Senior secondary teachers' attitudes towards differentiated instruction

What is it about?

Differentiated instruction is a pedagogical framework that has the potential of catering for diversity in one’s classroom. Previous research has found that teacher attitudes towards DI and their self-efficacy in their ability to differentiate, impacts the way they teachers implement DI in their classrooms. Our research focused on DI in senior secondary teachers and found that teachers have good knowledge of various DI strategies, such as scaffolding, rather than the concepts that underpin the whole DI framework. Furthermore, we found that a sense of failure in implementing DI, may impact upon teachers’ sense of self-efficacy and influence their attitude towards DI. We argue that teachers know what DI is, but that they need more assistance to practically implement DI. Thus, professional development in DI needs to include practical experience and guidance of teachers when and if they fail at DI.

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Why is it important?

Research into differentiation within the senior secondary sector is rare. This research sheds light on some of the barriers senior secondary teachers face in implementing differentiated instruction and suggests that further practical assistance is required.