As is often the case when I work with other educators in a workshop or at a conference, I leave the experience more jazzed and passionate about what I do. Last week I had the pleasure of leading an EdTechTeacher workshop called Leveraging Technology to Differentiate Instruction. The group was fantastic. On Monday I had the opportunity to connect and learn along with an equally amazing group at Edcamp BLC.  During both the workshop and several sessions at the edcamp I was involved in conversations about topics such as passion and transformation, but the last session I attended at EdCamp BLC was about putting students first.  How do we put student needs first? It all circled back to the discussion I began the workshop with last week about UDL and meaningful integration. To put students first we need to differentiate instruction, and to do this successfully through technology integration we must be mindful. Below are the key considerations that I believe are essential in order for classroom teachers to leverage technology to create meaningful differentiation in the classroom.

1. Start with the learning goal.

Backwards design is critical for technology integration to be successful. Before contemplating what technology device, tool or app to use, the question of what the learning goal for the lesson must first be identified. All too often educators hear about a new tool or device and are understandably excited to use it in their classroom. However, instead of waiting until the perfect opportunity in which the learning need is matched with the functionality of the tool or device, define the learning goal and then determine the tools or resources that will allow the students to accomplish the goal successfully. Boxing learning into the functionality of a tool will rarely have a positive and productive outcome.

2. Consider assessment before assignment expectations.

For every lesson or unit we create for our students, there are skills and concepts we need to ensure that our students have grasped. It is our role as educators to determine not only what these skills are, but also how we will check for understanding.  For many students, particularly those that have learning differences, simply including the words test or quiz on the agenda elicits such a degree of fear and anxiety that the likelihood of truly assessing understanding is nominal. In an effort to differentiate assessment, many educators have used more creative means to assess student understanding. While I applaud and encourage providing opportunities other than tests and quizzes for students to demonstrate their understanding, it is critical that we consider what we need to “see” in order to accurately assess student understanding. For example, if the learning goal is summarizing main idea, do you need to see the summary in print? If so, what tools can students use to accomplish this task? Can students use their voice to summarize? If so, what tools can the student use to accomplish this task? Is there a reason that students should not be provided the choice?

3. Ensure that differentiation is invisible.

A few months ago I was discussing tracking and balanced classrooms with a friend of mine that is not an educator. He asked if it was actually possible to meet the needs of all learners in a class that had a wide spectrum of learning needs and differences. His son has a learning disability and he fears that his child will always be sectioned off, losing confidence and facing ridicule when he needs additional modifications. With successful technology integration, this should never happen. Using collaborative tools such as Google Drive, scaffolding can be applied without anyone recognizing the differences. Have a student that is a slow processor? Instead of handing her a worksheet and asking her to do the even numbers, create customized learning opportunities that are shared digitally. Have students with executive functioning disorders? Support the research, inquiry and planning process.

This year my 8th grade students created short documentaries about a leader of their choice. The goal of the assignment was to use multimedia to convey to the audience why their chosen person is/was a leader. To prepare for the project we first spent time exploring documentary as a film genre, including watching segments from Ken Burns’ Baseball series. This is the notes template students used while watching the documentary and here is the “guide” I distribute to support my students during their research. Neither or these documents is “special” in their base form; however, by using a collaborative document through Google Drive rather than distributing paper or a pdf, I am able to modify and scaffold both for students with ease. I can also provide ongoing, synchronous and/or asynchronous support to those students that need it, or can challenge students that are ready for the next level. Differentiation occurs while simultaneously eradicating the classroom dynamic of segregation that my friend is concerned about for his son.

4. Don’t recreate the wheel.

Photo courtesy of timeoutdad.com

We are only human. In any given class we typically have an average of 20+ children. Each child has his or her own distinct learning style and associated needs. In the era of “initiatives” equating to ever-growing demands on educators it is often a challenge to find the time to innovate. Technology tools and apps can reduce the amount of time needed to create differentiated lessons, and most likely, someone else has already thought of these ideas. Use social media (Twitter is my personal favorite), connect with other amazing educators and create a strong professional learning network, aka PLN. Forward-thinking educators like to share. When I need help with an idea, resources for a lesson or feedback on something I have created, I rely on my PLN and am always blown away by the ideas and material that is shared with me. In less time that it used to take me to create the not so perfect one-size fits all lesson I am now able to create differentiated lessons that meets the needs of all learners in my class.

5. Maximize flexibility to increase access and engagement.

The American Disabilities Act of 1990 has served to provide equity and access for Americans with a myriad of disabilities. One regulation stemming from ADA is building codes that ensure access ramps to bypass stairs as well as curb cutouts so that wheelchairs can safely cross streets. On behalf of mothers everywhere, thank you Bush 41 (and to David Rose for providing our class with the perfect example of the benefits of flexible design and UDL). Although these regulations were originally intended to provide access to individuals in wheelchairs, stroller-pushing individuals have reaped the benefit of the ramps, automatic doors and curb cutouts. The epitome of UDL, by creating flexibility for one group of people, this flexibility also enhanced access for another group of people. We need to find the same possibility in our classrooms – through physical design, instructional design, instructional support and assessment. When we consider any of these we need to consider how providing flexibility can open access and/or engage individuals in our classrooms. Consider how providing information in both audio and print format can allow the non-readers in your class the opportunity to access information, while also allowing the student with a long bus ride to listen to the information on his way home from school (reading in moving vehicles makes him want to puke). Or consider how allowing students to create videos to demonstrate their understanding of essential questions will encourage a struggling writer the chance to shine while also providing that student that thrives on an audience the motivation to create something incredible and publish his work.  The examples are endless.