Directed Reflection:
Diverse Learner Activity
1. Which students did you select?
I selected the following students for the diverse learner activity:
- Elya: gifted/advanced learner
- Deyvi: English Second Language
2. Why did you select these students?
I selected
Elya because she seemed to be advanced in her knowledge of most
subjects areas. She displayed knowledge
that the other
students did not know or understand. I
selected Deyvi as my other diverse learner because English was his
second
language and I have not had much experience working with
Describe: Describe the circumstances, situations, and issues related to the work of your unique or diverse learners.
1. What are the characteristics of the diverse learners you selected?
The characteristics of Elya are that she is above average in most subjects. In reading she is on a fifth grade level and is very bright in all other subject areas. She was home schooled by her mother until this year.
The characteristics of Deyvi are that he is not proficient in English. He can speak the language and understand spoken English, but he has a lot of trouble reading and writing the language. He has trouble with beginning constants. When asked to write a paragraph or any kind of writing, he has trouble and usually doodles. However, Deyvi is a very good drawer. He does pay attention in class, but will loose focus when something is too difficult.
2. Describe the steps you took to assess these students’ needs.
The steps that I took to assess these two students were mainly through observation. I observed their behaviors while working on content work in various subjects. I observed on-task behaviors, which told me if the material was too hard, too easy, or on their level and also what work related needs they might have. I also observed how they worked with other students in the classroom. I also looked at student work samples. These helped me gauge where their work level was and what needs they might have. I also talked with the students one-on-one about a random topic to gain what they could tell me. This was especially true with Deyvi. I wanted to see how good his English was. Also with Deyvi, I looked at some of his writing to see what I could expect from him in written form.
3. What partnerships did you establish with the parents/guardians of your students to support your work with these students?
On “Meet the Teacher” night I had the opportunity to meet with the parents of Elya, but not Deyvi. Also, in the very first newsletter of the year, it was briefly mentioned that I would be starting a unit on plants and their life cycle.
4. How did you obtain information about the students’ experiences, learning behaviors, needs, and progress?
I obtained information about both of these students’ experiences, learning behaviors, needs, and progress through the parents at “Meet the Teacher” night before school even began, but only for Elya. The main way I gained information was through conversations with these students the first week of school, looking at work samples, such as writing and math samples, listening to them read, especially Deyvi, watching their behaviors, and through direct observations.
Analyze: Analyze how the evidence and artifacts you’ve included sow the relationship of your teaching practice to the standards in this activity.
1. How did your assessment of the characteristics and needs of the students you selected change your planning, instruction, and interaction with them?
With Deyvi, I knew that he had a hard time writing because he did not have knowledge of beginning sounds or how to sound words out to write them. During my unit, I knew I had to come up with activities for him that did not require him to write as much. His vocabulary was also very limited. These needs had a great impact on how I planned instruction for him and interacted with him. For his plant journal in “Do you have a green thumb” lesson, Deyvi did write what he was going to do for his experiment, but because it was hard to read, he was required to verbalize his plan to me before he was allowed to set his experiment up. In his follow-up journal entry detailing what happened with his plant, Deyvi told me verbally what happened with his plant. This allowed him to express to me what happened in a way that he could communicate effectively. He then drew a picture of his seed, because his plant died. This was another way that allowed him to communicate effectively, since he could not communicate effectively through written words. In the lesson “See one seed, now see two,” Deyvi was allowed another form of communication that was driven by my assessment of his need for an alternate form of communication other than through a written form. This was through magazine cut-outs. Deyvi was allowed to cut-out examples of the various types of ways plants reproduce other than that of seeds. My assessment also showed that Deyvi had trouble with vocabulary. Therefore, he was allowed to work with a partner who helped him find these pictures in the magazine. Finally, in the lesson “What makes a healthy plant?” as determined by the assessment Deyvi had trouble with the vocabulary and therefore, on this activity was given extra time to complete this assignment. I also planned for him to have a peer tutor to help him match the plant part and plant function up. In my planning for Deyvi I wanted to be sure that he understood the vocabulary, so I planned a one-on-one informal assessment in which I would point to the plant part and ask what the function of the plant part was and he would tell me what that was. I checked the plant part off as he named it. This eliminated the writing need that the other students had to do to explain their thinking on the matches that they made.
