1. Interacting with Differentiated Instruction Scenarios What Does a Really Good DI Teacher Do? AMLE Annual Conference November 2013

2. For each scenario that follows, consider: Is it differentiation? Why or Why not? What would make it more differentiated? What would a highly accomplished differentiating teacher do in the situation?

3. Two students struggle with graphing the intersection of two inequalities, so the teacher asks them to graph only one instead. A student gets 100% on a pre-test, so the teacher asks the student to do a personal research topic related to the general subject of the unit for the duration of their studies. All students in Mr. Brown’s class keep journals in math. The type of journal matches each student’s strengths and interests. For example, one journal is for the students whose verbal skills are stronger than their math skills. Students keep a list of math terms learned in class and then use the terms in sentences. Another journal is for students have good visual- spatial skills. These students draw pictures to remind them of math vocabulary. A

4. In the same 30 minutes, advanced students get 25 math problems while struggling students are assigned only five. A student who seems to mix up decimal places and place values in his math problems is asked to do his work on graph paper, even on tests, thereby keeping his numbers clearly within their columns. The teacher raises or lowers what she expects of students regarding the grade level curriculum based on their developmental level, and she adjusts her assignments for them accordingly. B

5. English Language Learner students get a lower-order thinking task than the rest of their class. A student keeps re-doing an essay in order to improve his grade, but he seems to disregard the advice the teacher gives him on each attempt. He makes a few cosmetic changes and re-arranges some words, but there’s no substantive change. He and the teacher are getting frustrated at his lack of progress. The teacher takes the grade as is and hopes next year’s teacher will be more successful. C

6. The student didn’t use his time wisely on this week’s project. As a result, he submits a very poor version of what he can normally achieve, and it receives a low grade. The teacher lets the student re-do the project over the next few days, however, and he does it well. The teacher then attributes full credit to the student for having mastered the relevant standards. The teacher gives students a list of 50 methods to represent their learning for the final project and asks them to choose any two of them to complete. D

7. Six students are identified as gifted/advanced in a particular subject, so the teacher spreads them throughout her student work groups so they can help those who struggle. She reasons that they will help the low performers, and they’ll learn the material better themselves for having taught it to others. In preparation for a class discussion of how reptiles and amphibians regulate internal body temperature, the science teacher asks a student known for his interest in auto mechanics to explain how most car engines regulate internal temperature. Other students are asked to explain how we regulate the temperature of our homes and buildings as well as our own bodies. E

8. Eleven students do not do the assignment from last night. Consequently, they are not prepared to move on with the class in today’s task. There are only enough microscopes for every three students. One student in each group uses the microscope to bring items into focus, another draws what the group sees through the eyepiece, then all three students answer the comprehension questions. F

9. The class is allowed to work in any way they wish on a task: in groups, with a partner, or by themselves. The whole class takes notes during a lecture or presentation for 60 minutes. One student writes poorly, so when the rest of the class is given several non-writing choices as a way to demonstrate mastery, the teacher assigns this student a writing piece so he can improve his skills. G

10. It’s January. For some wonderful and maybe strange reason, your student, Philip, finally completes and turns in a project from September that he never did. You thank him for doing it, but you do not give him credit for doing the work, or for the knowledge and skill demonstrated in it. ‘Any issue here? Some students did well in standards 1, 2, and 5 on the test, but poorly in 3, 4, and 6. Other students did the opposite: performing well on 3, 4, and 6, but bombing out on 1, 2, and 5. Only the aggregate score of “C” is recorded for every one of these students, however. ‘Any concern here? H

11. For a task that is particularly challenging for some students, the teacher announces they can just do as much of it as they can, then stop. Some students who struggle in math are doing pure numeric computation problems while students who understand the algorithms well are doing word problem applications. J.J. demonstrates 100% on all of his formative assessments, so his teacher doesn’t make him take the final unit test. She just records a 100 for the final unit test for him. I

12. When assigning reading to the class, a teacher realizes some students read at a much higher level than is required for the material she is using currently. In response, she gives these students much more complex material from a class textbook one or more grade levels above the rest of the class. Students are allowed to negotiate with the teacher as to how they will practice their new learning this evening, i.e. they are allowed to make up their own homework assignment. J

13. Danika is borderline between a C and a B grade. In order to choose one or the other for the final report card grade, her teacher considers Danika’s outstanding attitude, behavior, and high homework completion rate, then records a B on the report card as a result. The electronic report card used by her school averages grades, but Mr. Teachwell knows this falsifies the final grade. “Oh, well,” he thinks, “there’s nothing I can do,” and he continues to average the grades in his classroom. K

14. Whenever he’s given a choice on how to demonstrate mastery, Abdul creates dramatic portrayals with funny characters. He’s very good at these performances and usually gets the top grade when doing them. This time, however, the teacher tells him that he needs to develop other skills as well, so she asks him to choose from three assignment choices elsewhere on the project menu, each of these emphasizing multiple intelligences that are not among David’s natural proclivities. As students enter Mr. Hiller’s 90 minute history class, they immediately select activity folders they feel they need to work on to enhance their understanding and skills of a particular unit of study. The students work for twenty-five minutes while Mr. Hiller works with small groups of students or individually with one student. L

15. Students are working in small groups on an assigned task. One student isn’t cooperating with the rest of his group, however, and as a result, the group is falling farther behind the other groups. The teacher asks the whole class to do a comic strip that portrays an historical event. She tells students that it’s okay if they don’t draw well; she’s not artistic herself. She will evaluate them on accurate and thorough interpretations of the historical event, not their artwork. The teacher does several math problems on the front board, then assigns students five practice problems to see if the class understands the algorithm. M

16. Kevin constructs a small, springing contraption out of paper clips that shoots four or more feet into the air when launched from his desk. He builds the device while the teacher explains a concept to the rest of the class. He is completely focused on the device’s construction and wonders how he can alter its design to increase the height of its leap. A student just moved into your class and school from out of state, and he seems to not have the basic foundations that you’ve already taught your class. Those foundations are very important for students to know for the next unit of study you have to teach. N

17. Four ELL students have been placed in your class, but they are far from comfortable with English, especially with the vocabulary associated with your subject area. One student chronically disrupts the class every day, every period. Sometimes what he says is relevant to the lesson, but often it is not. When told to not disrupt the class or to keep his contributions to ideas that are relevant to the lesson, he pouts and becomes belligerent. O

18. Now, how about some of your own?

19. For More Conversation: Rick Wormeli rwormeli@cox.net @rickwormeli 703-620-2447