Differentiating the High School Classroom: Solution Strategies for 18 Common Obstacles / Edition 1

by Kathie F. Nunley

Overview

If this is how you feel about differential instruction (DI), you are not alone. Although research shows that DI maximizes learning and neural development, teachers still struggle with its challenges, especially in the high school classroom. Applying her unique expertise as a researcher, teacher, trainer, and parent, Kathie F. Nunley provides practical and supportive solutions to the real obstacles teachers face in mixed ability classrooms.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781412917155
Publisher:	SAGE Publications
Publication date:	11/28/2005
Pages:	168
Product dimensions:	7.00(w) x 10.00(h) x (d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Kathie F. Nunley delights teachers from around the world with her practical solutions to the challenges of today’s diverse classrooms. With more than 15 years of high school classroom teaching experience in both urban and suburban schools, she is the developer of the Layered Curriculum method of instruction. Nunley is a noted speaker at state, national, and international conferences and has authored several books and articles on brain biology and teaching in the mixed-ability classroom.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments
About the Author
Introduction: I Just Can’t Do That in MY School / Classroom / Situation
Teachers are Creative People
Laugh and the World Laughs with You
So what is differentiated instruction?
Obstacle #1: I Long to Return Back to The Good Old Days
A Description of the Issue
Solution Strategies
Obstacle #2: I Thought I Was Differentiating
A Description of the Issue
Solution Strategies
Obstacle #3: I Teach the Way I Was Taught
A Description of the Issue
Solution Strategies
Practice Assignments for Overcoming This Obstacle
Obstacle #4: I Don’t Know How
A Description of the Issue
Solution Strategies
The Easiest Road to Differentiation is Student Choice
Add A Second Piece: Accountability
Finish with the Final Piece: Encouraging Higher-Level Thinking
Practice Assignments for Overcoming This Obstacle
Obstacle #5: I Have Too Much Content to Cover
A Description of the Issue
Solution Strategies
Realize That you Can’t Lecture Fast Enough
Practice Assignments for Overcoming This Obstacle
Obstacle #6: I’m Good at Lecturing
A Description of the Issue
Classrooms May Result in A Power Struggle
Solution Strategies
Perception is Everything
Gain Control by Giving Some of It Up
Obstacle #7: I Can’t See How I Would Grade All Those Different Assignments
A Description of the Issue
Solution Strategies
Setting up a Paper or Electronic Grade Book
Entering Only Unit Grades and Exams
Entering Grades by Sub-Units
Entering Grades by Objectives
Daily or Weekly Grades
Design a Grade Scale by Considering “What’s an A worth?”
And on What Basis Or Criteria Do We Award Points, Marks and Grades?
Design a Grade Scale by Considering “What’s an F worth?”
Practice Assignments for Overcoming This Obstacle
Obstacle #8: I Thought Differentiated Instruction Was for Elementary Schools
A Description of the Issue
Solution Strategies
Practice Assignments for Overcoming This Obstacle
Obstacle #9: I Subscribe to Ability Grouping
A Description of the Issue
Segregation Within the Classroom
Preparing Global Thinkers
Solution Strategies
Practice Assignments for Overcoming This Obstacle
Obstacle #10: I Have Real Logistical Issues
A Description of the Issue
Solution Strategies & Practice Assignments for Overcoming These Obstacles
Liability Issues
Scheduling Issues
The Room is Too Small
Obstacle #11: I Want My Classroom Under Control
A Description of the Issue
Perception of Control Trumps All
Leadership Style Determines Perception of Control
An Easy Measure of Leadership
Solution Strategies
Practice Assignments for Overcoming This Obstacle
Obstacle #12: I Don't Know How to Measure My Students' Learning Style
A Description of the Issue
Solution Strategies
Take a cue from your IEP’s
Provide a Home Base
Practice Assignments for Overcoming This Obstacle
Obstacle#13: I Have Neither the Time Nor the Funding for All That
A Description of the Time Issue
I Don’t Have the Time to Plan for All That
Solution Strategies
Practice Assignments for Overcoming This Obstacle
A Description of the Funding Issue
Solution Strategies
Practice Assignments for Overcoming This Obstacle
Obstacle #14: I've Been Teaching This Way for Years and It Works
A Description of the Issue
Solution Strategies
Practice Assignments for Overcoming This Obstacle
Obstacle#15: There’s No Support For It At My School
A Description of the Issue
Solution Strategies
Practice Assignments for Overcoming This Obstacle
Obstacle #16: My District Requires Me to Follow a Prescribed Text
A Description of the Issue
Textbook Options Can Create More Effective Readers
A Variety of Reading Materials Keeps Information Updated
A Variety of Texts Makes the Information Available to More Students
Solution Strategies
Practice Assignments for Overcoming This Obstacle
Obstacle #17: Parents Expect Lecture Format in High School For College Prep
A Description of the Issue
Differentiated Reading Strategies Help Prepare Students for College Learning
Solution Strategies
Practice Assignments for Overcoming This Obstacle
Obstacle #18: The Bottom Line—If They Are Learning, You Are Teaching
A Description of the Issue
Some Students Struggle with Linguistic Dependent Input and Output
Some Students Struggle with Visual Input and Output
Solution Strategies
Practice Assignments for Overcoming This Obstacle
Suggestions for Further Reading
Layered Curriculum and Other Specific Strategies for Differentiating Instruction
Neuroscience and Learning
Inclusion Strategies
Control Theory and Self Efficacy
Pedagogical Theory
History of the United States School System
Classroom and School Leadership
References
Index

Editorial Reviews

"Gives a clear road map to follow and provides vital information without preaching. The author acknowledges and places allof ateacher's concerns on the table, and whittles them away with classroom strategies. The casual yet clear format parallels high school teachers' needs."

Toby Karten

Differentiation at the high school level is one of the hottest topics and a greatly needed area for professional development. I really like the historical context; it tells us that we are in a ‘new’ and different age in U.S. education history.

Jacqueline Thousand

Provides the readers with action strategies for differentiating instruction at the secondary level. It will be received with interest by many secondary school educators.

J. David Smith

"I like the conversational tone of this book. The author is speaking to me, not at me. All of us veteran teachers have been through so many 'new' things that have been discarded after a year or two that we have become jaded. The ideas in this book will be useful for years to come."

William Fitzhugh

"This book offers 'assignments' that teachers can use to implement differentiation in their own classrooms, including devising a layered curriculum and offering students choices in displaying their skills."

Class Notes

"The use of analogies, examples, and classroom stories makes it both engaging and user-friendly. Solutions range far beyond the author's own Layered Curriculum method to include many practical solutions to challenges common to many high school teachers. "

June 2006 Choice Magazine

"The use of analogies, examples, and classroom stories makes it both engaging and user-friendly. Solutions range far beyond the author's own Layered Curriculum method to include many practical solutions to challenges common to many high school teachers."

June 2006 CHOICE