Elya presented a special challenge to my planning, instruction, and interaction with her. I had to find a way to keep her challenged during my unit so that she would not become bored, but at the same time not challenge her to the point where she became frustrated. Most of the activities I gave her were extension activities or extra activities with what the rest of the class was doing because she finished so quickly. In the lesson “What makes a healthy plant?” I had Elya think about plant adaptations using the plant parts that she had just matched up with that plant part’s need. This took what she knew about these plant parts and their needs and expanded it to have her think about another aspect and realm of these plant parts. In the photosynthesis lesson, I had her go beyond talking about the energy from sunlight component of photosynthesis and write about the process. Elya did seem to have knowledge that surpassed what we talked about in the lesson, but it did not go as deep as I thought it might. Finally, in the final lesson where Elya made a book about the life cycle of a plant, her assignment was to talk about pollination which we had not covered in class, but which she had knowledge of. She did this wonderfully and creatively in her book. This knowledge did surpass that of the other students in the class when the topic was brought up by Elya in class during the Flower dissection, but because I did not want to confuse the other students I told her she would have a chance later to talk about it.
2. What adjustments did you make in your lesson plans to accommodate the learning differences or needs of these students? Refer to student work samples to clarify your answer.
The adjustments that I made in my lesson plans to accommodate the learning differences or needs of Deyvi was to have him to have him draw pictures instead of writing long paragraphs since his knowledge of written English language was very limited. This was evident in the lesson “Do you have a green thumb” where Deyvi was allowed to draw a picture of his seed (see work sample). I also adjusted my lesson called “The Life Cycle of a Plant” to allow him to do a wordless picture book detailing the life cycle of a plant (see work sample). The writing that appears in the book details what he needed to draw. Adjustments were also made to my lesson plans to allow for Deyvi to have a peer tutor such as in the lesson “What makes a healthy plant?” in order to help him with the vocabulary. Adjustments were also made in this lesson for extra time. Also in this lesson, an alternative assessment was made to eliminate the need for writing. I would point to the plant part and ask what the function of the plant part was and he would tell me what that was. I checked the plant part off as he named it.
With Elya, the adjustments in the lesson plants that were made were to challenge her thinking. This was evident in the lesson plan “The Life Cycle of a Plant” where Elya was asked to include information about pollination in her book. This was an area where she had knowledge that surpassed that of the rest of the class and that I would not let her share during a previous lesson for fear that it might confuse an already confused classroom of students. In the lesson “What makes a healthy plant?” I had Elya think about plant adaptations using the plant parts that she had just matched up with that plant part’s need. This took what she knew about these plant parts and their needs and expanded it to have her think about another aspect and realm of these plant parts. This was an activity that challenged her thinking and took her beyond where the other students were going in their thinking.
Appraise: Appraise the outcomes and effects you’ve had on the student, as shown by the evidence and/or artifacts you’ve included.
1. What interventions/interactions with your students were most and least productive in improving their learning?
The interventions/interactions that were most productive in improving Deyvi’s learning was finding a way for him to express what he knew in a way other than writing, which served only to frustrate him. This intervention was accomplished through drawing pictures such as in the “Life Cycle of a Plant” lesson and “Do you have a green thumb?” lesson. This intervention was very valuable in that it gave Deyvi a way to show me what he knew without becoming frustrated. Another intervention that was most productive was in improving Deyvi’s learning was the partner system that I used in “What makes a healthy plant?” This was productive in that it allowed Deyvi to have someone there to help him who had formed a relationship with him and who had been working with him and was a peer of his. The intervention that was least productive in improving Deyvi’s learning was using extra time without the use of a partner or having him draw pictures to show what he knew. Extra time by itself did nothing for him. I tried this in a lesson that is not featured in this work sample. Extra time by itself just gave Deyvi more time to sit there and be frustrated.
