Reach Your Students by Differentiation

As a teacher you want to give students information in a way that enlightens the broadest audience. Many teacher are now using that buzz word "differentiate" to explain this method. You want to give information in a way that your auditory, kinetic, and visual learners can all gain from the experience. To differentiate instruction, the educator will use a variety of strategies and methods to teach students on varying levels of readiness, while actively engaging them in the process.

We all do not learn the same and neither do your students. A short clip, along with reading a paragraph or two that explains the topics, and then doing an activity giving students hands on experience is one of the most effective ways of teaching. You can also incorporate technology to help reach these different types of learners.

This method is often used with students that have special needs because they may not be able to hear or see. It gives them access to the information in a nontraditional way. But that is not the only time it is used. In a general education classroom, you will have varied learning styles where the same methods can be incorporated. Even if you are home schooling more than one child, you want to differentiate.

There is not always time in the day to incorporate all of the methods at once. In those cases, you can follow up the lesson with a learning style not previously used. Students need to learn and retain more information than ever. We must do all that we can to effective present the information and then allow them to experience what they have heard.

Are Your Students Listening?

Have you ever been talking to your child and are completely convinced that they are not listening to you? Only to discover that they can repeat what you said verbatim. My birth children do this to me all the time and it amazes me that while they seemed so disconnected from the world around them, they are in-tune to what is going on.

My students over the years have displayed many of the same qualities and it makes me think that in more ways than one, we do not give them enough credit! They are complex beings with the ability to multitask. We as adults think that they have to be seated just right with their eyes on the speaker, to be engaged and listening to what is to what is going on. This is not always true.

I have taught students that were autistic and all over the place. Just as my birth children could repeat my instruction or tell me about what the pastor said at a church service, my students could explain and identify the topic and/or strategy that I was trying to convey.

I am learning to not require my students to be in their seat hour upon hour everyday. They have a little flexibility to stand if they need to and don't have to keep their eyes continuously on me. There are rules that all must adhere to, but there is room for small adjustments. This again comes back to knowing your students, everyone may not be able to handle the extra liberties. For those that can, meet them where they are, remembering fairness stresses what is best for the individual child. My students and I are learning together what is acceptable and expedient for all parties.

Parent Involvement

I love to see parents take interest in their child's educational experience. It is so refreshing to see children that have support to help them become more successful students. Someone who is willing to help with homework, come to conferences, and visits the classroom.

It is disheartening to know that there are many parents that would love to do just that but do not have the means/resources for one reason or another. There are parents that need to work as many hours as possible just to keep food on the table. There are others that may not understand the work given due to a language barrier or lack of education themselves.

Are there parents that seem to have misplaced priorities? Sure, there are. In any case, teachers must try to bridge the gap as much as possible, giving extra support as needed.

I once heard that "fair" is not treating everyone the same but making sure that everyone has an opportunity to achieve where they are. Teachers and parents must allow children to achieve where they are with support that is appropriate for the individual child. We must learn to work as a team with the focus on the individual.

Who Do Alternative and Standards of Learning Assessments Benefit?

As a teacher I believe that assessments are an important part of the learning process. There must be an educational goal to work towards and achieve. An assessment is a great way to evaluate what a student has learned as well as give the teacher some sort of structure.

The issues is that some teachers only teach to the test or are required to give an alternative assessment that does not reflect the knowledge of the student.  An alternative assessment is suppose to exhibit the students knowledge in a nontraditional format, traditional being multiple choice. Instead these test consume much of the teachers time and does not benefit the student. It is literally worksheet after after worksheet being forced down their throats.

This process is very frustrating for many teachers because they see the needs of their students but cannot ignore the test.  The needs of the students often fall to the waist-side. There are many days when there is no teaching going on in a classroom at all and students are reduced to busywork.

There is much pressure on teachers to complete and pass these assessments at all cost. These assessments are part of the school's report card and can reflect negatively on the school and/or the school district.

There are so many ways that we could engage our children in learning if this "at all cost" assessment process was eliminated or tweak. We must get back to teaching and giving our students life skills that will benefit well beyond the classroom.