Week 6 Assignment

Differentiated Learning and Teaching

Marcus Coleman

Dr. Sherry Leialoha-Waipa

Differentiated Learning and Teaching

The Common Core State Standards Initiative refers to a standard-based educational reform adopted by the District of Columbia and 45 U.S states. This reform anchors both primary and secondary education across all these states by following the set standards. All students are thus prepared for further learning with the aim of working tirelessly in the competitive global economy regardless of their social stratification.

Puckett (2013) indicates that the purpose of the Common Core State Standard’s conception is to use the high standards, which are consistent across states to set clear expectations that guarantee every student success in his/her career, and in future regardless of where they come from. It further provides teachers, parents, and students with equal opportunities because these standards are aligned to workforce training programs, colleges, and employers. The standards further promote equity by ensuring that students can compete with their peers in the U.S. and abroad.

The academic impact the Common Core State Standards is that they enable collaboration among states with regard to educational issues. It uses a range of tools such as textbooks, digital media, and other educational materials to enhance education to students from different social backgrounds(Puckett, 2013). The Common Core State Standards impacts education by aiding in the development of tools and other support materials that assists teachers and ensure that students acquire new standards of education. They also aid in the development and implementation of essential educational and assessment standards that help improve the educational standards of most students. They help teachers to employ testing systems that measure the performance of the students on yearly basis (Puckett, 2013). Most importantly, they also give teachers specific feedback that helps determine whether students are on the right track or not.

Additionally, the standards impact teachers by providing a benchmark that is consistent to guaranteeing that students are on the right path. They provide teachers with unswerving prospects or outlooks for students who have opted to move from one district to another. They further encourage professional development programs that prepare teachers to collaborate with other teachers across the country as they come up with curricula, assessment, and learning materials associated with high-quality education.

A description of the Standards for Mathematics and English Language Arts indicates that English language arts and math were the chosen subjects for the Common Core State Standards. This is because these subjects build the core foundation of other subjects. A student has to acquire listening skills, improve on his/her language effectively, be able to read and write in various content areas for career and college enthusiasm in manifold disciplines. Grade-specific K-12 standards in speaking, reading, writing and language translate to the broader aim of the CCR standards. The standards champions the requirements not only for learning English language art (ELA) but it also advocates for literacy in social studies, technical subjects and sciences.

How differentiated instruction is an essential strategy for the CCSS remains a very important question. The Common Core State Standards outline laborious content expectations with the aim of ensuring that college students are ready for their career development as they complete their 12th grade. According to Pierce et al. (2009), “Differentiated instruction is an essential strategy for the CCSS because it emphasizes on the larger end-goal.” Since CCSS focuses on English/Language Art and Standards for Mathematics, the strategy remains supportive of teachers through differentiating instructions with the aim of ensuring that all students have equal opportunities to realize their overreaching achievement goals.

Differentiated instruction decisions made by teachers focus on three major areas: positive learning environment; formative assessment data; and research-based instructional approaches. The most important part is that by applying the differentiated instruction, it helps in the implementation process of the Common Core State Standards to define differentiated instruction as an approach for making decisions(Pierce et al.2009). These decisions are essential to the curriculum and learning differences as a positive approach.

Some of the effective differentiated strategies, tools, or activities that will support teacher’s implementation of the CCSS for Mathematics include:

a) Identification and supporting of student who need further assistance;

b) Websites and IPAD apps that assist students to apply math concepts;

c) Organized, proven; and manageable classroom proven strategies during math learning sessions;

d) Tips and methods that make math instructional time and support more valuable; and finally

e) Hands-n math activities that enable the participation of all students to improve problem-solving skills(Pierce et al. 2009).

Some of the differentiated strategies, tools, or activities that will support teacher’s implementation of the CCSS for English Language Arts are:

a) Reading approaches whereby: everyone reads a similar text, build skills to cite evidence, and provide their own choices and discourage able writers.

b) Writing strategies whereby: everyone writes a similar essay, circumvent able writers, and build communication and grammar skills.

c) Writing and reading approaches whereby: one meets the literacy needs, and spark creative thinking.

Finally, in an analysis of how differentiation can be applied to teaching in the classroom, it is vital to note that differentiated instructions acts as an instructional theory(Pierce et al. 2009). The theory enables teachers to face numerous challenges by considering various student factors when offering instructions and planning educational sessions. Teachers are capable of structuring learning environments that consider diverse abilities, interest, and learning approaches with the classroom.

References

Latz, A. O., SpeirsNeumeister, K. L., Adams, C. M., & Pierce, R. L. (2009). Peer Coaching to Improve Classroom Differentiation: Perspectives from Project CLUE. Roeper Review, 31(1), 27-39.

Puckett, K (2013). Differentiating Instruction: A Practical Guide.San Diego, CA: Bridgepoint Education.