GETTING REAL ABOUT DIFFERENTIATED
INSTRUCTION
Agata Kula, Delving into Depth Studies (2014)
John D. Clare
If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is
because he hears a different drummer.
Henry David Thoreau
I have found very little on the practical down-to-earth, doingit-in-the-classroom strategies for differentiation, especially in
History.
John D Clare
***CLARE, JOHN D. (2004), 'Differentiation', at Greenfield
School Website
(http://www.greenfield.durham.sch.uk/differentiation.htm)
Agenda
What is Differentiation?
 Getting your classroom routines and curriculum
‘differentiation ready!’ the ‘How’
 Dimensions of Differentiation and Practical
Examples using Three Tier Lessons for Individual
Teachers.
Basically how to embed different entry points and
consider student readiness for learning in a realistic and
results orientated fashion.
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My Influences
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My Context – IGS, Cconnect, GRIN/GRIN
Thomas the TankEngine Experiment
Carol Tomlinson
Robert Marzano
Marzano and Kendall (2007), The New Taxonomy
of Educational Objectives
http://www.diffcentral.com/
My Students
VAK (instead of Multiple Intelligences)
Explicit Teaching, Responsive Teaching and Feedback
Why?
… I also teach Plato to nurses aides, soldiers, ex-cons, pre-school
music teachers, janitors, Sudanese refugees… Traditionally the
liberal arts have been privilege of an upper class… I recently
got a letter from a former student, a factory worker, thanking me
for introducing him to Schopenhauer. I was surprised, because I
hadn’t assigned the German pessimist. The letter explained that
I’d quoted some lines from Schopenhauer in class, and they’d
sparked my student’s imagination…. he wrote me a long letter of
thanks for inadvertently turning him on to a kindred mind…The
fire will always be sparked. Are we going to fan it, or try to
extinguish it?
Scott Samuelson, “Why I Teach Plato to Plumbers.” The Atlantic 29 April
2014.
So… is this the idea?
Differentiation? What it is, What it is
not.
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If I were to differentiate this PD I would get some of you to answer questions, other
to criticise my presentation and others to construct an interpretive dance regarding
AusVELS progression points.
High Achievers do not require differentiation
Differentiation is just for students on a modified list, for example, with SLD
Differentiation can address various learning goals
Differentiation always includes pretesting
Differentiation means doing more/less work
Differentiation always means providing content that students find interesting
Differentiation is for all year levels P-12
Differentiation means having three lesson plans for each lesson every time
Saying to kids – its ok not to have a go at the final task
Differentiation allows students to work in one preferred way all of the time
Getting kids to make a pyramid in an Ancient Egypt class which examines the social
hierarchy of Ancient Egypt is differentiation
When in doubt teach up (a level slightly higher than the student is ‘capable of’)
Tomlinson and Allan (2000), Leadership for
Differentiating Schools and Classrooms
My definition…
An approach to learning and teaching in which the
delivery of the learning intentions allows for multiple
pathways into the same learning intention to help
students move closer to expected levels used with
other instructional approaches.
“Curriculum tells us what to
teach. Differentiation tells us
how.”
Carol A. Tomlinson
A definition…
So Go! Differentiate!
NOW you are ready to differentiate! So how? Most
PD ends here…
Before you abandon the curriculum…
“There is no contradiction between effective standards
based instruction and differentiation. Curriculum tells
us what to teach. Differentiation tells us how.”
Carol A. Tomlinson
differentiationcentral.com
However, you do need to control it
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Guaranteed and Viable Curriculum (Robert Marzano, What Works in
Schools: Translating Research into Action) before you delve into depth
studies.
The research indicates that there is greater within school variability than
between school variability (Harvard Graduate School of Education).
Opportunity to Learn (OTL) has the strongest relationship with student
achievement of all school-level factors identified by Marzano (2000).
Curriculum mandated at State and Federal Level is overcrowded
Marzano estimates 23 years to adequately cover US K12 curricula
McREL identified 200 standards and 3,094 benchmarks in national and
state level documents for 14 subject areas (Kendall and Marzano, 2000).
