Complexity of Differentiated Instruction

An expert in the field of DI is Carol Ann Tomlinson, a Professor of Educational Leadership, Foundations, and Policy at the University of Virginia. What better place to start than with an expert in the field. I chose Reconcilable Differences? Standards-Based Teaching and Differentiation, an article written by Tomlinson (Educational Leadership 58 no.1, 6-11 Sept. 2000) I accessed it through my membership at ASCD but also found the article through UF libraries online journal (Wilson Web). I cannot link it since it requires a login to access at both sites.

Tomlinson writes, "What we call differentiation is not a recipe for teaching. It is not an instructional strategy. It is not what a teacher does when he or she has time. It is a way of thinking about teaching and learning." Because DI is a way of thinking about teaching and learning, DI is complex. It is not a skill that can be learned quickly and integrated easily. In fact the recommendation is that DI be integrated slowly, one aspect at a time.

The same holds true for educational technology. Edcuational technology is also a way of thinking about teaching and learning. It is easy for schools to buy the latest and greatest software or the latest and greatest hardware; it is extremely difficult to integrate these tools in an effective way so that teaching is enhanced and student learning (achievement) increases.

Through this blog, I plan to investigate ways in which educational technologies can be utilized to differentiate instruction and differentiate assessment in meaningful ways so that student learning is increased in high school science.