Nowadays’ classrooms are filled with diversity. Each student is unique and has a core set of values, perspectives, concerns and agendas in the learning environment. Teachers need to design different curriculum for different students because the ability
to learn varies from one student to another.
And the need of giving different types of instructions to different students to enhance their learning is also absolutely necessary. Many educators are searching for methods that help them accommodate the learning needs of all their students. Many of these methods are incorporated in the general approach of Differentiated Instruction. Not all students are alike, hence based on their learning abilities, Differentiated Instruction applies an approach that incorporates many effective methods of teaching and learning and provides students with multiple options to enhance their learning.
Differentiated instruction and assessment (also known as differentiated learning) is a framework or philosophy for effective teaching that involves providing students with different avenues to acquiring content; to the processing, constructing, or making sense of ideas; and to developing teaching materials and assessment measures so that all students within a classroom can learn effectively, regardless of differences in abilities. This article provides you with the information about some online tools which help you in delivering Differentiated Instruction for your students.
Gummii:
Gummii is an innovative, game-based math learning system that builds kids’ motivation and adapts to their individual learning needs. Gummii looks like a game, but it’s a math (Fractions, Additions & Subtractions) tutor. This site/app helps parents engage their kids with fantastic gaming/learning experiences. It brings to the students an educational 3D world where they solve math tailored to Differentiated Instruction.
The core principle on which Gummii is founded is “Virtually every child can become skilled at math.”
Different kids learn in different ways: One will get the concept of addition by counting groups of blocks, another might get it by looking at a ruler, the third might prefer to work with balance. Gummii recognizes the fact that concepts need to be presented in a variety of ways, so kids can explore and grasp them in whatever order feels right.
Power My Learning:
Power My Learning is a great tool for educators to deliver Differentiated Instruction by customizing the learning experience for each student. It provides a powerful set of free tools to help differentiate instruction and support learning in and out of schools. PowerMyLearning eliminates the hard work and guesswork that goes into finding and using the most engaging free activities on the Web. Their team of educators has carefully curated thousands of academic games, videos, other interactive content and then tagged them according to subject, grade, Common Core Standard and more to meet the students’ learning needs.
No Red Ink:
No Red Ink is a web-based learning platform that helps students improve their grammar and writing skills. Students generally find grammar boring, that’s why No Red Ink generates all the grammar sentences using each kid’s favorite celebrity, hobbies, TV shows and friends, making the content inherently interesting. It provides Differentiated Instruction, adjusting questions based on what students get right/wrong and drilling down to their underlying misconceptions. It also helps teachers provide assignments and quizzes that are uniquely generated according to each kid’s interest. No Red Ink’s color coded “heat maps” feature allows educators, students, and administrators to track progress easily. Educators can use class trends to instantly form instructional decisions as well as view students’ homework and quiz scores.
Clever Island:
Clever Island, developed by a leading Child Development expert and Harvard PhD, Laurence Miller, is an award winning children’s educational site that teaches children the fundamental skills they need to know in order to succeed in school and life. It covers a wind range of subjects: Math, Science, Art, Reading, etc. With Clever Island, children are able to learn at their own pace by browsing quickly and freely through easy lessons, rather than at a speed set by administrators or textbook publishers.
ZooWhiz:
ZooWhiz is a flexible, curriculum-linked system that motivates kids learn through fun. It’s a curriculum-based motivational learning site that covers many subjects such as Math, Comprehension, Punctuation, Grammar, Word Skills, etc. and offers detailed progress reports that help assess students’ learning needs. Kids just love learning with ZooWhiz!
The above mentioned are the few sites which help teachers to structure learning environments to address a variety of learning styles, interests, and abilities found in students within a classroom. We’d like to know your personal views on “Differentiated Instruction and Assessment”. And If you know a few more tools like these, please feel free to share with us in the comment box.