To deliver this one would need 15,465 hours (Marzano, Kendall and
Gaddy, 1999) – lets not forget that not all classroom time is instructional
either. Marzano estimates teachers have 9,042 hours available to deliver
the 15, 465 hours of content.
Solution
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Whole Team: “Organised
Abandonment” (Rick DuFour)
Marzano suggests in Schools
That Work: Identify and
communicate essential content
versus supplementary content
for those seeking postsecondary education. This is
whole team differentiation.
The Compass – less but better
Solution
Solution
Solution – Be Like Truman! :/
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Individual: identify key objective linked to each
lesson and clearly communicate to students.
When the door of your classroom closes YOU are
the educational system.
Routine 3: Differentiate when it
makes sense and be strategic!
Routine 1: Pretesting
Routine 1: Pretesting
Routine 1: Pretesting
Routine 1: Pretesting – Readiness for
Learning
Data Collected by the School and Data Collected by
You
Examples
 On Demand/NAPLAN
 Pre-tests for units of study
 Post-tests of units of study
 Formative assessment measures
BUT it does not have to be that formal!!!
Routine 1: Pretesting – Readiness for
Learning
Routine 1: Pretesting – Readiness for
Learning
Routine 1: Pretesting
The most effective pre-testing occurs in the classroom as a
regular part of the teaching program. These are routines which
are in place to assess the ‘temperature’ of the classroom…
Examples
 Mats
 Ball of Pain
 Caesar Salute
 True/False cards
 Spot book checks and workshops
 Traffic Lights
 Ask questions while you complete the roll
Routine 1: Pretesting
Routine 1: Pretesting
Not a summary of what you did at the beginning of
class but ask kids what have you learnt?
Golden rule:
Everything a student says or does IS assessment.
“Become an assessment junkie.” (Tomlinson and
Stirckland).
Routine 1: Building Confidence
Routine 1: Pretesting
Routine 1: Pretesting – Learning Profile
VAK – moving beyond learning styles to sensory receivers
– thus focusing on reception rather than expression.
Learners use all three to receive and learn new info
(focus of MI has traditionally been on output of
students and this is where this is different; there is no
evidence that this improves retention).
Preference NOT fixed.
K-3: K, 4-8: V, 8+and VCE: A
According to VAK theorists we need to use all three.
And you already do it!
Add this to your PRP and interviews!
Routine 2: Making the learning
intention clear and tracking
Before you can provide different entry points for learning
you have to make explicit what is at level and what the
learning intention is for everyone.
If it doesn’t match your learning intention its not
differentiation.
Kids have to track that learning intention and their
movement towards it as much as you do.
Example
 Capacity Matrix
 Entry and Exit Cards
Routine 2: Entry/Exit Cards
Routine 2: Capacity Matrix
Manage student reactions before they
happen if using Tiered Approach
As Tomlinson (1999) so aptly states,
“Assessment always has more to do with
helping students grow than with
cataloguing their mistakes.”
Think about sequence of History
• Vocabulary
• Historical
knowledge
• Sources and
perspectives
• Structure
Think about sequence of History
Marzano and Kendall New Typology
of Educational Objectives
• Vocabulary - Retrieval
• Historical knowledge Comprehension
• Sources and perspectives - Analysis
• Structure – Knowledge Utilisation
Marzano and Kendall (2007), The New Taxonomy of Educational Objectives
Bloom-Marzano Hybrid (2012).
Routine 3: Find a strategy to suit it
• By Assessment
• Kula (2014) typology of historical education: vocabulary, historical
knowledge, source and perspectives (using sources to make an
argument), structure
Level 1: Contestability Table sources regarding Hiroshima
Level 2: Essay Hiroshima with or without sentence starters
Level 3: Student participates in Simpson Prize.
