Differentiated instruciton in education is when the classroom teacher responds to the learning style and ability of individual students in order to help them meeting learning goals by recognizing not all students are going to meet the learning goal at the same time. The teacher needs to adjust the instruction accordingly.
By way of formative assessments the teacher can determine how close each student is to the learning goal and give students activiteis that fit their learning style and level best.
I know, this sounds really complicated.
But it’s really not once you try it a few times.
Below is an explaination of differentiated instruction using a recent lesson I did with my 8th grade students about conduction, convection, and radiation.
I broke it down into steps so that it’s easier to digest.
An Example Of Differentiated Instruction (from my class)
The absolute first thing you need to do is figure out what is the learning goal.
Step 1: What is the learning goal?
What do you want students to learn as a result of the differentiated instruction?
LEARNING GOAL: Students are able to identify the difference between conduction, convection, and radiation.
This is really important so that you know what you want students to learn and what you are going to assess with
a summative assessment later on.
I usually use my curriculum map that was created by the school disctrict I work for to set my learning goals.
Those learning standards are usually tied to the NGSS (Next Generation Science Standards) because I teach science.
Most likely you have something similar depending on which subject you teach but if you don’t then you will need to make up your own goal.
Think about what it is that you want your students to learn and make that your learning goal. The learning goal that you choose is what you are going to assess after diffrentiating.
Once I determine the learning goal I’m ready to assess their prior knowledge.
Step 2: Assess their prior knowledge
Now that you know what your learning goal is you have to assess what the students already know about the learning goal.
ASSESS PRIOR KNOWLEDGE: Have students complete a simple formative assessment about the learning goal so that you can get an idea of how much and what each student already knows about the learning goal.
After all, you may have some students that know everything about the goal and others that know nothing, all in the same class period!
It’s up to you which kind of assessment you want to use for this.
I usually have them respond in their journals to several questions about the topic. I collect it and then use that data to group students for the differentiated instruction.
This formative assessment shouldn’t be a grade, you are using the data to guide your instruction.
I’m always surprised the range of prior knowledge I find in my 8th grade classes.
There are usually several students that know quite a bit of information about the topic, most that know a little less, and then there are students that know nothing about it.
This data is vital to your next step and actually differentiating your activitiies.
Step 3: Differentiating Activities (the key to differentiation) DO THIS!
After the prior knowledge assessment I can use the data to seperate students into groups based on their prior knowledge.
This is the key to differentiation!
Students that already know a lot about the topic will be given an activity that is going to get them to the learning target quicker.
You may end up with 3 different groups in your classroom. Don’t worry!
Group 1: For the “lowest” group in my class I would find activities that introduce them to the concept of thermal energy and then build off of that with activities about conduction, convection, and radiation.
Group 2: These “middle” students may already understand what thermal energy is and know about 1 or 2 of the 3 (conduction, convection, and radiation). For this group I design activities for them that reinforces what thermal energy is and how it is transfered.
Group 3: This “high” group of studens already meet the learning goal. They can identify the difference between conduction, convection, and radiation. For this group I find an activity to do that reinforces this goal and challenges them to go beyond the learning goal. Example: I had these students build an insulated thermos.
It may take several different activities to get all students to the learning goal so be patient and make sure you have a variety of activities/assignments available to them.
The students that showed less prior knowledge and are further from the learning target will also be given activities that scaffold their learning and slowly get them to the learning goal.
There are times when students with the least prior knowledge are eventually given activities/assignments that the “middle” students completed.
My advice is to be patient and flexible and don’t try to do too much at once.
Step 4: Final Summative Assessment
After you have completed all of the differentiating you need to assess one more time to see if all students reached the learning goal.
This is the data that you have been waiting for so that you can measure, with data, how many students met the learning goal.
This final summative assessment is what is usually graded because it is the one where students demostrate what they have learned as a result of the differentiation.
The summative assessment can be a traditional test, a project, a CER, an interview, or anything else you want to try. Just make sure that the summative assessment is assessing the original learning goal.
Should You Differentiate For Every Learning Goal?
In an ideal world the answer is “yes.”
Realistically you just won’t be able to do it every single day. You’ll burn yourself out doing that.
I found that having a goal to differentiate every other learning goal is way more realistic.
I don’t want to mislead you, differentiating is a lot of work on your part but its so satisfying seeing it pay off when you start to see more of your students reaching the learning goal.
Just be careful, try differentiating slowly and then keep notes of what worked and what didn’t.
What Is The Purpose Of Differentiated Instruction?
The purpose of differentiated instruction is simple, to have students learn and meeting learning goals!
This is a fundamental concept in education, differentiation is a way to meet learner needs with varied instruction, activities, and assignments.
The student is also given a choice of which activities best fit their learning style.
Just don’t forget that what you are hoping to achieve (it doesn’t always happen though) is to have all students reach the learning goal and even have some students that exceed it if possible.
A dose of reality: no matter how much you differentiate you are always going to have a few students that are not going to meet the learning goal.
This is the reality of teaching, accept it and move on to the next lesson and try to engage that student again.
Why Is Differentiation Important In The Classroom?
Differentiation is important in the classroom because it addresses students as individuals.
It allows the student to take control of their learning by engaging in activities they learn best with.
The biggest reason why differentiation is important in a classroom is so that students that would otherwise not meet the learning target are given an opportunity to learn with what is best for them and their learning style.
Also, students that meet the learning target are given an opportunity to enrich what they know.
What Makes Differentiation Successfull?
Differentiaitan is successful when you have students complete your summative assessement to see if they reached the learning goal.
This is the most rewarding part of differentiation, when you get to look at the results and know that you put those students in the best environment to reach the learning goal.
Is differention the answer to solving all the learning problems we encounter in the classroom?
No. No way.
It is a step in the right direction though.