Differentiation Strategy Explained: Learning Contracts

1. Differentiation Strategy Explained:Learning Contracts

2. Differentiation Strategy:Learning Contracts • Contracts are negotiated agreements between the teacher and student. • Contracts provide the student with some freedom in acquiring skills and understandings that the teacher deems important based on Content Standards. • Student choices can include: • - what is to be learned (content) • - working conditions (process) • - how information will be applied or expressed • (assessment or product)

3. Differentiation Strategy:Learning Contracts • A CONTRACT: • assumes that the teacher identifies specific important skills and understandings and assures students acquire them, • allows students to take some responsibility for their own learning and delineates skills needed to be practiced and mastered, • ensures students apply those skills, • specifies work conditions such as time constraints, behavior, homework, and class work involvement.

4. Differentiation Strategy:Learning Contracts • A CONTRACT: • sets positive consequences (allowable freedom of choice, grades) for students adhering to the contract, • establishes criteria for students completing contract with high quality work, • includes signatures of both teacher and student, • includes periodic checkpoints (more for dependent students, less for independent ones) for review of progress.

5. Differentiation Strategy:Learning Contracts • Designing a Differentiated Learning Contract • Four Contract Elements • Skills/Content Pre-Assessment • Focus is on skills-based tasks and can be taken from Academic Content Standards. • Assignments are based on pre-assessment of students’ readiness levels or Grade-Level indicators. • Teachers can create their own pre-assessments or use existing ones from texts or other resources.

6. Differentiation Strategy:Learning Contracts • Designing a Differentiated Learning Contract • Four Contract Elements • 2. Skills/Content Activities • Focus is on applying, extending, or enriching key content (ideas, understandings) or skills. • Requires sense making and production. • Assignment based on readiness or interest.

7. Differentiation Strategy:Learning Contracts • Designing a Differentiated Learning Contract • Four Contract Elements • 3. Time • Teacher sets completion date and check-in requirements. • Students select the order of work (except for required meetings and homework versus class work).

8. Differentiation Strategy:Learning Contracts • Designing a Differentiated Learning Contract • Four Contract Elements • 4. Agreement • The teacher agrees to let students have freedom to plan their time • Students agree to use the time responsibly • Guidelines for working are spelled out • Consequences for ineffective use of time are delineated • Signatures of the teacher and student are placed on the agreement

9. Differentiation Strategy:Learning Contracts • Student contracts at differentiated levels should have similar qualities, and should look a great deal alike. • The work noted in a given section of the contract parallels other contract versions. • The work in some contracts is more complex than other contracts. • The Pre-Assessment and Activities components of the contract can be on separate pages so that Pre-Assessments might be the same for all contracted students but the tasks might be individually determined.

10. Learning ContractsActivity: Try it! • 1. Skills/Content Pre-Assessment: • Use the Academic Content Standards, teacher’s manual and other resources to create assessments for unit • Pre-tests should be available at the beginning of each chapter/unit • Contracts should be made available to students who demonstrate 80 – 85% mastery

11. Learning ContractsActivity: Try it! • Use the Sample Contracts provided to begin planning: • Sample Contract 1 is a structured format that allows the teacher to use the Academic Content Standards • Sample Contract 2 is a less structured format that gives teachers the option of using textbook based pre-assessment

12. Learning ContractsActivity: Try it! • 2. Skill/Content Activities: • Collect enrichment activities from teacher manuals, the Ohio IMS website of Content Standards and other sources • Materials should be self checking as much as possible • Enlist student ideas for Free Choice Options

13. Learning ContractsActivity: Try it! • Time • Determine time constraints for the contract • Plan check-in with students at least twice weekly • Work with students to develop the independence they need to complete the learning contract activities

14. Learning ContractsActivity: Try it! • Agreements • Explain the Rules for Working • Explain consequences for breaking the rules • Both the student and the teacher should agree on all aspects of the Learning Contract

15. Learning ContractsActivity: Try it! • Reflect on how your contracts worked during the trial period. • What could be improved for the future? • How can you help students gain independence and self-regulation in these activities?

16. Learning ContractsDiscussion • What areas in your teaching can benefit from the use of Learning Contracts? • How can using Learning Contracts assist you in reaching the needs of all learners in your classroom? • Discuss how you might use information about student readiness, interests and learning preferences to create Learning Contracts. • Discuss specific ways you might use Contracts in your classroom.

17. Learning Contracts • Consider inviting your coordinator of gifted services, principal, curriculum coordinator or other administrator to observe your students using Learning Contracts. • Your observer can use the observation form found under Module Specific Planning Documents in the Facilitator Module.

18. Learning Contracts Resources • ASCD video. (2002). Instructional Strategies for the Differentiated Classroom, Tape 1: Learning Contracts. Available from http://www.www.ascd.org • Winebrenner, S. (1992). Teaching gifted kids in the regular classroom. Free Spirit Publishing: Minneapolism, MN • http://www.teach-nology.com/web_tools/contract/for an online contract generator.