Differentiated Instruction:

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Differentiated Instruction

• Knowing our students to teach our students

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Differentiated Instruction

• Knowing our students to teach our students

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School Effectiveness Framework Debrief

• WSI example
• Literacy Numeracy score improvements due to a
  deeper, data driven and focused approach.
• The SEF is an assessment instrument
• indicates where we are as a school in a given
  moment in time.
• Dec. 5th Leadership Team retreat.
• Facilitator Diane Hawkins - group of 20 formal
  informal school leaders
• able to identify 4 key areas of the learning
  process
• at the school / classroom / and student levels

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School Effectiveness Indicators

• 1. Student Learning and Achievement (SEF
  Indicator)
• Instruction takes into account the background and
  experiences of all students and meets their
  diverse interests, aptitudes and special needs
• At the School (Evidence)
• Professional learning communities focus on
  meeting the diverse needs of students
• In the classroom (Evidence)
• Tasks are chosen which have range of entry points
  so that sudents who have different experiences
  and achievement levels can acce3ss the intended
  learning
• Students are able to (Evidence)
• apply their learning in a variety of new contexts
  in response to instruction and additional
  interventions

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School Effectiveness Indicators

• 2. Instructional Leadership
• Job-embedded and inquiry-based professional
  learning is made available to staff, building
  capacity and informing practice at the school and
  classroom level.
• At the school
• Common planning time is scheduled where feasible.
• In the classroom
• Knowledge and effective instructional practices
  are shared (e.g. through co-teaching, mentoring
  and coaching)
• Students are able to
• Apply knowledge, skills and strategies across
  content areas (e.g. interpreting charts, graphs
  and non-continuous text)

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School Effectiveness Indicators

• 3. Assessment Evaluation
• Common assessment tasks are collaboratively
  crafted and the resulting student work is
  analyzed to ensure consistency of standards
  within and across grade levels, with the goal of
  equity of outcomes for all students.
• At the school
• Collaborative planning processes enable teachers
  to craft meaningful assessment tasks that will
• activate students knowledge and experiences
• build consistency and align understanding of
  performance levels across grades and divisions
  (e.g. teacher moderation)
• In the classroom
• Learning goals and criteria for success are
  transparent for students and parents (e.g.
  criteria charts, anchor charts, exemplars,
  rubrics)
• Students are able to
• Articulate the learning goals of the task and the
  criteria that will be used to assess their work

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School Effectiveness Indicators

• 4. Curriculum and Instructional Strategies
• There are comparable learning experiences, a
  range of differentiated approaches to instruction
  and required interventions within grades, and a
  continuum of knowledge, skills and learning
  across grades
• At the school
• Collaborative approaches to planning and
  instructional practice are facilitated across all
  grades levels to ensure a continuum of learning
  from Grade 9 to Grade 12
• In the classroom
• Differentiated instruction is designed and
  delivered in a manner that supports student
  achievement in an inclusive classroom setting
• Students are able to
• Enthusiastically and confidently engage in the
  learning process (e.g. use accountable talk, are
  on task, questioning, curious, have ownership for
  their learning/classroom, show pride in their
  work)

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The Three Step Process
School Leadership Team Collaboratively
identifies key areas for focus How will this data
inform my practice?
Feedback
Feedback
First School Visit What are the consistent
patterns across classes? What can students
demonstrate? How will we share this with
teachers? How do we allocate resources
effectively?
Second School Visit What are the consistent
patterns across classes? What can students
demonstrate? Have we moved forward in our
capacity building focus?
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SEF VISIT FEEDBACK
This District Support visit provided the SEF team
and school administration with an opportunity to
scan a sampling of the school in a short period
of time. We were able to classrooms at all grade
levels and with all pathway designations
represented. School staff was welcoming and
provided some insights into the classroom
routines. Students were also very welcoming and
keen to share their ideas and opinions. Thank
you to the school administration for providing
the team with a schedule that allowed for easy
access to classrooms and an opportunity to
debrief throughout the day.
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Evident

• Students are given multiple opportunities to
  practice, apply the new learning
• Students are able to articulate the classroom
  norms and expectations and learning goals

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Focus for Professional Learning