The intervention/interaction that was most productive with Elya was the use of activities that expanded or extended her thinking to other aspects of a concept. An example of this was in the lesson “What makes a healthy plant?” when I had Elya think about plant adaptations using the plant parts that she had just matched up with that plant part’s need. It was obvious she knew what the plant parts and their functions were, I just needed to challenger her thinking and this activity did just that. The intervention that did not improve Elya’s learning was having her merely telling me what she had knew about something on paper when I knew her knowledge extended beyond what we had talked about in class. She did this during the “What makes a plant grow? – Photosynthesis” lesson. I had her go beyond what we talked about in class and explain the whole process in more detail, but this was no challenge for her. I got the exact same thing we talked about in class. Her thinking needed to be extended on this topic.
2. What sources of information were most helpful to you in meeting the unique needs of the students?
The sources of information that were most helpful to me in meeting the needs of my unique learners were continued observations. If I noticed that one intervention was not working, which honestly sometimes they did not, I had to adjust and find something else that would meet their needs. This was more the case with Deyvi than with Elya. Another source of information that was most helpful to me in meeting the unique needs of my students was their pre-assessments. Their pre-assessments gave me an idea of where these two students stood in relation to the content material to be taught and learned and how well they could read, especially Deyvi, and what other needs might be present in regard to the content.
3. Were the students successful during the unit?
I believe that Elya and Deyvi were successful during the unit. Elya scored a 64% on the pre-test and an 84% on the post-test. This leads me to believe that there was a considerable gain in content knowledge. Deyvi scored a 12% on the pre-test and a 68% on the post-test which is a considerable gain and one that I consider to be successful.
4. What benefits have come from the partnerships you established with parents/guardians and others in the school community?
The benefits that have come from the partnerships that I established with parents/guardians and others in the school community is that it has given me people to turn to for information when the need arises with these students in the future and in other areas of study, whether this be in math, reading, or science. They have become valuable resources of information, especially the parents/guardians. They are trusting that I have their child’s best interests at the center of my focus. Others in the school community are valuable in that when the need arises with other in the classroom, the partnership and relationship has been established for that information to be obtained in a trusting and cooperative environment.
Transform: Explain how the insights you’ve gained from reflection have led to the transformation of your teaching practice.
1. What did you learn about the diverse nature and needs of students?
One very important thing I learned about the diverse nature and needs of students is that you can never assume anything. You cannot assume that a single intervention is going to work because a book or another teacher said it would. It might not. Each child, each diverse learner is unique. I have learned that just like with any learner, you have to have a bag of tricks ready with interventions for diverse learners. Needs of diverse learners are just that, diverse. No two diverse learners learn are alike. I have also learned that there is a wide range of ways to intervene with a diverse learner and these ways need to be as creative as possible to engage that diverse learner so that they will be motivated to learn. I have learned that some diverse learners have trouble with the motivation to learn and that in itself can be a separate need.
2. Based on your experiences, what strategies will you use in your future teaching to meet the needs of diverse learners?
I am happy that I got the chance to work with a student whose second language is English. It has given me ways to work with students like him that I will meet in the future. I will defiantly be using pictures and magazine cut-outs to have students like Deyvi communicate to me what they know in the future. I will also be having advanced students extend their thinking in ways that go beyond the lesson being taught. I will also be using the partner system for students like Deyvi who are not English proficient and even students who have trouble in areas of content knowledge. Peer tutoring proved to be effective with Deyvi and I believe could prove helpful with students who are having trouble in other areas of school. I learned that when a diverse learner is paired with a higher achieving student both students can benefit, as was the case during the course of this unit.