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Chapter 1 Introduction Rationale of the Study
In the Philippines , teachers are responsible for meeting the needs of diverse populat population ions s of learners learners with varying varying abilitie abilities. s. The stipulatio stipulations ns of the No Child Child Left Left Behind No Child Left Behind under the tenets of !ducation for "ll !#"$, legislation mandated progressive improvements whereby all children must score in the proficient or advanced categories as determined by statewide assessments by %&'( )epartment of !ducati !ducation, on, %&&*$. %&&*$. !ach !ach year year these these assess assessments ments show show achiev achievemen ementt discrepa discrepancie ncies s among among ethnic, ethnic, socioec socioeconom onomic, ic, and ability ability groups. groups. This This legislat legislation ion re+uire re+uires s optimal optimal academic performances from all children. To meet the re+uirements of NCLB, educators should implement methods of instruction that encourage student success. Currently, an estimated & million diverse students, with various abilities, ways of thin-ing, languages, and a plethora plethora of capabil capabilitie ities s for underst understand anding ing informat information, ion, compose compose classroo classrooms ms Nat Natio iona nall
!duc !ducat atio ion n
"ssoc ssocia iati tion on
ese esear arch ch
)epa )epart rtme ment nt,,
%&&/ %&&/$. $.
Teache achers rs
are are
accountable for providing instruction to all these students. !spinosa %&&0$ asserted the differences in student bac-grounds when she stated This growing cultural and linguistic disc discre repa panc ncy y betw betwee een n the the chil childr dren en enro enroll lled ed and and the the teac teache hers rs who teac teach h them them underscores the need for all educators to develop the s-ills, -nowledge, and, most importantly, the attitudes to effectively teach in multicultural and multilingual settings. p. 1*$ % 2tudent 2tudents s in classroo classrooms ms today today represe represent nt the variou various s cultures cultures that comprise comprise current current communit communities ies and neighbor neighborhoo hoods.. ds.. 3any of the research research4bas 4based ed instruc instruction tional al strat strategi egies es that that teache teachers rs and and admin administ istrat rators ors use inclu include de diff differe erenti ntiat ated ed tacti tactics cs for
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conveying information to students by encouraging increased student interaction, engagement, and critical thin-ing. Because all students are different, educational researchers interested in instructional practices focus on developing strategies that will impact all learners regardless of their differences 5eorge, %&&0$. The use of various methods to engage students with different academic abilities and strengths is called differentiated instruction !dwards, Carr, 6 2iegel, %&&/$. )ifferentiated instruction is not an instructional method, but an innovative way of thin-ing that tailors instruction to the readiness levels of students 7ollas, %&&0$. Teachers who differentiate instruction understand how students learn, incorporate individual differences in ability, and provide learning e8periences that ta-e this information into consideration "nderson, %&&*$. The instructional strategies related to differentiated instruction are intended to allow all students to e8perience success and meet the e8pectations of curriculum ob9ectives based on their readiness levels. This type of instruction encourages students to grasp information at their own pace while they are being held accountable to similar goals and ob9ectives as their peers. It is imperative that students are provided with instruction that supports their abilities and remedies their wea-nesses 2ternberg 6 :hang, %&&0$. Children are then able to e8perience success, which will promote academic growth. Learning e8periences based on students; abilities to perceive information are more effective in conveying information than lessons delivered based on a general readiness level. "cademic success or failure is directly related to the instructional practices utili
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demonstrates an awareness of social change. It is difficult for students to show improvement academically if teachers continue to use instructional methods that do not provide for their students; needs Tanner, Bottoms, #eagin, 6 Bearman, %&&$. !ducators who employ the use of differentiated tactics to encourage students; abilities to retain information recogni
This section provided the problem statement, the nature and purpose of the study, and the conceptual framewor-. "lso provided were operational definitions of terms used, the assumptions and limitations, and the scope and delimitations. ( Problem 2tatement There is a problem in Philippine elementary schools. That problem, specifically, is that traditional teaching methods do not consider the differences among students, and instruction should be differentiated to ensure the success of all children. "nderson, %&&*> !dwards et al., %&&/$. This problem impacts third, fourth, and fifth graders at a rural, southeastern elementary school because there has been a decline in the number of students with disabilities and minority students at this school who scored in the proficient and advanced categories on the reading and mathematics portions of the yearly statewide assessment ? )epartment of !ducation, %&&/$. In this study, I e8amined strategies that emulated differentiated instructional methods. There have been multiple factors contributing to this problem, among which are the utili
