Differentiated Learning & Assessment -- PLC Presentation
Differentiated instruction and assessment recognizes that the individual needs, strengths and weaknesses of students must drive learning (Wormeli, 2007). Changing the outcomes of traditional lesson plans to account for differentiated learning is a fundamental part of ensuring student success. Each student's readiness, interest and learning profile is at the core of this approach. Students are diverse; therefore, instructional and assessment practices should be as well, to improve student outcomes in all content areas.
Many teachers design lessons that have a set of specific learning objectives and standardized assessments for students. However, today's learning models ask teachers to adopt multiple objectives and use different levels of assessment for more individualized learning (Dobbertin, 2012). Differentiation of process, then, refers to the way in which a student accesses material (i.e., one student may explore a learning center, while another may conduct an online search for information). Differentiation of assessment refers to the way in which a student shows what he or she has learned (i.e., one student may create a story-web, while a more advanced student may retell a story from a different character's point-of-view). The overarching point is that differentiation favors a variety of instructional strategies to accommodate a variety of students. It is not a cookie cutter methodology or approach to teaching and learning.
Differentiated instruction and assessment implies a choice of learning activity and also demonstration of knowledge (Prescott, 2012). It takes into account the students' strengths and weaknesses. Student groupings help foster collaborative learning environments and should be based on the needs and abilities of members, which can change over time (Parker, 2004). This moves teachers far beyond busy work or static groupings that remain the same throughout the academic year. Students are afforded a chance to work at their own level, and the work in turn becomes more qualitative (Painter, 2009).
Decisions about differentiation should be based on evidence of student's needs and abilities. The pass or fail approach should not be used; rather assessments are better measurements of student's strengths and weaknesses (Tomlinson, 1999). In addition, experts point out that the same differentiation plan should not be used for every lesson. Sometimes changes should be applied to the student's independent practice, the instruction of the lesson itself, or the text of the lesson (Heacox, 2002). Plans should be as dynamic as the needs of the students in the class.
Teachers can use a variety of entry points to ensure that each student's abilities, strengths, and needs are taken into consideration. Entry points are invitations to students to think about important problems in varied ways (Forsten & Hollas, 2003). Learners are able to explore a topic through a number of different avenues. A narrative entry point can involve telling a story about the concept in question. Logical-quantitative entry points encourage students to approach a concept using deductive reasoning, logic, cause-and-effect relationships, or numbers and data (Painter, 2009). Foundational entry points explore the broader or philosophical concepts raised by a subject. This may include questions about life, death, or our place in society or the world (Wormeli, 2007). Aesthetic entry points prompt students to respond to formal or sensory qualities of a subject -- such as its color, form, pattern, or overall expression -- by focusing on sensory or surface features. (Dobbertin, 2012). Finally, experimental entry points offer a hands-on approach to dealing with materials and personal experiences. Students are asked to actually do something tangible. For example, students may produce a play about the history of a neighborhood or choreograph a dance to accompany music. The personal explanations and simulations required help deepen the student's understanding (Parker, 2004).
Similarly, exit points are critical. An exit point is defined as any point during instruction when students' work indicates a need for differentiation (Forsten & Hollas, 2003). Exit points are best used when some students have not yet mastered skills or content while others are ready to move on, or when some students would benefit from more advanced tasks and others from more basic activities (Wormeli, 2007). Teachers can group students according to common instructional needs. Teachers can look for cues that some students need more time, practice or instruction, or that certain students are ready to move on to pursue activities that extend learning. The goal is to ascertain which students have achieved (or are approaching) a foundational level with the content being covered, and which have advanced beyond those foundations (Tomlinson, 1999). Teachers can also examine students' learning preferences or strengths. How do individual students prefer to show what they have learned? Which prefer verbal learning? Which prefer written expression?...
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