Diversity
When many think of the world “Diversity” cultural diversity
is what comes to mind, however we all are diverse in many different way beyond
our culture. As we go into our
classrooms each day, we must understand our students do not come out of the
same cookie cutter and we must be aware of this. Our students in many cases are different
socio- economically, have different learning styles, levels of learning and
disabilities.
I am strong believer in students understanding the different learning styles. I have my students complete multiple learning styles assessment at the beginning of the year. I then keep track of their top two from groupings later. I am able to use technology to meet the needs of these learning styles. Over the course of my 5 years of teaching, I have worked as a special education teacher, and presently teach team taught, ESOL, on-level, advanced and Talented and Gifted classes. In fact, one of my 8th grade Social Studies classes presently is a team taught class with ESOL students included in the class. The ESOL students represent 10 different countries from around the globe. In understanding who my students are from the country they are from, their learning ability and their style of learning and it is my job to do so.
There are many tools available to me as a teacher which benefit students and lead to success both in and out of the classroom. The tools and methods can maximum the learning potential for all learners in a classroom. This program has cultivated my knowledge in the abundance of tools which are readily available to assist all students and develop the communication and collaborative learning environment.
The power of technology in role of meeting the needs of diverse learners is clearly stated by Grace and Throne (2009):
“Technology facilitates modification of instruction in several areas to meet the needs of diverse students by making changes to subject matter (content), channels of throughput (process), means of output (product), and the learning environment. As a great motivator, technology has a powerful influence on our students’ affect levels.”
Once we allow technology to facilitate learning to meet the needs of our learner, Oh !! The doors it will open to the world we live in and allow authentic and connected learning experiences.
In order to successfully address diversity issues in schools during this program, I have completed a number of activities.
· Assisting special education students in using apps as assistive technology when explaining and describing concepts
· Recommending resources for use in the ELL classroom to assist in language development and expression
· Hosting and modeling professional development sessions that modeled strategies for reaching all learners in the classroom
Providing modeling and scaffolding for students during collaborative lessons with classroom teachers
· Designing and facilitating lessons that meet the needs of all students and that are culturally sensitive.
· Differentiating instruction in a way that provides a variety of groupings, choices and activities that support the varying needs and interests of my students.
· Modeled and advocated for the use of technology for challenging tasks and higher order thinking for all students.
References
Smith , G., & Throne , S. (2009). Differentiating instruction with technology in middle school classrooms. ISTE.
I am strong believer in students understanding the different learning styles. I have my students complete multiple learning styles assessment at the beginning of the year. I then keep track of their top two from groupings later. I am able to use technology to meet the needs of these learning styles. Over the course of my 5 years of teaching, I have worked as a special education teacher, and presently teach team taught, ESOL, on-level, advanced and Talented and Gifted classes. In fact, one of my 8th grade Social Studies classes presently is a team taught class with ESOL students included in the class. The ESOL students represent 10 different countries from around the globe. In understanding who my students are from the country they are from, their learning ability and their style of learning and it is my job to do so.
There are many tools available to me as a teacher which benefit students and lead to success both in and out of the classroom. The tools and methods can maximum the learning potential for all learners in a classroom. This program has cultivated my knowledge in the abundance of tools which are readily available to assist all students and develop the communication and collaborative learning environment.
The power of technology in role of meeting the needs of diverse learners is clearly stated by Grace and Throne (2009):
“Technology facilitates modification of instruction in several areas to meet the needs of diverse students by making changes to subject matter (content), channels of throughput (process), means of output (product), and the learning environment. As a great motivator, technology has a powerful influence on our students’ affect levels.”
Once we allow technology to facilitate learning to meet the needs of our learner, Oh !! The doors it will open to the world we live in and allow authentic and connected learning experiences.
In order to successfully address diversity issues in schools during this program, I have completed a number of activities.
· Assisting special education students in using apps as assistive technology when explaining and describing concepts
· Recommending resources for use in the ELL classroom to assist in language development and expression
· Hosting and modeling professional development sessions that modeled strategies for reaching all learners in the classroom
Providing modeling and scaffolding for students during collaborative lessons with classroom teachers
· Designing and facilitating lessons that meet the needs of all students and that are culturally sensitive.
· Differentiating instruction in a way that provides a variety of groupings, choices and activities that support the varying needs and interests of my students.
· Modeled and advocated for the use of technology for challenging tasks and higher order thinking for all students.
References
Smith , G., & Throne , S. (2009). Differentiating instruction with technology in middle school classrooms. ISTE.
