Mr. Killip's Teaching Blog

If there is one topic you would be guaranteed to hear in any teaching interview, it would be differentiated instruction. Simply put, differentiated instruction boils down to a teacher’s plan to manage different learning styles and abilities within a mixed-ability classroom. By the way, regardless of how “accelerated” or “remedial” any class is, all classes are mixed ability classrooms.

There are many ways a teacher can work to meet these different needs, including individualized work, flexible learning products, student-designed assessments (with teacher input), and peer collaboration and teaching. Focusing on the last item in that non-inclusive list, consider a grade in which there is no accelerated math program.

In terms of rough grade level, in a fifth grade class you might have students approaching seventh grade in ability through those who are one or more years behind their peers. Many times, this wide range is strongly influenced by the wide range of cognitive development that begins to show more prominently during early middle school. Imagine those students at a higher level teaching and working with the students who are struggling math learners. Would those students be held back? Would it be fair to them? Would the struggling learners feel comfortable accepting help from their peers?

These are all questions that are asked anytime ability grouping becomes a topic for discussion among a school community, and they are fair questions. The answers to them depend largely on a teacher’s own philosophy and the care with which they have set up a positive and supportive learning environment. In thinking about the value of differentiation in a mixed-ability classroom, consider this quote by William Glasser:

“We learn 10% of what we read, 20% of what we hear, 30% of what we see, 50% of what we see and hear, 70% of what is discussed with others, 80% of what we experience personally, and 95% of what we teach to others.”

I’m always thinking of this quote when I think of the difference between a student who knows how to multiply and a teacher who possesses the same knowledge. By communicating what we know to others, we are simultaneously deepening our own understanding. I can think of no more powerful a learning result than that.

Mr. K

In today’s economic climate, educators are forced to find ways around shortages in teaching aides and replenishment of materials such as textbooks. In fact, it often seems as if the only surplus a teacher has is of things to accomplish each day.

If there is one subject where a teacher’s resourcefulness is routinely tested more than any other, it is science. Especially during the elementary and middle school years, one cannot simply learn scientific concepts and develop meaningful skills by reading about them out of books. This usually results in many hours of rummaging through junk drawers at home, and scouring the supply closets at school – all in the spirit of finding valuable materials for hands-on science experiences. Reading is still important, especially when research skills are being taught, but the reading must be coupled with experiments and discussion that drive scientific inquiry.

Having an entire classroom’s worth of new laptops for kids to use is not a luxury that many educators south of 7th grade have. For the past year, however, fifth graders in Cape Elizabeth have enjoyed just that. Besides providing expected benefits such as word processing and internet research, the laptops have catapulted students far beyond anything possible in the textbook world. Having used the machines over forty times in lessons this year myself, I have seen the awesome power of developing minds growing through the use of innovative software and online experiences.

The program Inspiration has allowed students of all ability levels the opportunity to organize research into webs or traditional outlines. Explore Learning’s web-based “gizmos” have allowed kids to conduct virtual science experiments with topics ranging from energy and scientific method to building electrical circuits – all without purchasing costly materials or separate textbooks for each student. Webquests and numerous other online experiences have also been used to broaden students’ science experience. In math, students have even designed and built spreadsheets using Excel to plan monthly expenses and graph spending and savings.

A former colleague and school librarian once told me that there was no such thing as an old book, just one that needed to be rebound. It is quite possible, with the ever-increasing usage of electronic media, that there eventually will be no such thing as a new book. Cape Elizabeth is a community that is fortunate enough to have a significant base of external resources available to supplement our schools’ needs. By supporting the use of technology in the classroom, we are not only solving the problem of replacing outdated print materials, but we are also preparing our students for success in an electronic world.

“Billy Corgan, Smashing Pumpkins.”

“Homer Simpson, smiling politely.”

Yes, teachers unwind after long and stressful days. As I listen to rather loud music (yes, the Smashing Pumpkins) I am reminded of the above exchange which combines my love of rock music with my equal love of humor. Bonus points if you can tell me which Simpsons episode those lines are from.

I digress. What I really wanted to share with everyone is a website which I have encountered while working on my current graduate course. The course is on “exceptionality”, which is teacher-speak for those students who don’t normally fit a traditional mold of learning (be it low, middle, or high-achieving students). A core focus of the course is using each student’s strengths in terms of learning style in order to maximize their learning. While there have been many different presentations of how the human brain best acquires information (i.e. how the brain “learns”), I believe this web site presents a good summary of several main types. If you are familiar with the work of Howard Gardner, this assessment might seem a bit similar, at least in approach.

Gardner, who is famous for describing the theory of multiple intelligences, proposes that there are many modes in which a person learns. These include linguistic intelligence, interpersonal (social) intelligence, intrapersonal (self) intelligence, and even musical intelligence.

The site I have linked below breaks learning style into several categories: visual, aural, verbal, physical, logical, social, and solitary. The same site contains more detailed descriptions of each style. If you take the online version of the test (which is 70 questions long and takes about 20-30 minutes to complete), the results display a map which will give you an idea of where you stand in comparison to some averages. I encourage you to try this free test at home, as it can provide some interesting insight to your particular learning style. I have printed the .pdf version for a few of my students and they responded well to knowing more about themselves than they were perhaps aware.

At any rate, the link is pasted below, and feel free to comment on your own results as you try the test out. I’ll share my own in a later post:

http://www.learning-styles-online.com/inventory/questions.asp

(you’ll have to copy/paste the address into your browser window)