• Although some of the aspects of the
  teaching/learning process listed below, were seen
  in some classrooms, a focus for learning in order
  to build greater consistency of practice across
  all grades and courses is recommended in these
  areas
• Differentiated instruction is designed and
  delivered in a manner that supports student
  achievement
• Tasks are chosen which have a range of entry
  points so that students who have different
  experiences and achievement levels can access the
  intended learning
• Learning goals and criteria for success are
  transparent for students and support student
  learning (criteria charts, anchor charts,
  rubrics)
• Students are able to enthusiastically and
  confidently engage in the learning process (e.g.
  use accountable talk, questioning, inquiry)

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Questions to Consider

• How is student engagement measured?
• How is student understanding and accountability
  monitored in the classroom?
• How is instruction being differentiated based on
  assessment data and the needs of students?
• How are students involved in formative assessment
  and teacher descriptive used to support student
  learning?

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Questions to Consider

• What can we reasonably plan for improving student
  achievement by June 2009?
• What will be our professional learning needs /
  capacity building focus?
• Follow Up Visit May 20, 2009

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Next Steps
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Why We Must Constantly Improve

• Dallas ISD Video Clip
• clip

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Our Differentiated LearnersUnrepresentative
Survey of VSS Students from grades 9-12

• Taken on May 28, 2008
• Janet Atkinson

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Who was surveyed?

• 140 students
• All grades
• Applied/college and university/academic
• grade 12 respondents are all from the college
  stream

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What were they asked?

• They were to self determine their
• 1. best course--the one they feel excited
  being a part of and attending each day
• 2. most challenging coursethe one that gave
  them the least joy

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I have a level 4 in my course

• Boys have level four in their best subjects, but
  not in their most challenging
• Fewer boys attain level four in their best
  subject as they progress through grades
• note that grade 12 is the only grade with no
  academic students surveyed
• students have better marks in their best course
  than in their most challenging
• are the marks the criteria students use to
  determine their best most challenging
  courses? Or does their interest encourage them
  to engage therefore earn higher marks? What
  else counts for them?

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I frequently ask questions and contribute to
discussions in the classroom

• As they move through school, boys ask fewer
  questions and contribute less to discussions
• In most cases, the number of questions and
  contribution to discussion is higher in courses
  where students feel best
• Are there opportunities for discussion in the
  more challenging classes? Is the teaching format
  conducive to student input?
• What other ways do we have to enable students to
  ask questions contribute in class besides
  discussions?

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I frequently use technology in the classroom

• Students were asked about the use of moodle,
  SmartBoards, computers, etc. in their best and
  most challenging classes
• In all cases, students used more technology in
  the classroom in their best class than in their
  most challenging class
• 42 of boys identify technology as part of their
  best course and as only 11-31 of their most
  challenging
• What causes the correlation between technology
  use and best mark? Innovative teaching? Hands
  on, authentic assessments?

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I frequently receive prompt teacher feedback

• Both genders report getting prompt feedback,
  either orally or in writing, more frequently in
  their best course than in their most challenging.
• What constitutes prompt feedback? Are we
  (teachers) as conscientious about returning
  assignments promptly as we are about collecting
  them on time? What other ways can we provide
  feedback?

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I frequently feel my teacher cares about students

• Overall, students were more likely to feel that
  the teacher cared in the best course than their
  worst
• what does caring look like, sound like, feel
  like for boys and for girls? How can we find out?

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I frequently complete homework and assignments on
time

• In all cases, students completed more homework
  and assignments on time in their best class than
  their most challenging
• Are they not completing work in their most
  challenging course because they dont understand
  and/or lost hope/confidence or does their
  understanding lessen because they havent worked?
  

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I have 0-3 absences

• There is remarkable stability in regular
  attendance between best and most challenging
  courses, with students who have good attendance.
• Females have better attendance than males

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I have 10 absences

• Boys are more likely to miss large numbers of
  classes
• There is a positive correlation between boys
  grades and attendance.
• Are boys absent because they are challenged, or
  challenged because they are absent? Are they
  bored? Disengaged?

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What Makes a Classroom Successful for Students?

• Across gender, grades and streams student
  identify a teacher who cares as key to a
  successful classroom in 85 of students.
• Males and females identify teacher feedback as
  2nd key for males and 3rd key piece for females

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What Makes a Successful Classroom

• Girls say
• 86 A teacher who cares
• 79 Teacher feedback
• 72 Feeling appreciated by teacher
• 69 Choice in assignments
• 65 Class discussion
• 60 Group work
• 55 Assignments that seem real
• 51 Learning new things
• 35 Use of technology
• 33 Quiet classroom

• Boys say
• 85 A teacher who cares
• 73 Choice in assignments
• 62 Teacher feedback
• 59 Learning new things
• 58 Feeling appreciated by teacher
• 52 Class discussion
• 56 Group work
• 49 Use of technology
• 48 Fewer tests
• 44 Assignments that seem real

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Where do we go from here?

