Differentiation
What is the purpose of differentiation?
to cater to students' learning needs including their interests, readiness levels, and learning styles to enhance their learning.
What should a teacher consider while writing the objectives of a lesson?
The thinking levels of your learners
What are the essential components of an Effective lesson plan?
Mentions all of the following and more with clear details about each: Lesson objectives/ starter/ Main Activity and Plenary
What is the purpose of an assessment taken before, during and after a lesson has been delivered?
Explains the purpose of an assessment taken before, during and after a lesson has been delivered in details. Gives practical examples on how to use each type of assessment
What is the best way to apply differentiation successfully in the classroom?
Differentiating the content, the process, the product and the environment. (Examples should be given)
What aspects in planning do learning taxonomies affect?
Answer should mention: Level of objective, level of questions, selection of teaching strategies and methods, level and methods of assessment
How would you use your subject's curriculum plan when planning for your lesson?
Mentions the link between a curriculum plan and a lesson plan.
•Objectives are broken down from long term overview to achievable short-term goals.
lesson plans will determine the activities to be conducted to meet the long-term objective
•From the curriculum standards in long term plan, the lesson plans will have the possible assessments methods mentioned to assess the learners’ learning.
If the majority of your class failed a test, project or assignment, what would you do?
Revisit the topic, plan for remedial actions etc..
How do you plan for the different learning styles in your classroom?
Plan differentiated objectives, differentiated activities, differentiated assessment, and differentiated questions for different learning styles
Why is it important to know your learners before you plan a lesson?
It is important to know your learners before a lesson as this will help the teacher know the students' learning styles, interests, and academic level which will in turn help the teacher in planning a differentiated lesson that caters to the needs of all his/her learners.
What do you consider while selecting the activities for the lesson?
Mentions more than 4 things that need to be considered when selecting the activities for the level such as:
the level of the learning objectives, students' interests
students' readiness level
students' academic level
students' learning styles
How do you assess your students during a lesson? Share examples where you have effectively used assessment data to plan effective lessons.
Mentions the use of diagnostic/Formative assessment at the beginning of the lesson, the use of formative assessment during and at the end of the lesson, and the use of summative assessment at the end of a unit.
the collection of data from formal, and informal assessments gives teachers a way to understand student needs, group students based on strengths and weaknesses, and design (and adjust) lesson plans to ensure that students continuously improve, or revisit topics
Describe different ways to create a learning environment that supports differentiated instruction/teaching.
Creating flexible groupings, balancing between group work and individual work, and providing a challenging learning environment to the students
Share an example of how you can differentiate based on your students' learning styles
Answers may vary. The answer should mention examples of activities that would match students based on a specific learning style such as VARK
What do you do if a lesson doesn't work well?
The answer should give a specific example of when a lesson didn't work. It should highlight how you analyzed what went wrong and identified the weaknesses with the lesson.
Describe how you went about improving the lesson by various means such as:
Teachers use subjective and objective questions in assessments and evaluations. Share specific example of when you would prefer to use objective questions and when you would prefer to use subjective questions?
Describes more than 3 uses of subjective and objective questions. Mentions a clear example of when to use subjective questions such as when:
the group to be tested is small and the test is not to be reused.
you are more interested in exploring the student's attitudes than in measuring his/her achievement. Mentions a clear example of when to use objective questions such as when:
the group to be tested is large and the test may be reused.
highly reliable test scores must be obtained as efficiently as possible.
impartiality of evaluation, absolute fairness, and freedom from possible test scoring influences (e.g., fatigue, lack of anonymity) are essential.
Share an example of how you used differentiation with your students
Answers may vary
Share an example of how you use learning taxonomies in your classroom
Answers may vary. A specific topic and subject should be specified. The example should highlight the use of taxonomy in writing the objective, selection of teaching strategies and methods, questioning, and assessment
Describe one of the most successful lessons you have planned for. Explain why it worked so well
Answer provides a specific example of a lesson that worked really well. There is a focus on:
Share an example where you have effectively used assessment data to plan effective lessons
Give examples of how assessment data was used to plan effective lessons. (Answers may vary)