Differentiated Instruction in the English Classroom: Content, Process, Product, and Assessment

There's a lot of talk about differentiated instruction, but what is it really? And how does it apply to the middle and secondary English teacher?

Differentiated instruction is a recognition that students vary in their needs, interests, abilities, and prior knowledge. It's a springboard from which students work toward the same ends, but they use different content, processes, and products to get there. It's all about successfully teaching each student. And it can be done in the regular English classroom.

Barbara King-Shaver and Alyce Hunter help teachers of both middle and high school English understand and apply the principles and practices of differentiated instruction, addressing their unique challenges and needs. What's more, they offer a practical instructional model based on the experience of real teachers in real classrooms, including their own. Their model features:

• definitions with examples
• specific classroom lessons
• a unit design template/overview
• follow-up activities
• alternative assignments and assessments
• discussions of classroom management and content concerns
• a user-friendly format for quick access to information
• forms for planning and delivering lessons, including learning contracts, curriculum compacting guides, and much more.

Whether you're an English teacher new to the profession, new to differentiated instruction, or just looking for new ideas and strategies, you'll find in this book just the right technique or tool to help you reach each student.

Alyce Hunter is coauthor, with Barbara King-Shaver, of Adolescent Literacy and Differentiated Instruction. Their commitment to differentiated instruction is rooted in their beliefs and their experiences. They have seen firsthand that all adolescents can learn at high levels - and improve their literacy - when teachers assess their needs, interests, and readiness, then deliver instruction accordingly. Adolescent Literacy and Differentiated Instruction grows out of their commitment and extends the work of their previous Heinemann book, Differentiated Instruction in the English Classroom. Alyce has been a teacher and administrator in New Jersey for more than twenty-five years as well as a staff developer and an adjunct professor at Rutgers Unviersity, Wagner College, and Centenary College.

Dr. Barbara King-Shaver worked for more than thirty years as a classroom teacher, a supervisor, and an administrator. In addition to her work in public and private schools, Barbara taught for twenty-five years as an adjunct faculty member at Rutgers University Graduate School of Education. She also served as a trainer for the New Jersey State Department of Education. Barbara has worked with Grant Wiggins on Authentic Assessment and Understanding by Design, serving as a team leader in a New Jersey school district. In addition, Barbara has published articles and books on teaching and learning, most recently Adolescent Literacy and Differentiated Instruction. This book and her earlier work, Differentiated Instruction in the English Classroom, were co-authored with Alyce Hunter. Independently, Barbara has published When Text Meets Text: Helping High School Readers Make Connections in Literature. As a member of the Heinemann Speakers Bureau, Barbara conducts staff development workshops for schools across the country.