Effective teachers I’ve worked with—including me after a couple years (and DEFINITELY excluding me before that!!)—have understood that students learn more when they are reading or writing or doing math than when we are reading or writing or doing math. Provided, that is, we are right there beside them to assess and assist them (and/or facilitate assistance through other resources including each other). And since we can’t be beside students when they’re doing homework, class time must involve less whole-group instruction, and more practice.
Click here for more on a key to academic proficiency: students practicing in your presence. And apologies in advance to non-golfers for my use of a golf analogy. (I’m actually a non-golfer too, as my friends have painfully experienced.)
I like how this document explains good teaching in plain english that no one could argue with. Thank you for promoting DI for all students.
I’m glad to know it came across that way for you. I find that when it comes to differentiated instruction, a lot of teachers get freaked out by the words themselves–and understandably so! Taking nothing away from folks who’ve researched and promoted DI in meaningful ways, a simple starting point is to just equate it to good solid teaching. Thanks for sharing!