This document discusses differentiation and how technology can help teachers meet the diverse needs of students. It notes that differentiation involves providing flexible instructional approaches to align with students' unique learning styles and needs. Technology allows for this flexibility by enabling tools like flexible grouping, online presentations, and webquests. The document also stresses that differentiation is not just teaching strategies, but rather ensuring all students can fully learn the standards in ways that work for them.

1. By Kyle Stephens
EIM 504

2. What is one of the most difficult aspects for a
teacher?
• Differentiation
 This is because there are a variety of learning styles
incorporated into a class of approximately 30 students with
normally 1 teacher.
 This makes it difficult for the teacher to come up with a variety
of different approaches to meet the unique needs of all
his/her students. It is due in large part of time constraints in a
given day to plan for the different approaches.
Differentiation-
• Meeting the needs of students by being flexible during
the teaching of concepts and standards.

3. Differentiated Instruction-
• Instruction is designed to meet the unique learning
style and needs of students by providing them with
unique and different approaches to learn and
understand the material/standards.
• Proactive approach
Technology can be a vital resource in the
building of instruction to meet the needs of
all students in a class.

4.  Things that this instruction is not:
• 1) Not just a bunch of teaching strategies.
 There is more than one way to differentiate any lesson.
 A teacher should know the needs of their students.
 Teacher should have a strong knowledge of the content.
• 2) Does not mean students have to do less work or
more work.
 Advanced students should not have to complete more work,
such as doing more Chemistry Stoichiometry problems over the
same concept.
 Special Education students should not cover fewer standards in
the regular education classroom.
 It means that instruction is designed to ensure all students have
the capability of learning the standards to the fullest extent.

5. The digital resources found today can play a
vital component in teaching students in a
multitude of ways in the 21st century.
Examples:
• Flexible grouping using technology is a critical part
of differentiating instruction.
• Creating a presentation on the concepts of a
particular topic using Internet resources.
• Completing a Webquest on Chemical Bonding in
Chemistry

6.  States educators can design instructional
lessons by being flexible in the materials,
methods, and assessments that are used.
• Similar of differentiated instruction
 Technology is crucial in this design because it
gives the flexibility needed to build learning
activities and assessments that meet diverse
student needs.
 Three fundamental components:
• “Setting learning goals, taking action by providing learning
activities, and assessing student progress to monitor and
evaluate student growth” (Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer,
2010, p. 147.

7.  Based on brain nature (Networks of recognition, strategic,
and affective)
 Learners are influenced by the networks.
 Networks-
• 1) Recognition:
 Aids someone in identifying patterns.
 It processes the “what” should be learned.
 Teachers can support this network by using different resources (including
digital) to relay the information to students.
• 2) Strategic:
 Plan, execute, and monitor actions.
 It processes the “how” of things are learned.
 Teachers can support this network by using flexibility in instruction, so
students can have different methods to demonstrate the learning of the
standard/standards.
• 3) Affective:
 Influences the motivation of a person.
 It processes “the why” the person is learning.

8.  Any device or technology system used to help
students with disabilities maintain or improve
functional capabilities.
 Examples:
• Alpha Smart, a plastic grip that goes on a pencil, touch screen
tablets, and voice recognition software
 If an assistive technology device is stated in a
student’s IEP, the educator must allow the student to
use the technology in the classroom.
 “Sometimes it is much more efficient to look within the
normal, existing technology to find useful devices or
software for students with disabilities than to just
focus on finding a specific technology designed
specifically for people with disabilities” (Alnahdi, 2014,
p. 19).

9.  Collaboration
• Needs are met on the emotional and social levels.
• Takes time to create this type of classroom.
• As teachers, we want students that are willing to share their views
and answers with each other and be able to have debates with each
other over issues.
 To do this, educators must create a classroom culture and environment
where students feel safe and secure to express their thoughts on subjects
without be wrongly criticized in an inappropriate manner.
 Content
• Needs are met on the cognitive levels.
• Teachers can do this be completing authentic instruction, which
allows an in depth understanding of the concepts being covered.
• A good tool to use to ensure students are learning instead of just
completing tasks is to help students make connections with the
learning goals.

10. Metacognitive
• Needs are met on a thinking level.
• Reflection is essential in the learning process of
students.
• Reflection is sometimes difficult to cultivate in
students because they want to discuss the activity
being completed instead of fully understanding the
concepts being covered.
• Reflection needs to be practiced continually with
students beginning with guided reflection that will
lead students to how to reflect better on their own to
more in depth understanding of the
standards/concepts.

11.  Responsibility of educators to understand the
cultural backgrounds of their students, the
school, and the city/town the school is in.
 Cultural understanding of students will lead to
developing and implementing activities that “can
promote positive learning experiences”
(Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer, 2010, p. 286).
 Knowing the background of students can help
aid the teacher in incorporating learning
activities that is sensitive to the culture of the
student.
• Example: Group activities may not meet the learning
needs of someone that learns more fully independently.

12.  Alnahdi, G. (2014). Assitive Technology in
Special Education and the Universal
Design for Learning. The Turkish Online
Journal of Educational Technology, 18-23.
 Cennamo, K. S., Ross, J. D., & Ertmer, P. A.
(2010). Technology Intergration for
Meaningful Classroom Use: A standards-bases
approach. Belmont: Wadsworth, Cengage
Learning, 137-162, 269-292.