Teachers’ Experiences of a Professional Development Program for Differentiated Instruction

Abstract

Differentiated Instruction (DI) is considered as the teaching approach that builds upon children's differences in order to address them and consequently lead each and every child to academic success. Although DI seems to be an effective teaching approach, teachers' perceptions and/or misconceptions, as well as unsuccessful attempts of implementation, constrain its inclusion in everyday practice. Therefore, the need for appropriate and effective Professional Development programs (PDp) is emerging in order to clearly define the concept of DI and facilitate the application of related practices. The aim of the current study is to shed light onto teachers' experiences with DI, through a PDp, which was developed to provide effective support to teachers to change their perceptions and teaching practices and apply successfully DI. The participants were 7 in-service kindergarten teachers. The program lasted 8 months and included deepening on theoretical and practical levels. Multiple tools were used for data collection, such as open-ended questionnaires, personal diary of the researcher and individual semi-structured interviews. Content Analysis showed that teachers initially had misconceptions about the concept of DI and doubts regarding its applicability, while during the program they realized its positive impact on children, which encouraged them to continue their differentiating practice. According to teachers, the successful elements of the program, which contributed to the revision of their personal theories and generally their professional development, were the cooperation with colleagues in a warm and welcoming climate during the meetings, the long-lasting duration and the constant feedback and reflection. To conclude, the PDps provide the necessary context for the teacher to experiment with DI, though the prediction of future application is not yet sufficiently studied.

Investigating the role of teacher training of reception teachers in implementing the pre-primary curriculum in Francistown, Botswana

“…Against this backdrop, it is evident that to implement the curriculum, teachers need to be relevantly trained to be able to apply differentiated teaching (DT) approaches and to cater for all children's needs. According to Mavidou and Kakana (2019), DT relates to the teacher being able to incorporate varied teaching methodologies into their pedagogy. This is because teachers are regarded as the main drivers in curriculum implementation; hence, they need to be fully trained to be effective in their work.…”

Διαφοροποιημένη Διδασκαλία Στο Νηπιαγωγείο: Αναδεικνύοντας Τη Σημασία Της Προαξιολόγησης Και Τη Σύνδεσή Της Με Διαδικασίες Ανίχνευσης Των Ιδεών Των Παιδιών

“…Τέλος, με τον όρο «μαθησιακό προφίλ» (Middendorf, 2008• Tomlinson 2001) εννοούνται οι Καμπεζά προτιμήσεις στον τρόπο εργασίας και το στυλ μάθησης, δηλαδή ο προτιμώμενος τρόπος πρόσληψης και επεξεργασίας των πληροφοριών από τα παιδιά. Ωστόσο, στο νηπιαγωγείο οι τρόποι με τους οποίους ένα παιδί μαθαίνει συνεχώς αλλάζουν και εμπλουτίζονται μέσα από τη συμμετοχή του σε διαφορετικές δράσεις είναι αρκετά δύσκολο να «εντοπιστεί» από τους εκπαιδευτικούς για μια δεδομένη χρονική στιγμή (Mavidou & Kakana, 2019b).…”

“…Στην παρούσα μελέτη παρουσιάστηκαν βασικά χαρακτηριστικά της ΔΔ με στόχο να διευκολυνθεί η κατανόηση της προσέγγισης και οι προτάσεις εφαρμογής της αλλά και να αναδειχθούν ορισμένες από τις παρανοήσεις σχετικά με τη ΔΔ οι οποίες συχνά οδηγούν τους εκπαιδευτικούς να έχουν μια ασαφή ή/και αρνητική αντίληψη για τη διαφορετικότητα (Mavidou & Kakana, 2019b). Στο πλαίσιο της ΔΔ η ανομοιογένεια και η πολυμορφία που παρατηρείται σε κάθε τάξη μπορεί να αξιοποιηθεί ως πηγή μάθησης που θα διευρύνει την αντίληψη της ξεχωριστής ταυτότητας κάθε παιδιού αλλά και θα εμπλουτίσει τις διαδικασίες προσέγγισης κάθε διδακτικού αντικειμένου (Καμπεζά, 2017(Καμπεζά, • Σφυρόερα, 2019(Καμπεζά, • Tomlinson, 2001.…”

Implementation of Differentiated Learning to Enhance Elementary School Students' Mathematical Critical and Creative Thinking Skills

“…In addition to equipping students with skills to face future challenges, teachers should also understand the characteristics and diverse needs of their students in the classroom. Students bring different backgrounds, readiness levels, and learning styles when they enter school (Mavidou & Kakana, 2019;Niemi & Kousa, 2020). Teachers require time, experience, and support from the school community to design and provide differentiated instruction to ensure that students receive support in their learning process (Van Geel et al, 2022;Westbroek et al, 2020).…”