Modular Curriculum Leadership course on

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Modular Curriculum Leadership course on
Implementing School-based Gifted Development
Programmes(2005-06) Module 3 Effective
Teaching Strategies to cater for the learning
needs of the gifted in regular classrooms (II)
Tiered Assignments - Provision of Motivations
Ladder for Success?????-????,????Wong Wai
Kin, JoeGifted Education Section, EDB 11 March
2006
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• Gifted Learners Curriculum Differentiation
• In general gifted learners absorb
  material at a faster pace, work well with
  abstractions, make learning connections easily
  and often have interests more like older
  students. As a result they will need to work at
  higher instructional levels, at a faster pace and
  with a variety of materials.
• Curriculum Differentiation is one of
  the approaches which can be used to meet the
  needs
• of the gifted learners.

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• Goal of the Curriculum Differentiation
• Optimization of the potentials and
  talents of
• the gifted students is the goal of the
  Curriculum Differentiation. However, in what
  ways can the Curriculum Differentiation achieve
  this goal?
• Provision of vision and motivation of the gifted
  learners (????,????)
• Provision of a ladder and steps for the gifted
  learners to follow (????,????)

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• Principles of Curriculum Differentiation
• for the Gifted
• Content (what is learned)
• Processes (methods)
• Product
• Learning Environment

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• Principles of Curriculum Differentiation
• for the Gifted
• Content (what is learned)
• based on concepts
• based on knowledge to illustrate abstract ideas
• to challenge students to formulate concepts,
• develop relationships and make applications
• well-organized to facilitate transfer of learning
  
• (within and across disciplines) and
  understanding
• of concepts and generalizations
• greater variety and expansion of regular
  curriculum

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• Principles of Curriculum Differentiation
• for the Gifted
• Processes (methods)
• stress the use rather than acquisition of
  information
• provide opportunities for problem solving and
• creativity
• lead students to higher levels of thinking
• ensure learning is open-ended
• ensure students to give evidence in reasoning
• greater freedom of choice in selection of topics

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• Principles of Curriculum Differentiation
• for the Gifted
• Product
• resemble the products being studied and developed
  
• by the experts in the field
• allow solutions to real problems and presentation
  to real audience
• extend solutions to generalizations
• demonstrate a transformation of information which
• is based on the collection and analysis of
  original
• data rather than a summary of others research

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• Principles of Curriculum Differentiation
• for the Gifted
• Learning Environment
• variety
• flexibility
• warmth and trust
• provision of situations to promote creative and
  divergent thinking
• Retrieved from
• http//www. eddept.wa.edu.au/gifttal/provision
  /provdif1.htm
• on 29 Jan 2006 (Department of Education and
  Training, Government of Western Australia)

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• Ways for differentiating the curriculum
• for the Gifted
• acceleration
• telescoping
• compacting
• independent study
• tiered assignments, and
• learning centres
• Retrieved from http//www.bced.gov.bc.ca/specialed
  /gifted/strategies.htm
• on 5 Jan 2006 (Ministry of Education,
  Government of British Columbia)

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What are Tiered Assignments?

• Tiered assignments are used by teachers
  within a heterogeneous classroom in order to
  meet the diverse needs of the students within the
  class, i.e. the
• regular classrooms.
• (Tomlinson, C.A. (1995) How to Differentiate
  Instruction in Mixed Ability Classrooms,
  Alexandria, VAASCD)
• Sometimes literature refers this
  term to assignments only while sometimes
  literature refers this term to assignments and
  instructions.

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Ways of Tiered Assignments

• Tiered by Products
• Tiered by process
• Tiered by resources
• Tiered by challenge level
• Tiered by complexity
• Tiered by outcomes

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Tiered by Products

• Take into consideration of students multiple
  intelligences
• Allow students to attain the learning goals in
  areas of specialty
• e.g Students present their views on leadership
  in
• the form of a video instead of a written
  report.

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Tiered by process

• Take into consideration of students learning
  styles
• Allow students to attain the same learning goal
  through different means
• e.g. To learn the good and effective reading
  skills
• A To collect information from books on reading
  skills
• B To collect information from interviewing
  successful scholars

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Tiered by resources

• Take into consideration of available resources
• Select resources/skills that students can get
  hold of
• e.g Students search and compile information
  about strengthening our memory through the
  internet
• Teachers arrange talks from experts to
  teach
• students methods of strengthening the
  memory

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Tiered by challenge level

• Grade the assignments at different levels of
  difficulties
• Students progress along with their own abilities
• Can make reference to higher level Questioning
• e.g Students read about growth process of
  tadpoles/frog and present the life cycle in a
  flow chart (comprehension)
• Read the growth process of tadpoles/frog
  and caterpillar
• or butterfly and compare the difference and
  similarities
• (Analysis)
• Investigate into the growth process of
  tadpoles/frog and caterpillar/butterfly and
  identify the significance of each stage in their
  life cycles (Analysis/Evaluation)

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Tiered by complexity

• Grade the assignment into different level of
  complexity
• Allow students to choose the level that is
  commensurate to their abilities
• e.g. Design a booklet to introduce the drug
  abuse
• issue among students
• Design a booklet to introduce
  consequence
• of drug abuse among students and state
  your
• own opinions

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Tiered by outcomes

• Allow students to attain different learning
  outcomes upon the same learning materials
• e.g. Read the Chief Executives Policy Address
• and list all the new initiatives on
  education
• Read the Chief Executives Policy Address
  
• and state the pros and cons of the new
• initiatives on education

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• Features of Tiered Assignments
• Being adopted in a regular classroom of mixed
  ability students
• No pre-identification is needed
• The justification for the adoption of tiered
  assignments is learning-outcomes-oriented
• Common in core content but variations in
  assignments and instructions in depth and
  breadth
• Flexible grouping of students in every lesson.

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• Advantages of Tiered Assignments
• Greater viability
• No pre-identification is needed
• Allow equal opportunities for gifted and
  non-gifted learners
• Provision of equal standpoint of the students
• when they proceed to next lessons and classes
  
• A series of tiered assignments is a
  self-explained tool of identification
• A strategy ready for incorporation with other
  curriculum designs for the gifted.

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Limitations of Tiered Assignments

• Tiered assignments are a strategy of catering the
  learning needs of the gifted in regular
  classroom. Other curriculum designs must be
  introduced when more advanced provision of
  catering is required by the gifted students.

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The role of Tiered Assignments among different
strategies in the Provision of Catering for the
learning needs of the Gifted
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• References on Tiered Assignments
• http//www.bced.gov.bc.ca/specialed/gifted/strateg
  ies.htm
• http//webtech.cherokee.k12.ga.us/littleriver-es/e
  williams/contentsgazettes.htm
• http//www.allenisd.org/learner_services/GT/Bookst
  udy05_files/frame.htmslide0061.htm
• http//www.tvdsb.on.ca/gifted/tiered_assignments.h
  tm
• http//ideanet.doe.state.in.us/exceptional/gt/tier
  ed_curriculum/welcome.html
• http//webtech.cherokee.k12.ga.us/littleriver-es/e
  williams/tieredassignments.htm