• The survey results raise many questions that link
  to the SPCI focus on
• Literacy
• Use of technology
• Engagement of students
• Differentiated instruction

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Making Connections

• The data collected from our students links to the
  presentation by Dr. Rumens we need to ask more
  questions of the students in order to understand
  (e.g. When an assignment is not handed in, we
  need to ask the question What happened?) and we
  then need to listen to the answers

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Agenda

• Social and Academic Goals
• Review of the Big Ideas of Differentiated
  Instruction
• Learning Profile Cards
• Tools to Know Your Learners
• Developing a Plan

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Academic and Social Goals

• To deepen our understanding of differentiated
  instruction (DI)
• To develop a plan to get to know our learners
  strengths needs and interests to be able to
  intentionally differentiate instruction
• To invest in our own learning and the learning of
  others

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Our System Goal

• Delivering assessment-based instruction that
  is differentiated to intentionally support the
  strengths, needs and interests of each student to
  improve student achievement and success in all
  subjects and programs
  YRDSB Plan for
  Continuous Improvement

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Big Idea Non Negotiable

• Differentiation is responsive teaching rather
  than one size fits all teaching.

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Big Idea

• Knowing your learner in order to teach them well

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Big Idea Non Negotiable

• Quality differentiation depends on having clear
  curriculum targets
• Differentiation must be an extension of, not a
  replacement for, high quality curriculum.
• Tomlinson, 2000

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Big Idea

• Using varied instructional strategies for
  responding to readiness, interest, and learning
  profiles

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Big Idea Non Negotiable

• Flexible grouping that varies depending on
  readiness, interests and learning profile.

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Differentiating Instruction
is a teachers response to learners needs guided
by
Ongoing assessment and adjustment
Start Here!
Teachers Can Differentiate Through
Process
Product
Content
Environment
according to students
Readiness Start where they are!
Interests -Make it meaningful!
Learning Profile -Build on their strengths!
Based on The Differentiated Classroom - Carol
Ann Tomlinson
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Big Idea Non Negotiable

• On-going assessment and adjustment is essential

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Understanding the Learner

• Students taught in their preferred learning
  styles demonstrated higher levels of achievement,
  showed more interest in the subject matter,
  approved of instructional methods, and wanted
  other subjects to be taught similarly.
• Bell, L. (1986). Learning styles in the middle
  school classroom Why and how. Middle School
  Journal, 18(1), 18 19.

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Learner Profile Cards
Gender Stripe
Auditory, Visual, Kinesthetic Modality
Analytical, Creative, Practical Sternberg
Students Interests
Multiple Intelligence Preference Gardner
Favorite subject
Nanci Smith,Scottsdale,AZ
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Why do we need learning profiles?

• Learning profile refers to how an individual
  learns best - most efficiently and effectively.
• Teachers and their students may
• differ in learning profile preferences.
• Janet Rex ASCD 2009

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Creating the Learner Profile

• Interactive Tools
• V.A.K.
• http//www.usd.edu/trio/tut/ts/stylest.html
• M.I.
• http//www.bgfl.org/bgfl/custom/resources_ftp/clie
  nt_ftp/ks3/ict/multiple_int/questions/questions.cf
  m
• Student Interests/Strengths
• www.careercruising.ca (Matchmaker My Skills)

• Paper Tools
• http//www.e2c2.com/uploads/Learning_Profiles_Rety
  ped.doc
• Karen Humes Start Where They Are CD-ROM
  (permission to copy, share, modify)

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Tools for going deeper
Materials available at www.caroltomlinson.com
www.e2c2.com/fileupload.asp
Karen Humes Start Where They Are
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A New Semester Continued Learning

• How will we know we are on the right track?
• 1. Share with an elbow partner.
• Share in your larger group.
• Pick a spokesperson to share with the whole group.

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Exit Card

• What I like about explicitly getting to know my
  students is
• One question I am asking myself right now about
  DI is
• One support I will require in getting to know my
  students further is