly
  differentiated classroom? How might you help them
  understand potential positives of differentiation
  for their child?

57
Setting Up a Differentiated Classroom
58
Common Concerns in Setting up a Differentiated
Classroom

• Student expectation that everyone does the same
  thing, in the same way, over the same time span
• Keeping track of what everyone is working on in
  the classroom
• Fear of assigning students to wrong activities
• Report cards based on the assumption that
  everyone should be graded in comparison with
  others rather than with self
• Shortage of teacher planning time
• Large class size
• Test-driven curriculum

59
Potential Solutions for Managing a Differentiated
Classroom

• Consistently work with students to help them
  understand, accept and appreciate one anothers
  likenesses and differences in learning.
• Have students keep records of their own work.
  Keep notebooks with individual pages for
  assessing student growth in key areas at regular
  intervals
• Enlist students to help you determine
  appropriateness of task.
• Develop reporting systems that address both the
  need for indicating student growth and relative
  student standing.
• Work toward differentiation at a pace that makes
  sense for you
• Help students learn to be more independent and
  more dependent on one another than on the teacher
• Be sure mandated skills are integrated into
  activities and products

60
How do I organize my class, students? Differentiat
e Process The Ecology of the Classroom
61
The Ecology of the Classroom

• Interaction of students, teachers and the
  physical attributes of the classroom (IRA, 1995)
• Teacher actions to create, implement, and
  maintain a classroom environment that supports
  learning (Everston Harris, 1992).
• Teachers and students collaborating to create
  support systems in the classroom.
• The actions and strategies teachers use to solve
  the problem of order in classrooms, rather than
  responses to disciplinary situations (Doyle,
  1996).

62
The Ecology of the Classroom - Components

• Arrangement of the Classroom
• Arrangement of the Students
• Common Routines and Procedures
• Cognitive Processes/Skills

63
Video Clip Instructional and Management
Strategies

• Describe the nature of the student, teacher,
  curriculum, time and instruction
• Identify features of each aspect of the ecology
  of the classroom arrangement of students, the
  classroom, routines/procedures, cognitive
  skills/processes students need to learn to be
  successful in a differentiated classroom

64
Common Routines and Procedures

• Exit Strategies
• Goal Setting
• Journaling
• Goodbye Rituals
• Morning Greeting
• Directions/Procedures
• Noticing each student
• Anchor Activities

65
Cognitive Processes/Skills

• Goal-setting
• Self-reflection
• Give and accept feedback
• Active Listening
• Self-monitoring
• Communication skills
• Questioning, clarifying, summarizing skills

66
Arrangement of Students

• Flexible Grouping
• Temporary groups hour, day, week, month
• Group membership readiness, interest, reading
  level, skill level, background knowledge, social
  skills
• Reading/Study Buddies

67
Teacher-Led Groups

• Grouping Options
• Whole Class/Small Groups
• Individual

• Teachers Role
• Explains procedures
• Provides instructional scaffold
• Facilitates discussion
• Provides explicit instruction
• Affirms student diversity
• Guides individual development
• Encourages individual student interests

68
Student-Led Groups

• Grouping Options
• Collaborative
• Performance-Based
• Dyad (Pairs)

• Teachers Role
• Describes students roles
• Describes students interpersonal skills
• Encourages student interaction
• Monitors group effectiveness
• Guides understanding
• Affirms student diversity
• Identifies students needs
• Provides instructional scaffold
• Provides explicit instruction
• Identifies students interests or needs
• Models instructional strategies
• Guides understanding

69
Additional Instructional Strategies

• Graphic Organizers
• Adjusting Questions
• KWL Charts
• Learning Contracts
• Differentiated Learning Centers

70
Review of the Guiding Questions for
Differentiation of PROCESS

• What concerns might students have in a newly
  differentiated classroom? What solutions would
  you pose?
• What classroom routines and guidelines would you
  need to establish as differentiation begins?
• How might you handle grading in a differentiated
  classroom?
• What concerns might parents have about a newly
  differentiated classroom? How might you help them
  understand potential positives of differentiation
  for their child?

71
How do I assess student learning?Differentiate
Products
72
PRODUCT Questions

• What constitutes a rich and challenging product
  assignment?
• What is the relationship between the concepts,
  principles and skills developed throughout a unit
  and a culminating product assignment?
• How can teachers ensure that products demonstrate
  competency in pivotal understandings and skills
  related to a topic, and still allow as much room
  as possible for student interest and learning
  strength?

73
Strategies for Product Differentiation

• Use formative (in-process) and summative
  (end-of-process) evaluation by peers, self and
  teacher as vehicles to promote growth and
  success.
• Products should cause students to rethink, apply
  and expand on all key concepts. They should be
  based on issues, concepts or problems, rather
  than on topics
• Acknowledge varied readiness levels by developing
  variations on a theme
• Be sure there is support for helping students
  develop skills needed to create an authentic
  product

74
Activity Product Differentiation Matrix

• Part 1 Reflection
• Recall a successful product assignment you
  developed for your students. List reasons why you
  feel the assignment worked will
• Think of a product assignment that didnt work.
  List reasons why you feel it was less successful.

