How do we differentiate?

HOW?

This page focuses on HOW we differentiate.

We explore the concept of the zone of proximal development as a tool to help us differentiate work to meet individual student needs. We consider the four principles of differentiated teaching and learning as described in the IB Approaches to Teaching and Learning and apply these to our day-to-day work in the classroom.

“In the medical field, the first thing we do is take the patient’s temperature and diagnose what treatment will be most effective. In education, we tend to teach all students in the same way, give them the same treatment, and at times, diagnose at the end of the school year the extent to which that treatment was effective.”(Andreas Schleicher, Director for Education and Skills, OECD: World Class - How to build a 21st century school system page 16)

Key concept: Zone of Proximal Development

All students have a current level of knowledge and understanding. This is what they know, understand and can do without any support. However, there is an area just beyond this which is just out of their reach at the moment. The Russian developmental psychologist Lev Vygotsky (1962-1978) called this the zone of proximal development. Although it is just beyond their reach at the moment they can know, understand and do these things if they have scaffolded support. This is the area of learning for them. It will be different or each student. If you can identify what each individual student can do and cannot at the moment do you can start planning your differetiated strategies.

A german pedagogist by the name of Tom Senninger used the following three terms to explain the ZPD:

  • the pupil's comfort zone: things they can do and they do not feel challenged
  • the pupil's learning zone or stretch zone: this is where pupils feel challenged but enabled to take risks and learn
  • the pupil's panic zone: this is where pupils are pushed too far, they panic and cannot do something.

Watch the following sort video on Vygotsky. Identify the key ideas and consider how these relate to your classrooms.

"In order to learn we must be presented with tasks that are just out of reach of our present abilities."

  • Before we think about our students apply the concept of zone of proximal development to ourselves. How has our ZPD changed in a particular area of learning? Think of a time when you learnt something - consider the steps.
  • Now consider a small number of students you teach. How might their ZPD be different in relation to a particular piece of learning? You could draw a continuum chart: at one end (which you may number 1) you place a student who has very poor knowledge and understanding of what you are about to teach. At the other end (which you may number 10) you place a student who already has a very good knowledge and understanding of a subject that you are about to teach. Consider why they may be in different places
  • How do you effectively judge each students' zone of proximal development?
  • What benefits come from accurately judgeing each students' zone of proximal development?

Apply scaffolding as a differentiating technique

Pick an activity you have recently used in a lesson.

  • How did you assess prior knowledge of the pupils.
  • Consider how you could scaffold the activity in different ways for different students in order to support them at their point of need. You can work on your own or with a partner.
  • How would you explain (a) differentiation, and (b) scaffolding to a parent?

Appy questioning as a differentiating technique

When, or how, does a question become differentiated? Pick an activity you are about to teach.

  • Use Bloom's taxonomy to help you create differentiated questions. Use the list of action verbs for questions that you can find HERE.
  • Bloom's taxonomy is hierarchical with each level being more challening that the last. As students successfully move up the taxonomy they come to master the content. Using the taxonomy enables you to call on these inherent features to differentiate your questions for individuals and groups within your class.

HOW to differentiate

Differentiated strategies

This SEC Ed briefing considers a four-step teaching sequence to aide differentiation, using Bloom's Taxonomy, mastery learning approaches and creating the right classroom environments for learning.

This is part 2 on differentiation

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