Differentiated Instruction is
concerned about manipulating material and doing things differently to help all
students improve. Carol Ann Tomlinson explains: "Differentiation means
tailoring instruction to meet individual needs. Whether teachers differentiate
content, process, products, or the learning environment, the use of ongoing
assessment and flexible grouping makes this a successful approach to
instruction." Tamlinson adds: "At its
most basic level, differentiation consists of the efforts of teachers to
respond to variance among learners in the classroom. "
Teachers can differentiate:
- Content
- Process
- Products
- Learning environment
As I have students for a complete
term, I get to know their learning needs by the third class. They also learn my
way. This allows activities to flow from one to another, covering more than one
idea in the same activity. Same topic with different students means that you
concentrate on different items with different students. For example, when I
teach reading there are some common things we do together. After all students,
are given 10 minutes to read and answer part A and part B. Proficient students
finish before the assigned time so I ask to write a comment on the passage.
After the ten minutes assigned for all students we discuss the topic of the
reading, then I write the difficult words on the board. Then, I listen to more
than one answer to the open-ended questions.
In practice lectures, I denote
that we have 4 passages to read and answer. Students have to submit at least 2
passages at the end of the lecture. Proficient students do the passages quickly
and submit the 4 passages at the end of the lecture. Less proficient students,
feel secure and do their best to perfect the two or three they will submit.
They ask questions along the road. They do the other two passages at home in
order to learn, improve and get extra marks.
Many proficient students ask for extra passages or extra work in order
to practice their English and I give them material.
One of the challenges I face is
the difficulty of preparation of various related things so proficient students
would feel they are doing a new task and less proficient feel they are only slower
than their mates. I also face the difficulty of having a divided class as
everyone is doing something different but related so it is physically and
mentally challenging. Differentiation is difficult in the idea of preparation
and application, but once it is applied it helps all members of the class and
tightens the bond between you and your students.
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