75
Activity Product Differentiation Matrix

• Part 2 Develop a Product Differentiation Matrix
• Refer to the NIUSI Product Ideas and the
  Student Color Characteristics handouts to
  complete the Product Differentiation Matrix

76
Further ThoughtsAssessment in a Differentiated
Classroom
77
Guiding Questions for Assessment

• Are we supposed to hold them accountable for
  everything? If we dont, isnt that just taking
  things off their plate and how can that be good?
• How do we assign equitable grades?
• When we tier lessons, are we just saying that
  were making things easier or harder? How do we
  raise the complexity of an assignment?
• Is the real world differentiated? Did our own
  teachers differentiate for us?

78
Assessment Reflection

• Is it fair that one student did an essay while
  another did artwork for the same grade?
• Is it fair for some students to receive
  additional support to accomplish the task while
  others do not?
• What about re-dos do all students get full
  credit if they re-do assessments?
• What if I tier my lessons and some students are
  focused only on three objectives while others are
  focused on five do I adjust grades based on the
  number objectives they focused on at the end of
  the unit?

79
Why do we grade?

• Provide feedback
• Document progress
• Guide instructional decisions
• These are not the reasons to grade students
  Motivate Punish Sort students
• What about
• Behavior?
• Attendance?
• Effort?

80
Six Ways to Reduce Validity and Dilute
Effectiveness of Grades

• Penalize students multiple attempts at mastery
• Grade practice (daily homework) as students come
  to know concepts
• Withhold assistance (not scaffolding or
  differentiating) in the learning when its
  needed
• Incorporate non-academic factors (behavior,
  attendance, and effort)
• Assess students in ways that do not accurately
  indicate students mastery (student responses are
  hindered by the assessment format)
• Allow students to do extra credit

81
Quick, Ongoing Assessment Ideas

• Short quizzes
• I-minute Papers and other Quick writes
• Metaphors/Similes
• Mindmaps
• Survey
• Thumbs Up/Down/Sideways
• Dry-Erase Slates
• Graphic Organizers

• Oral re-telling
• FIVE Questions for this Answer
• 3-2-I
• Exclusion Brainstorming
• Triads
• Word sorts
• One-Word Summaries
• Text-to-Text, Text-to-Self, Text-to- World

82
Activity Putting it all Together

• Use Differentiated Instruction Planning Matrix to
  plan a unit/lesson
• Select an Essential Learning to focus on
• Differentiate content
• Determine final assessment product(s)
• Differentiate process

83
Video Clip A Visit to a Differentiated Classroom

• Jot down as many examples as you can of
  procedures that Judy uses to help her manage the
  differentiated classroom.
• List concrete actions, processes or procedures
  you observed in the video that build community.

84
Observations from Video Clip

• Trusting that children are capable of
  accomplishing anything they put their minds to
  sets me free as a teacher and empowers my
  students. Ask yourself, "What can the students do
  that I usually take responsibility for, and how
  can I make sure they accept responsibility for
  their own learning?"
• Judy Rex

85
Closing Activity Developing Guidelines

• Varying patterns of teaching
• Assessing student growth
• Coaching an advanced learner for growth and
  success
• Coaching a struggling learner for growth and
  success.
• Helping groups work effectively
• Managing a differentiated classroom
• Communicating with students and parents

86
Activity BLT Action Plan on Differentiated
Learning

• Use PATH process to develop an action plan on how
  they are going to take information back to their
  teachers
• What will it take for your teachers to move
  towards a differentiated instruction approach in
  their classroom?
• Training?
• Coaching?
• Group Support?

87
Rethinking How We Do School
88
Managing a Differentiated Classroom

• Strong rationale based on student readiness and
  interest
• Begin at a pace that is comfortable for you
• Time differentiated activities for student
  success
• Use anchor activity to free you up to focus
  attention on your students
• Create and deliver instruction carefully

89
Managing a Differentiated Classroom

• Have a home base for students
• Be sure students have a plan for getting help
  when you are busy with another student or group
• Give your students as much responsibility for
  their learning as possible
• Engage your students in talking about classroom
  procedures and group processes
• Use flexible grouping

90
Growing as a Teacher

• Teaching is first and foremost learning, and
  egocentric as it may sound, the teachers chief
  area of study is herself or himself.
• Only as I discover my own prejudices, face my own
  fears, give play to my own strengths, and
  compensate for my deficits rather than denying
  them can I help my students do the same.
• It is both the blessing and the curse of teaching
  that the learning never ends. Every day, I must
  confront what I am as a teacher and what I hope
  to be. To do less is to be less of a teacher.
  
• Author Unknown