Creating the Opportunity to Learn

So I have a new book, by the above title, just in from the ASCD. And it has given me pause to reflect once again. Their emphasis in the title is on 'the' and the authors, A. Wade Boykin and Pedro Noguera, explore the possibility of closing the achievement gap and doing so by addressing the contexts in which the learning take place.

It was with the intention of addressing the learning context of my middle school class that I read with interest earlier this year Carol Ann Tomlinson and Marcia B. Imbeau's book Leading and Managing a Differentiated Classroom. I have tried to recall what we called differentiation when I was going through my initial teacher training. I remember a unit, which failed to engage most of us, called Diagnostic Teaching. The idea being that we would use our teaching to diagnose where students were at and so be able to direct their learning better, creating programs that would meet their learning needs. And all that within the context of the curriculum. So we learned to accommodate and make adaptations to enable our students to be part of the classroom. The focus was not on inclusion per se, more on ensuring their educational progress. Teacher aides were vital for the success of this approach, they would implement what we would write, the worksheets we created for our 'disabled' students, and often mark and assess the students on our behalf. But the reality was that on the whole, we ignored students with differences, those at the top end were often given an extra worksheet to do, those at the bottom were removed for remedial classes. And if we were lucky to be working in a bigger school, then classes were streamed. Either way as teachers we taught a 'homogenised' group in the middle.

Differentiation  has changed our focus. I suspect in response to the inclusive education movement that has permeated the educational landscape in the last 20 years. Differentiation focuses our attention back onto all our students - helping us to understand that differences in our students do matter and that quality teaching makes room for these differences. The one-size-fits-all approach fails significantly for many of the students in our very diverse classrooms. So how is differentiation different?

Tomlinson and Imbeau describe differentiation as a philosophy, a way of thinking about teaching and  learning, a set of principles if you will. And it requires rethinking your classroom practice through an ongoing process of trial, reflection and adjustment. Actually reminds a little bit of action research. The approach brings together Lorna Earl's Assessment as learning approach, the creation of a positive learning environment, a well thought out curriculum (perhaps using McTighe and Wiggins Understanding by Design approach) and of course flexible classroom delivery.

Sounds complex? That is because it is - and one more reason why new teachers truly need a good mentor and extra time to embed good practices in their classroom. Let me explain ...