Wk 03 Differentiation

Wk 03 Differentiation

Learning Styles - Urban Myth?

Professor Frank Coffield conducted extensive research into over 70 theories relating to learning styles to see whether the various models corresponded to reality. The validity of learning-style questionnaires were tested to see if they really measured what they claimed. Little evidence was found to support these theories including Honey and Mumford, Dunn and Dunn and VAK.
Learning style sytems that did seem to work such as Herrmann's 'whole brain model', where a learner's learning style was considered to be adaptive to the context. Coffield's advice is:

• Don't label students then try to match learning strategies to their styles
• Use methods that address all styles; this is called 'whole brain' learning.
• Encourage learners to use unfamilliar styles, even if they dont like them at first
• Teach students how to use all styles of learning
• Students enjoy moving between styles; makes for varied and interesting lessons

Source: Coffield, F., Mosley, D., Hall, E. and Ecclestone, K. 2004. Should we be using learning styles? [Online] Available at: https://crm.lsnlearning.org.uk/user/order.aspx?code=041540 [Accessed: 19 Jan 2010]

Peer Explaining: Summarising key points

In this strategy, pairs improve their summary of key points.

• Warn students first that you want them to summarise the topic to each other, in pairs.
• Design two challenging questions that summarise the key points of the topic you are about to teach.
• Require the students to identify the details and reasons why, or to stress the meaning and structure of information
• Number and make the questions clearly visible to the students.
• Then teach the topic using differentiated presentation of the information. Meanwhile, the students may try to work out the answers to the questions.
• Put students into pairs, give them one question each
• Students prepare what they will say to each other for a minute or so; they can work individually and write down what they will say to each other
• Students answer the questions, explaining the key points to each other
• Follow with a class discussion on what issues came up

Applying differentiation

Differentiation can applied to both to the curriculum and the learner:

CURRICULUM
There are three areas of curriculum that can be differentiated(CPP):
- Content
- Process
- Product

Content:
Content is what the teacher plans for learners to understand and the ways the learner will gain access to the necessary knowledge and skills.
To differentiate content the teacher can:

1) provide multiple resources at differing levels
2) mediate one text on multiple levels e.g.
3) use a variety from different sources to address the VAK learning styles

Process:
Process refers to the activities students engage in in order to gain an understanding of the subject or learn a new skill.
To differentiate according to purpose, teachers can:

1) vary the amount of support given to students
2) give learners choices about how they express what they learn
3) provide varied assignment options at differing levels of difficulty
4) tailor assignments to learners own interests.

Product:
The product is the end result, the output learners create to demonstrate what they have learnt. Teachers can differentiate according to product by:

1) providing a grid showing how assignments will be assessed
2) vary the types of resources learners can use in preparing products.
3) allow students to design their products based around set goals.
4) allow students to express what they know in varied ways.

LEARNER
These are the three learner characteristics teachers can take into account when planning to differentiate

- Readiness
- Interest
- Learning Profile

Readiness:
Refers to the prior understanding and preparedness learners have at the start of study, what learners bring to the classroom. Students require different levels of difficulty. Teachers can:

1) make the task more or less familiar (add or remove information or resources)
2) add or remove peer conferencing, instruction and models for the task
3) add 'good and even better if . . ' comments to feedback

Interest:
Interests refer to students 'taste buds'. teachers can align topics with the pursuits that satisfy the learner. Taechers can:

1) provide wide variety of choices of topics and products
2) provide a variety of avenues for learner exploration of a topic
3) Allow learner-designed options.

Learning Profile:
All students, no matter how they are grouped, have their own uinique interests, abilities, styles and levels of readiness. Gardner's theory dilineates the following categories of student bodily-kinesthetic, interpersonal, Verbal-linguistic, logical-mathematical, naturalistic, visual-spacial and musical! Teachers can:

1) provide a choice of space for activities
2) present info in a variety of ways (video, handout, lecture, peer-to-peer talks)
3) provide learning opportunities in various modes (musical, visual, movement etc)

Source: www.jamesguilford.com

BlogPress

The Differentiated Classroom

DfES identifies three aspects of differentiation:

• by task: setting different tasks for pupils of different ability
• by outcome: setting open-ended tasks, allowing pupil response at different levels,
• by support: giving more help (perhaps via an LSA) to certain pupils within the group.

I prefer this definition by Carol Tomlinson:

A differentiated classroom provides different avenues so that students have multiple options for:

• acquiring content - taking in information,
• processing or making sense of ideas, and
• expressing what they learn through developing products

Specifically, differentiated instruction is:

• active teaching and learning (creating a product, reviewing and feedback)
  
• more qualitative than quantitative
• aimed at offering multiple approaches to content, process, and product
• student-centered (building on existing constructs)
  

A blend of whole-class, group, and individual instruction

Teachers in differentiated classrooms begin with a clear and solid sense of what constitutes powerful curriculum and engaging instruction. Then they ask what it will take to modify that instruction so that each learner comes away with understandings and skills offering guidance in the next phase of learning.

Essentially, teachers in differentiated classrooms accept, embrace, and plan for the fact that learners bring many commonalities to college, but that they also bring the essential differences that make them individuals. Teachers can allow for this reality in many ways to make classrooms a good fit for each individual.

Source: Adapted from The Differentiated Classroom: Responding to the Needs of All Learners, by C. Tomlinson, 1999, Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.