Linking Differentiated Instruction to AISI’08

1. Linking Differentiated Instruction to AISI’08 Session Pre-Assessment: Complete the Teacher Self-Assessment Tool. What is your top score?

2. Session Outcome: • Know the relationship between Assessment for Learning (A4L) & (Understanding by Design (UbD) • Set the stage for the future training in Differentiated Instruction (DI).

3. Session Concept Map • Stage 1: Identify Desired Results • Enduring Understandings about DI • Stage 2: Collect Evidence of Understanding • Pre-assessment for readiness • Stage 3: Planning for the Learning Sequence • WHERETO Strategy for future directions

4. Stage 1: Identify Desired Results Goals of Differentiated Instruction: Teachers are able to respond to the diverse needs of students using differentiated instruction. Differentiated materials, methods and assessments are considered in advance with the full range of student differences in mind.

5. Stage 2: Evidence of Understanding • Know • Rationale for differentiated instruction • Key concepts of differentiated instruction • Understand • Curriculum, teaching & assessment connections • Differentiation enhances teaching & learning • Do • Explain why we need to differentiate instruction

6. Stage 3: The Learning Sequence Planning the DI Learning Experience W – Where are we going? How? H – Hook & engage teachers? E – Experience, explore, equip teachers? R – Rethink, revise, refine teaching practices? E – Evaluate our DI progress? T – Tailor to the needs of school staffs? O – Organize & sequence learning?

7. Making the Links

8. The Puzzle ASSESSMENT CURRICULUM BEST TEACHERS! INSTRUCTION

9. District Vision & Mission Vision: A culture of respect, inclusion, caring and excellence where EVERY student succeeds. Mission: Striving for excellence by inspiring learning and nurturing hope in EVERY student.

10. DI is learning to plan backwards and understand by design • What should students know, understand and be able to do? (Curriculum Design) • How will we know whether students have achieved the desired results? (Assessment for Learning) • What activities or resources are best suited to accomplish learning? (Instructional Design)

11. What does what? Curriculum tells teachers what to teach. Differentiated instruction tells teachers how to teach to a range of learners by employing a variety of teaching approaches. Assessment tells teachers when to adjust and modify so students access learning.

12. Why DI? • Increased student diversity • Students of same age differ in readiness, learning styles, interests, etc. • Decreased stigmas about being different • Decreased exclusion from curriculum, programs and activities of the school • Increased student achievement.

13. English As A Second Language • 37,500 students in Alberta • 1,500 new students per month • 200 students in RDPSD • 35% increase in one year

14. Students with Special Needs • 440 students with severe special needs • 500+ students with mild – moderate special needs • 95 children with severe special needs • 56 children with mild-moderate special needs • Students with behaviour disorders • Majority in regular classrooms

15. Responding to Diversity The biggest mistake of past centuries in teaching has been to treat all children as if they were the same variant of the same individual and thus to feel justified in teaching them all the same subjects in the same ways. Howard Gardner (1994)

16. The fact that students differ may be inconvenient, but it is inescapable. Adapting to that diversity is the inevitable price of productivity, high standards, and fairness to kids. Theodore Sizer

17. DI Defined • DI is a teaching philosophy • Based on the premise that teachers need to adapt to student diversity, not the students adapting to teacher diversity • Responsive teaching based on the assessed needs of students • Inclusive teaching • Synthesis of research on how students learn best and how to teach them better.

18. DI Defined DI is proactively planning varied approaches to what students need to learn, how they will learn it, and/or how they will show what they have learned in order to increase the likelihood that each student will learn as much as he or she can, as efficiently as possible. Carol Ann Tomlinson

19. “In a differentiated classroom, the teacher closely assesses and monitors skills, knowledge levels, interests and effective ways of learning for all students and then plans lessons and tasks with those levels in mind.” Carol Ann Tomlinson (2001). How to Differentiate Instruction in Mixed-Ability Classrooms., Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, Alexandria, VA: ASCD.

