Assignment:
Now that you have been introduced to the broad framework of becoming a culturally competent teacher, it is your challenge to make the connection between differentiating and the prospective impact this concept has in making learning experiences more of a success for students in diverse classrooms.
Watch the following video:
JCPSEmployee. (2012, September 13). Seven Principles for Culturally Responsive Teaching and Learning
The video refers to the ideologies of becoming a culturally responsive teacher and explores the Seven Principles of Culturally Responsive Teaching.
View the short and informative video, then respond to these questions in relation to the video and your personal experiences in your Discussion Post:
What would you identify as an important outcome of building relationships with your students while focusing on a culturally inviting environment that is physically safe, while also providing an engaging and positive learning experience considering your personal experience as a student, any professional experiences, and your current and past higher-education based learning, are the Seven Principles of Culturally Responsive Teaching theory realistic or idealistic? Be sure to support your opinion with scholarly citations in APA format both in the body of your post and at its conclusion.
Required Resources
Required Text
Puckett, K (2013). Differentiating Instruction: A Practical Guide [Electronic version].
1. A Conceptual Framework of Differentiation
2. Theoretical Foundations of Differentiation
Multimedia
JCPSEmployee. (2012, September 13). Seven Principles for Culturally Responsive Teaching and Learning
Websites
1. For the teachers
2. Screencast-O-Matic.
3. VoiceThread
4. Voki
5. YouTube
Recommended Resources
Articles
1. Garden City Public Schools. (n.d.). Differentiated instruction brochure
2. Microsoft Office. (n.d.). Office templates.
3. Swanson, J. (n.d.). How to make a business pamphlet.
4. Tomlinson, C. (n.d.). Strategies for managing a differentiated classroomPreview the document.
5. Uzayr, S. (2012, March 13). Top 10 free online blogging platforms.
Websites
GoogleDocs: Template Gallery
1. SchoolRack
2. Weebly
3. WordPress
Discussion Board
The first week of class we will look at constructivism which is a foundation for differentiated instruction. Piaget, as described by Von Glaserfeld (1982), defines constructivism as a process by which students learn by constructing knowledge for themselves. In this theory, students don't really learn just from hearing or reading something. They must make that new information fit into their own set of experiences and prior learning and thereby construct new knowledge. This theory makes sense when we think about the idea of context, or how things become more important when they are placed in a context that helps us to learn and remember things.
There is a webpage of examples to help you create a constructivist classroom that you are strongly encouraged to explore Characteristics of Constructivist Learning & Teaching (Murphy, 2009) on your own; however, here is a brief summary of suggestions provided:
Make sure you can answer the question "Why are we doing this?" for each lesson objective because your students are going to ask you for real-world relevance; without it, they will be less engaged and involved in the activity.
Formative and summative assessments should be relevant and applicable outside of the classroom. In addition, students should be able to self-assess their work in order to reflect on personal and academic improvement
Students need to be taught the intrinsic value of education, which is reinforced through a student-centered problem-solving approach.
Most instruction should be student-led with teachers serving more as a ‘guide on the side' than a ‘sage on the stage'
References
Kohn, A. (1996). Beyond discipline: From compliance to community. Alexandria, Va.: ASCD.
Murphy, E. (1997, June 1). Characteristics of constructivist learning & teaching. Characteristics of Constructivist Learning & Teaching.
Cockroft, B. (2014, June 10). Differentiation strategy- classroom management
Southwest Educational Development Laboratory (1995). Classroom compass: Constructing knowledge in the classroom
Von Glaserfeld, E. (1982). An interpretation of Piaget's constructivism