I hope you're out enjoying your MLK day
because do you know what I am doing?
Homework.
It's okay, though.
Because if I hadn't been doing homework,
I wouldn't have had the A-HA! moment that I just had.
Have you ever read something and it just clicked and that's how you'll always remember it?
That's how I was when I was reading chapter one in Fulfilling the Promise.
I got to this part about Cogs of Differentiation and it all just kinda made more sense to me.
So, I figured it might for y'all too.
(Note: Like how I assume that more than one person is reading my blog? HA. One can wish.)
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(photo from page 11 in "Fulfilling the Promise of the Differentiated Classroom by Carol Ann Tomlinson)
There is this "clockwork" of clogs -
interdependent and interrelated
that represent the key elements in a classroom.
The students are the reason for even being in the classroom,
(cue clog one)
(cue clog one)
the teacher's role is a main aspect of the student's success,
(cue clog two)
(cue clog two)
the curriculum & instruction are the final bit.
(cue clog three)
As shown in the "student clog" there are things that the student seeks:
contribution, affirmation, power, purpose, and challenge.
contribution, affirmation, power, purpose, and challenge.
This is a basic list of things that show the needs of these students.
How does that relate to differentiation?
Well, you can't successfully differentiate without knowing student's needs.
If we overlook these needs, we can't help them succeed.
If we overlook these needs, we can't help them succeed.
In the "teacher cog" it shows the ways that the teacher responds to these student needs.
opportunities, investment, invitation, reflection, and persistance.
Understanding these elements can provide us with a compass for decision making as teachers.
Teacher plans should meet student needs.
Easy enough, right?
Lastly, we need the reason for school.
Curriculum.
The students are there to not just be loved and met personal needs,
but to learn and become knowledgable.
Therefore, "cog three" is to show how curriculum in a differentiated classroom should be.
Important, demanding, focused, engaging, and scaffolded.
An effective differentiated classroom is not one that just balances these three cogs.
It is a classroom that it is clear that unless the three elements remain carefully calibrated, it won't work.
This was such an A-HA! for me.
It's THAT simple.
These three aspects make the differentiated classroom.
It's neat how different metaphors can just make things come alive when learning.
Makes me that much more excited about the Hallmark metaphors.
Anywho,
Enjoy your day off, because it's back to the grind tomorrow.
- Mallory
This was the first post (of yours) that I have read, so I'll be catching up backwards! However, I want to comment on your wonderful "aha" -- because it was an awesome discovery for me, too! It makes so much sense that these cogs help each other "work" -- if you have a teacher who cares and loves and teaches, but not a meaningful curriculum, and not knowing individual students needs, the "Teacher Cog" is just "spinning." If you have a great curriculum (like I believe the Common Core standards in literacy is), but a teacher who doesn't care and love and prepare well, and doesn't know students' individual needs, then the "Curriculum Cog" is just spinning in isolation. And, if you have a very student-centered classroom where students love to BE, and they each feel they belong and have friends, and are important, but the teacher isn't good and the curriculum is weak, then the "Student Cog" is just spinning. I have observed in classrooms where everyone is just "spinning their wheels." The interrelatedness and interdependency of all three of these cogs is HUGE... and we don't have enough classrooms where all three cogs are working like that! With you understanding this, we have one more teacher ready to go out there and create that kind of a classroom! 5 pts.
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