EDUC 671 - DB 5 - Differentiation

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Liberty University *

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Feb 20, 2024

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Differentiation Learning does not happen in a vacuum. Lessons must be designed in such a way as to meet the different levels of readiness, learning styles and interests of students from a wide range of backgrounds and skill sets (Wiggins & McTighe, 2012). Every student brings unique abilities and learning styles to the classroom and in order for all students to achieve success, differentiation must be used to meet the individual student’s learning needs. From Pre-K to 12 th grade, teachers must prepare for these challenges, looking at their students’ abilities and planning their lessons to challenge and support every student. Because every class and every student is different, using the backward design approach to planning and curriculum design allows teachers to build in flexibility and customize the activities and assessments that best suit the students while still focusing on the goals and expected outcomes (Davis & Autin, 2020). Goals and outcomes need to be established and aligned with the standards in the beginning of the planning process. Unless an IEP is in place, all students should be working toward this set of directives. Differentiation takes place in how the students are taught, what activities they do, and how assessments are used to facilitate their learning and attaining these goals (Bondie, Dahnke, & Zusho, 2019). Knowing the students in the classroom, their strengths and weakness, as well as learning styles, allows for teachers to customize these plans to motivate and engage every student at their own pace and level of readiness. I am reminded of Paul, when writing in 1 Corinthians 3:2, “ I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for it. And even now you are not yet ready…” (English Standard Bible, 2001). We as teachers have to meet our students where they are, not where we want them to be, just as God meets us, not where we could be or should be, but exactly where we are. I try to be mindful of this when I am planning lessons, especially for my middle school classes. Because

my students come from a wide range of backgrounds and abilities, the first step in differentiating the lesson comes when I choose which homework problems they will do, and when they can work together in groups for problem solving. I try to pair a strong reader with a weaker reader for working on word problems. Also, I will give more abstract problems to my advanced or on- level learners and allow the below-level students to work more on the key concepts and skill- based problems. Each student receives a customized assignment, so no one is singled out and everyone is challenged. References: Bondie, R. S., Dahnke, C., & Zusho, A. (2019). How Does Changing “One-Size-Fits-All” to Differentiated Instruction Affect Teaching? Review of Research in Education , 43 (1), 336–362. https://doi.org/10.3102/0091732X18821130 Davis, T. C., & Autin, N. P. (2020). The Cognitive Trio: Backward Design, Formative Assessment, and Differentiated Instruction, Research Issues in Contemporary Education , 5(2), 55-70. English Standard Version Bible . (2001). ESV Online. https://esv.literalword.com/ Wiggins, G., & McTighe, J. (2012). The Understanding by design guide to advanced concepts in creating and reviewing units . ASCD.

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