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development opportunities for teachers that supported best practices, a decrease in teachers; motivation to implement e8periences that catered to all students, a deficiency in the area of collaboration among teachers, and the absence of professional reciprocal relationships among teachers in each grade level. )ifferentiated instruction aims to provide lessons that reflect multiple modalities of learning while supporting students; levels of -nowledge apprehension 7ollas, %&&0$. @tili
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'. 7ow are various ability levels of students addressed regarding instruction %. =hat process is used to determine students; ability levels in math and reading . =hat resources are used to supplement andor enrich instruction (. =hat -inds of strategies are employed by teachers to address students; learning 0. =hat concerns do teachers have regarding differentiated instruction Operational Definitions
The following terms are operationally defined as they were used in the studyA Constructivist learningA "n ideology that involves learners determining the
meaning of their world based on their conceptions of information brought about by the manipulation of materials Lambert et. al., %&&%$. 2tudents maneuver new information into their own personal ways of the thin-ing. =hen constructivist learning ta-es place, teachers monitor and facilitate learning as they provide support as needed. )ifferentiated instructionA Innovative instructional strategies aimed towards supporting students; readiness levels while targeting their interests and learning styles Tomlinson, %&&($. Differentiated instruction re+uires continuous and practical implications in the
classroom to meet students; developing academic progress 7ollas, %&&0$. =hen implemented in the classroom, this method of teaching addresses learning and cultural diversities of students Tomlinson, %&&0$. This creative, instructional approach encourages all learners to be successful and teaches students on their levels of understanding. 3easures of "cademic Progress 3"P$A This assessment tool is used to inform educators of students; current instructional areas while documenting their strengths and wea-nesses in various sub9ect areas. 3"P assessments are Dstate4
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aligned, computeri
mathematicallogical,
bodily-inesthetic,
musicalrhythmic,
intrapersonal, interpersonal, naturalist, and e8istential. 7umans e8hibit various levels of intelligences in different areas. Traditional instructionA Teacher4centered, nontactile methods of instruction that infre+uently involve student input within the lesson Lambert et al., %&&%$. In a classroom that adheres to the standards of traditional instruction, teachers convey information to students through wor-sheets, lectures, and other ways that do not espouse much effort towards constructing meaning by learners. "ssumptions Chapter % Presentation "nalysis and Interpretation "ddressing Harious Levels of 2tudents; abilities. "s observed in using thematic teaching in my class utili
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In my mathematics class as well, upon teaching problem solving related to base, percentage, rate and commission to my two heterogeneous grade si8 classes. In the other class i uased traditional way of teaching in which i discussed in a deductive form the princiles and e8pose the studnets to various e8ercises. In the other section i used simpler problems employing cooperative learning. I gave various activities suitable to each level of the learner. I used manipulation for -enesthetic groups, discussion for auditory and various media for visual learners. @pon the result of the assessment, the section that was taught using various activities yiled better learning outcomes thus manifesting higher scores in the evlauation. %. " pre test and post test wich included oral and written e8amination were used to determine the pupils level of ability in math and reading. . Harious learning activities suited to each type of learner such as stand ups, math shoppes. Harious stories, vivid images for instruction, and pu<
The study is conducted to compare the difference and to find out the effectiveness of diffrentaited learning instruction as compared to traditional learning in reading and numeracy instruction to intermediate pupils.
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Conclusion
The pupils using differentiated instruction yiled better learning outcomes after scoring higher in the evaluation. "dditionally, this study will inform sta-eholders of the instructional approaches being implemented in classrooms to enhance academic achievement. Recomendation
It is recomended for teachers to use differentiated instruction in their classes.
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References
"bebe, 2., 6 7ailemariam, ". %&&*$. The challenges of managing student behavior problems in the classroom. etrieved from !IC database. !)(F(F'&$
Barone, )., 3allette, 3., 6 ?u, 2. %&&0$. Teaching early literacyA )evelopment, assessment, and instruction. New Jor-, NJA The 5uilford Press. Betterton, 3., 6 !nsworth, L. %&&/$. It;s in the bag. Teaching PreG41, /*$, 0%40. Be<