Differentiated Instruction: Brain Science and Learning Styles

Introduction: The Case for Differentiation

It seems remarkable, even in the second decade of the 21st century, that differentiating curriculum and instruction for different students still requires justification by neurological research. Yet this is precisely the case. For reasons that extend beyond the scope of this essay, policymakers of the era continue to insist that "one size fits all" in the classroom, making it necessary to bring neurological data to bear in challenging the status quo. One might ruefully compare it to trying to teach evolutionary theory to a class of committed creationists — a situation in which one can hardly understand where things went wrong when the evidence is so clearly on one side.

Differentiated instruction is the educational philosophy that instruction must be adapted to meet the varied needs, readiness levels, and learning profiles of individual students. Despite strong support from both neuroscience and social learning theory, its widespread adoption has faced considerable resistance from those who favor standardized, uniform approaches to teaching.

Sousa and Tomlinson's Framework for Differentiated Learning

The authors of Differentiation and the Brain: How Neuroscience Supports the Learner-Friendly Classroom make precisely this point: for diverse learners, increased effort is required to differentiate instructional approaches, personalize support for students, and improve their performance and outcomes. In chapter one, the authors establish that the instructor must be centered on the learner — a principle that may sound obvious but is far from universally practiced. This environment must be genuinely inviting for the learner.

The second non-negotiable principle is that the instructor needs to clearly identify what information is essential for the student to know and absorb. Third, the teacher must frequently assess how effectively this information is being received by the student. Fourth, once this assessment data is analyzed, gaps in student knowledge are identified and factored into planning future lessons. Sousa and Tomlinson call this approach "teaching mindfully" — accepting that differentiation is a mindset, not merely a technique, that must be present both when teaching and when preparing to teach (Sousa & Tomlinson, 2010, p. 9).

So how does one put theory into practice? Sousa and Tomlinson offer a structured model. It begins with the assertion that the prime directive of differentiation is that curriculum is the teacher's response to the student. Teachers must also believe in their students' capacity to learn. Once this foundation is established, five principles should be put into play:

Principles of Differentiated Instruction in Practice

A. Work in the differentiated classroom is respectful of the student.
B. Curriculum is rooted in the critical ideas of the discipline being taught.
C. Teachers need to be flexible in grouping students together for learning.
D. Teachers use ongoing assessments.
E. The learning environment supports students in taking the "risk" of learning (Sousa & Tomlinson, 2010, pp. 10–12).

A brief review of recent scholarly literature further supports the conclusions reached by Sousa and Tomlinson. With contemporary classrooms becoming increasingly diverse, teachers and school administrators are actively seeking new approaches to teaching and learning in order to serve the full range of student learning profiles. Differentiated instruction is the approach gaining the most traction among educators. Subban's model proposes rethinking the structure, content, and management of the diverse classroom, inviting all stakeholders to engage in the process for the common benefit of everyone. Subban notes that, even as this model gains acceptance, there remains room for developing theory to give it greater momentum (Subban, 2006, pp. 935–937).

Conclusion

Catering to diverse students increases the amount of learning that takes place in the classroom. This is backed up by both cognitive and social learning evidence and can be accepted with certitude as a constant in the educational process.