Supportive Frameworks
An eclectic approach to teaching is often more effective than a purist methodology. Differentiated instruction is no different. It has connections to several leading frameworks. Educational theory has long supported the idea that a learner’s active involvement with the environment enhances learning, and that different people interact with the environment in different ways. Active learning involves the learner in the learning. Several theoretical perspectives support the need for active learning, especially as it relates to differentiated instruction. As discussed earlier in this course, constructivism, the zone of proximal development, and multiple intelligences are among these. Theories of brain-based learning also support the understanding of interactions for learning.
Click on each bar below to review perspectives on how each supportive framework is linked to differentiation.
Constructivism proposes that knowledge is constructed in each person by receiving information in the context of existing knowledge, gained through interaction with the environment. What is learned in each experience depends on what was learned before, with each person's foundation being unique.
Constructive teaching is based on the belief that students learn best when they gain knowledge through exploration and active learning. Hands-on materials are used instead of textbooks, and students are encouraged to think and explain their reasoning instead of memorizing and reciting facts."
(McBrien & Brandt, 1997)
While constructivism is connected to differentiated instruction indirectly, they both honor the individualism of learners and the need to have several pathways to the learning process.
Brain research uses technology such as Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) scans to see what happens in the brain as we feel, think, and solve problems.
The theory of brain-based learning is strongly linked to the field of education. "Teaching without an awareness of how the brain learns is like designing a glove with no sense of what a hand looks like: it's shape, how it moves. If classrooms are to be places of learning, then the organ of learning, the brain, must be understood and accommodated" (Chipongian, n.d., p. 2).
This view discourages standardization of materials, instruction, and practices and encourages individually specific learning where new learning is relevant and meaningful.
Howard Gardner's Theory of Multiple Intelligences validates the need to tap into a broader range of instructional methods to reach a diversity of student intelligences.
When focusing instruction solely on the intelligences that fit into the academic realm (primarily 'word smart' and 'logic smart'), only the 'logic smart' and 'word smart' students would experience success, whereas the students whose intelligences were not stimulated would not learn as well.
Many teachers base both teaching strategies and assessment on the model of multiple intelligences. Often teachers develop student profiles to help identify and support different kinds of intelligences.
Relationships
Because differentiation is a way of thinking about teaching and learning, rather than a set of instructional strategies, it compels teachers to constantly scan their classrooms in order to persistently know where students are in relation to learning objectives.
In the differentiated classroom, the most important framework is the relationship between teacher and student. The teacher must have a strong connection with each student not only because this will help to pinpoint the students’ level of mastery, but because meaningful interaction between the teacher and the student is a precursor to effective academic learning (Huberman, 1983).
You cannot have a relationship with, or make things relevant for, or expect rigor from a kid you don’t know.”
(Littkey, 2004)
Young learners are motivated and engaged by a variety of conditions. Among these are:
- novelty
- cultural significance
- personal relevance or passion
- an emotional connection
- the potential to make a contribution or link with something greater than self
(Adapted from Tomlinson, 2003)
It isn’t possible to know what holds cultural significance, personal relevance, or an emotional connection for a student, without building a strong relationship that includes trust and the ability to communicate at a personal level.