The term “differentiated instruction” has been synonymous to K to 12 Curriculum since its implementation barely two years ago. So, what is differentiated instruction? Differentiated Instruction is a process to recognize students’ varying background knowledge, readiness, language, preferences in learning, interests and reactions. In simple words, differentiation or differentiated instruction is a method in which lesson planning and instructions are offered to students with a vast range of techniques to increase their study skills. Differentiated instruction is a method of designing and delivering instruction to best reach each student. Hence, differentiated instruction strategies are necessary for the students to be able to learn.
The first differentiated instruction strategy is to understand that all the students are different. The teacher must recognize the fact that all students have individual differences. All the students differ with each other in size, shape, and social development. Not all students in a classroom learn a subject in the same way or share the same level of ability. Hence, a teacher teaching a lesson in a single way can’t be sure that each student has understood it completely. The teacher has to keep in mind each student interests, preferences, readiness, and needs. Therefore, the teacher must also create a high challenging yet low threatening environment where in each student will be able to gain knowledge and strive towards success.
Next strategy is to know the learner. The teacher must understand all the characteristics of each learners, similarly, the teacher must be able to determine the strengths and uniqueness of a student. Hence, after the teacher is able to understand its student, feedback is necessary to check constantly the level of understanding between the teacher and the students. Pre-assessment is really necessary for the teachers as it guides the teacher about what the student already know, what they want to know, what are they able to learn, and what they need and want to learn. This strategy helps in the learners not getting bored by repeating the same lesson as well as moving into new learning without any past frame of reference.
Further strategy is to design learning activities according to the student’s needs, preferences, past experiences, skills, and knowledge. The teacher must design lessons based on students’ different learning styles using the Multiple Intelligences as guide. Therefore, the teacher also needs to pay attention on how the brain of the student’s work, and how and what should be presented to the class from the lesson. It is necessary to do deep research before putting forward any lesson in front of the learners so as to avoid facing a group of students in the next lesson who didn’t get the point from the previous lesson.
Finally using examples is another good strategy, which explains the lesson to the learners in a particularly familiar standpoint.
With using all the mentioned differentiated instruction strategies, the teacher is able to finish its curriculum with the widest number of learners possible who have their baskets full of knowledge, which was gained by different differentiated instruction strategies in the entire curriculum.
By: Mrs. Ma. Lanie M. Gamit | Teacher II | Mariveles National Highschoo- Poblacion | Mariveles, Bataan
