Engaging All Learners
At its most basic level, differentiation consists of the efforts of teachers to respond to variance among learners in the classroom. Whenever a teacher reaches out to an individual or small group to vary his or her teaching in order to create the best learning experience possible, that teacher is differentiating instruction. Teachers can differentiate at least four classroom elements based on student readiness, interest, or learning profile: content, process, products, and learning environment. As a faculty (7-12), we will be working with an Cayuga-Onondaga BOCES professional development trainer focused on Differentiated Instruction practices and overall student engagment. Our main topics will encompass…
- Creating a healthy classroom community in which students' unique qualities and needs are as important as the ones they have in common.
- Translating curriculum into manageable and meaningful learning goals that are fit to be differentiated.
- Using pre-assessment and formative assessment to uncover students' learning needs and tailor tasks accordingly.
- Presenting students with avenues to take in, process, and produce knowledge that appeal to their varied interests and learning profiles.
- Navigating roadblocks to implementing differentiation in all classrooms.
