September/October 2002 | NW REPORT

Differentiated Instruction

Taps Learning

"Differentiated instruction begins with a core belief that all students can learn," say the editors of Northwest Teacher in the Spring 2002 issue, "Targeting Learning With Differentiated Instruction."

"Educators everywhere are striving to raise standards and expectations for all students," they say. "At the same time, schools and classrooms are becoming more diverse and inclusive. Identifying and responding to students' unique learning needs have become both essential and extremely challenging. Differentiating instruction is a tool that can help teachers rise to this challenge."

Differentiating instruction doesn't mean adapting a lesson for each pupil in a classroom. It means creating a lesson that presents students with varied experiences and choices in content, process, and products that take into account their readiness, interests, and learning profiles.

Through varied learning experiences that tap a student's interests, extend her abilities, and allow her to make some of her own choices, the student can select from multiple "entries" into a subject and multiple ways to master the concepts and skills involved.

The introductory article, "Designs of Difference," highlights a model for differentiating instruction. Other articles include, "Anatomy of Learning In Middle School Science," "Visual Math for the Mind's Eye," "The Lingua Franca of Science and Math," and "Looking for the Furrowed Brow: Helping Math Strugglers Succeed."

Two columns point readers to print and online resources and materials.

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