Contestability Table
Source Timeline
Routine 3: Find a strategy to suit it
• By entry point student readiness/Flexible Grouping
• Kula (2014) typology of historical education: vocabulary, historical
knowledge, source and perspectives (using Point Evidence Explain
(PEE) to identify and explain the main message of a source), structure
Level 1: Procedural Activity
Level 2: Declarative Activity (Marzano) – retention and ability to apply to
new contexts
Sentence Starters
Sentence Starters
Routine 3: Flexible Grouping
Routine 3: Point Evidence Explain
Routine 3: PEE (Point, Evidence, Explain)
The main point of the source titled ________________ is
________________________________. Evidence of this is
_______________________________________________. This source
does/does not fit with other sources from the period, for example,
______________, which states that ___________________________.
Ability Grouping…
Robert Slavin (1986).
-Grouping students as a class by ability for all
subjects does not improve achievement.
Finding: within class ability groups work (although
more so for low achievers than average or high).
Robert Slavin, Achievement Effects of Ability Grouping in Secondary Schools.
MAKE IT CLEAR THAT IT IS FOR THIS TASK
Routine 3: Find a strategy to suit it
• Tiered Lesson – by activity (‘typical idea’)
• Kula (2014) typology of historical education: vocabulary, historical
knowledge, source and perspectives, structure
All students listen to PPT regarding key terms. Post Test.
Level 1: students provided with a cloze activity.
Level 2: Marzano Table
Level 3: Create a paragraph regarding X which utilises each of the
vocabulary terms to predict what this area of study might be about. Next
create a Marzano table of antonyms of each word (for example,
Revolution/Status Quo).
Routine 3: Marzano Table
Routine 3: Find a strategy to suit it
• No Differentiation
• Kula (2014) typology of historical education: vocabulary, historical
knowledge, source and perspectives (using sources to make an
argument), structure
Explain Harvard Project Zero circle of viewpoints. Students THINK, PAIR,
SHARE.
No Differentiation Today.
Routine 3: Find a strategy to suit it
• Tiered using time
• Kula (2014) typology of historical education: vocabulary, historical
knowledge, source and perspectives (using sources to make an
argument), structure
Differentiate time.
Level 1: More time; hand in next class (open book)
Level 2 and 3: Hand in at end of class (closed book)
Routine 3: Find a strategy to suit it
• Tiered using resources
• Kula (2014) typology of historical education: vocabulary, historical
knowledge, source and perspectives (using sources to make an
argument), structure
Differentiate resources.
Level 1: Appropriate internet site focus on (Who, What, Where, Why and
When OR Big Fox Template).
Level 2: Textbook and Wikipedia Student (simple.wikipedia.org).
Level 3: Textbook and extension reading (student selects).
Level 4: Student creates own resource example
Routine 3: Find a strategy to suit it
• Tiered using time
• Kula (2014) typology of historical education: vocabulary, historical
knowledge, source and perspectives (using sources to make an
argument), structure
Level 1: Just Literal Questions
Level 2: Literal and Evaluative
Level 3: Literal, Evaluative and Analytical
**** Many texts are already structured in this manner. Just watch that
matches learning intention.
Student critiques a resource
Student critiques of historical
perspectives/historians
Routine 3: Find a strategy to suit it
Routine 3: Find a strategy to suit it
• The things that take a LOT of time…
• Differentiation complexity in Assessments. Lesson: Slave Trade.
• Differentiation complexity in an Exam. Lesson – Literal, Evaluative,
Analytical.
• Best done in teams.
Routine 3: Find a strategy to suit it
Routine 3: Find a strategy to suit it
Routine 3: Find a strategy to suit it
Routine 3: Find a strategy to suit it
Routine 3: Find a strategy to suit it
Key Learnings
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DO LESS BETTER – in reference to time
At point of need differentiation works best with our students especially in terms
of formative assessment.
Learning Intentions need to be clear for differentiation to occur.
Our students need explicit modelling so a variety of different tasks is not
necessarily advantageous.
Celebrate successes.
Encourage students to extend themselves and allow them to move between
groups.
Be realistic about what at level actually looks like and communicate to
students.
Do lots of testing – informal and formal.
Whole class activities are ok – differentiate when needed not just because it is
expected (be sure to meet learning objective).
Throw out the rule book and make sure whatever you do is actually viable.
Network – Western Suburb
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Networking Opportunities.
Please email AKU to receive invites and updates:
kula.agata.a@edumail.vic.gov.au .
Teaching Takeaways
And…