20. Differentiated Instruction is a teacher’s response to learner’s needs guided by general principles of differentiation such as Respectful tasks Flexible grouping Pre-Assessment Teachers can differentiate Content Process Product according to students’ Readiness Interests Learning Style

21. DI Process Planning • What are the General Learner Outcome(s) (GLO) • What do I want students to know, understand, do? Pre-assessment • Who already knows the GLO? KUDo? • Who does not know the GLO? KUDo? Differentiation • How can students be grouped for learning? • How can I increase or extend learning?

22. Elements of DI Content: What is taught and how all students are provided access to the program of study. Process: How students develop the knowledge, understanding and skills to master the learner outcomes. Product: How the student is able to demonstrate what he/she knows, understands and is able to do as a result of learning.

23. Student Characteristics • Readiness: current knowledge, skills, and understanding a student has in relation to the learner outcomes • Interest: Connect activities to what students enjoy or are interested in to motivate learning • Learning Profile: use student’s preferred mode of learning to extend learning

24. DI Teaching Activities • Readiness is for GROWTH • Tasks that match skill level • Interest is for MOTIVATION • Tasks that ignite curiosity • Learning Profile is for EFFICIENCY - • Tasks encourage excitement or confidence

25. DI Example: Graphing and Measuring: Student Choices • Find a friend & measure the length and width of the classroom. Draw onto paper in centimeters. • Work at the Graphing Centre to complete 2 activities. Place into your Math folder when done. • Measure your height, the height of 2 friends and the height of an adult. Rank order from smallest to tallest.

26. DI Example: Physics: Aerodynamics (KUDo: Bernoulli & Newton) Construct objects that project through space in different ways to demonstrate knowledge & understanding. Construct one of the following: • Paper airplanes for max distance & hang time • Pinwheels for best forward, backward & upward motions • Kite shapes for best thrust, drag & lift.

27. Instructional Leaders • Leaders of school-based learning teams are part teacher, leader, change agent, mentor, motivator, coach and cheerleader. • Help teachers in learning and applying new knowledge and skills necessary to increase the performance and achievement of students. • Teacher collaboration is a significant contributor to increased student learning.

28. Cutting Edge Teaching If you want to feel safe and secure, continue to do what you have always done. If you want to grow, go to the cutting edge of our profession. Just know that when you do, there will be a temporary loss of sanity. So know when you don’t quite know what you are doing, you are probably growing. Madeline Hunter

30. Stage 3: The Learning Sequence Planning the DI Learning Experience W – Where are we going? How? H – Hook & engage teachers? E – Experience, explore, equip teachers? R – Rethink, revise, refine teaching practices? E – Evaluate our DI progress? T – Tailor to the needs of school staffs? O – Organize & sequence learning?

31. Group Activity (Chose 1 to do) • You are appointed as the District’s DI Consultant. Draft out an implementation plan with the “what, how & when” to get started. • You are asked to present to parents on why staff use DI. What key principles and messages will you share with parents? • You are a newly appointed principal & staff want DI as the AISI focus. List 10 ways the principal supports staff development for DI.

32. Collaboration • Collaborative teams enhance teachers’ skills for educating a diverse student body and holding high expectations for appropriate behaviours. • Collaborative teams enhances teachers’ potential for survival by creating regular opportunities for exchange of needed resources, expertise and technical assistance. Villa, R.A. and Thousand, J.S. (Eds). Restructuring for Caring and Effective Education: Piecing the Puzzle Together. Baltimore, MD: Paul H. Brookes.

33. Implementation Process Awareness  Interest  Information Gathering  Commitment  Preparation/Planning Awkward, Refine, Practice, Students Respond  Collaboration Habit of Mind

34. Future Directions • Instructional Leadership Teams • Carolyn Chapman • Staff Learning Day • DI Coaches Training • Print Resources • Aligning Curriculum, Intervention Services & Information Technology Services for AISI

36. Exit Card Please complete and leave on the table: Know: I know enough about DI to get started Yes or  No Understand I understand the following DI concepts:  Content  Readiness  Process  Interest  Product  Learning Profile Do I am able to explain the need for DI to my colleagues. Yes or  No To do this, I need the following: