Differentiation and Standardization in the Classroom

TESOL

Language-related lesson modifications, as Peregoy and Boyle (2013) point out, are good ways to allow for differentiation in the classroom, especially when one makes use of "visuals, concrete objects, direct experience, and other nonverbal means to convey lesson content" in conjunction with the lesson of the day (p. 86). For English-language learners, these different means of learning can help to reinforce ideas that might otherwise elude them as a result of the language barrier. Visuals and experiential learner are means of overcoming these obstacles for the student. Likewise, rephrasing information in various ways can help the student to comprehend more fully ideas that he/she might have missed the first go-around. It is another way of reinforcing concepts through repetition and variation. Additionally, planning ahead of time what you as the teacher want to say and how you want to say it could be very helpful and will allow you the opportunity of refining your own speech and speech patterns so that they are more conducive to the needs of the overall classroom and the individual students. Taking students aside who need individual attention is also an acceptable practice when reviewing to ensure that they have followed what you have said and need additional help in understanding the meaning of your words.

Teachers can use technology to enhance differentiation in the classroom in numerous ways: they can use screen technology (TVs or computers) to provide visually stimulating images to reinforce language or word topics; they can use sound technology (CDs, MP3s) to play phonetic recordings over again and again so that students can listen to how words or ideas are said or described; they can use interactive software in order to create a more experiential lesson that allows students to interact directly with the material in a visual manner.

The strategies that I would use to promote language proficiency and how standards would influence my practice are highlighted by Gottlieb (2006), who states that "performance assessment requires a set of well-articulated criteria, grounded in standards that are shared with students, such as through rubrics or scoring guides" (p. 87). As these materials are used over time, again and again, they reinforce for the students the particular standard that is expected of them and give them an idea of what they should be striving toward in their learning and in their assessments. Performance assessment is one such strategy that I would employ over the course of the class in order to promote language proficiency, as it is a method by which students and teachers can better identify where they are succeeding and where they are failing, highlight these areas and focus on specific targets.