Tiering and Interests for differentiation
Throughout the three-year levels I taught, year 8, 9 and 10 as well as mentoring year 12, I implemented differentiated strategies to enhance my students’ learning and put into practice my understanding of differentiation. Throughout the placement I focused on implementing tiered lessons, a similar structure to Assignment 1 but adapting it to the interests of my students which I found out through forming positive relationships, surveys and general questioning. The second strategy I utilised was tailoring tasks based on the student’s interests. In all three of my art classes I planned with my Mentors and implemented a tiered lesson plan which progressed into majority of my unit being tiered. Monceaux (2018) suggests that tiering is a strategy to implement differentiation and inclusion affectively. Similarly, Doubet and Hockett, (2015) agree, reinforcing that tailoring tasks to the students’ interests is the key to maintaining engagement. I created a tiered lesson plan for a year 8 unit on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artworks in which focused on the art elements of line, tone and colour. Within the broad unit students could tailor the task to their interests which was adapted to their assessed readiness level and learning profiles. Similarly, the year 10 art unit was on printmaking which focused on 4 elements that students worked through at their own pace, in turn was tailored to their readiness, interests and learning profiles. My task sheets were well designed with the assistance of my Mentors to ensure they were clear and included differentiation in an inclusive way.
what worked well
The tiered lessons and tasks based on student interest not only engaged almost all students but reduced behavioural issues significantly as well as the students produced amazing artworks that were a C or higher. Gibbson (2002) discusses the skill of scaffolding to successfully differentiate a class. I scaffolded the tasks to allow all students the opportunity to meet the standard, as well as extending other students. From the first day, I started teaching I tried to create a safe and positive learning space, reiterating that there were no dumb questions and that art is a very personal subject and as a class wrote clear guidelines and rules for the art room. This not only held students accountable for the rules but also allowed the art room to be a safe space where their work was able to be different from the student next to them. This environmental factor allows the students to all be engaged and included in a safe space. Personal factors that allowed me to differentiate affectively was the build positive relationships with the SSO’s working in the class and with particular students with a disability or special needs. The relationships I built with allowed the students to feel comfortable enough to say they were getting bored of painting or their interest changed in a certain area. This allowed me to help change the tasks where possible to differentiate successfully and maintaining their interests, as well as continuing their positive learning experience. I feel as though I did this successfully as the feedback I received from these students was that they felt well supported and felt as though they could participate in the class confidently.
what was challenging
To successfully tier a lesson or unit, the students’ readiness, interests and learning profiles need to be understood, however I met three of my classes on the first day of term two. This meant that I did not have the ten observation days to assess and gather the data I needed to implement my differentiated strategy immediately. This was a challenge, as it would have been more affective I had all the data needed to scaffold them immediately. Instead, it took about two weeks to gather enough accurate data through observational assessment and conversations with the students to implement my differentiation strategies. Due to this environmental factor, I had to utilise NAPLAN data to support my own observations to ensure the students were differentiated affectively and that their learning experience would have been positive and beneficial.
Improvements
To improve my differentiation strategies, I would try to understand my students’ interests, learning profiles and readiness quicker to allow me to implement my tiered tasks as soon as possible. To do so I would speak to other teachers that have previously taught the student and engage with their NAPLAN results as well as finding out if they are in extracurricular activities within the school, eg. sport or music. Through doing this, I can begin to form an educational profile of the student to then implement my differentiation strategies immediately.