Curriculum and Instructional Design for Diverse Learners

It is Week 10 of a ten week course in Curriculum and Instructional Design for Diverse Learners. This elective course was a lot of work - way more work than the three measly units I'm earning for completing it. But I LOVED every module. In fact, my final project for this course is to create a blog - and wa-la! Here it is. It's quite long since I wanted to play with trying out all of the various features available for me to use in my blog AND because I learned so much. So let's go on a little tour of all the great things I learned this term...

Module 1 - When you have a 7 page paper in week 1 it's not a good sign

During our first week of the course, we explored basic principles of rigorous and appropriate curricula and culturally relevant curricular design. We were tasked with submitting a seven page paper evaluating the quality of various self-selected research articles related to curricular design. We also had to design a sample lesson plan that included key components found in rigorous and appropriate curricula. Okay so a seven page paper in week one isn't too bad, but paired with a fully developed lesson plan - that's quite a bit of work! Anyway, through my research and also based on my prior learning, I identified the following four key components essential to quality lesson design: 

1. one or more measurable learning objectives aligned with prescribed standards (i.e. Common Core Math or ELA, or the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS),
2. an appropriately scaffolded sequence of engaging and rigorous learning experiences centered around relevant, real-world phenomena, questions, or problems, 
3. opportunities for structured discourse paired with probing and guiding questions that stimulate higher order thinking, and
4. appropriate, student-centered assessments designed to inform instruction and provide both student and teacher with frequent, meaningful feedback. ​​

“the world is moving at a tremendous rate [and] we must prepare our children not for the world of the past – not for our world – but, for their world – the world of the future,” (Little, 2013, p.86).

Good instruction aims at preparing students for the world of the future. It does so by providing student-centered learning experiences related to real-world scenarios. Learning should build in complexity and require students to use increasingly higher level thinking skills. Activities should engage students in productive struggle that promotes constructivist learning (Picciano, 2017). Students become bored if lessons are too easy and frustrated if lessons are too difficult. Project-based learning is a good method for maximizing student engagement, higher-level thinking, and constructivist learning (Little, 2013).

Module 2 - Okay, this seems like quite a bit of work

In week two we explored learning styles and debated whether or not teachers should strive to match instruction to the varied learning styles of their diverse students. This week we had to research two culturally diverse student groups and submit a nine page paper evaluating identity, self-efficacy, and sociocultural consciousness theory frameworks and their similarities and applications to a culturally relevant curriculum. We also had to critique the lesson plan we designed last week based on cultural relevance. If that sounds like a lot of work to you, you're right, it was!

"Teaching is not only an academic obligation, but also a moral one" (Adams, 2018, p. 121)

I am personally interested in strategies for achieving equitable instruction for all students. The first step in being an equitable educator is the ability to recognize the diverse needs of your students. So I really appreciated this graphic I found from Pappas (2013):

In my week 2 paper I created the following table to highlight the key characteristics of identify theory, socio-cultural consciousness theory, and self-efficacy theory; and how these theories influence culturally relevant curriculum in order to promote equitable instruction for all students.

Note: The information in this table was informed by Adams (2018), Bandura (1977), Hahn Tapper (2013), McCarthy (2015), Nganga (2014), and Tajfel et al. (1979).
​
I also enjoyed reading literature about various learning styles. For example, the following image from LSI Analysis & Presentation (n.d.) illustrates types of activities that align with the learning style identified by Kolb: accommodating, diverging, converging, and assimilating. 

In contrast, Riechman's framework of learning styles focuses on student interaction with the teacher and other learners, as demonstrated in the graphic I created below, based on Cimermanová (2018):

But perhaps the most popular inventory of learning styles is based on theories about VAR/VARK as shown in the graphic below shared by Integrated Learning Strategies (n.d.):

Even though research has demonstrated that providing instruction to students in their preferred learning style does not correlate with improvement in learner outcomes, research has demonstrated that providing students with opportunities to learn about new concepts from diverse perspectives utilizing multiple learning styles is effective. Thus teachers must  understand these various theories and learning styles in order to provide students with opportunities to utilize multiple styles when constructing new learning (Cimermanová, 2018; Doran, 2015; Pappas, 2013). 

Module 3 - I'm noticing a pattern here

In week 3 we focused on interdisciplinary unit planning strategies, with particular emphasis on integrating literacy instruction across the curriculum. We submitted a seven page paper addressing strategies for writing across the curriculum and the advantages and disadvantages of technology integration. My research revealed the following three evidence-basedstrategies for differentiating writing across the curriculum for diverse learners:

• provide culturally responsive writing prompts that are engaging to diverse learners,
• scaffold writing tasks so that students start with shorter, easier writing assignments with a lot of teacher support and gradually move towards longer, more complex writing tasks with less teacher support, and
• chunk writing assignments into manageable sub-tasks based on the reading and writing ability of each student (Saulnier, 2016).

Furthermore, I compiled the following table of strategies for supporting student literacy skills across disciplines:

Note. Details in the table about each strategy have been synthesized based on the work of Athuraliya (2021), Campbell & Filimon (2018), Cornell University (n.d.), and Kain (1998)

Module 4 - Wait, you want me to do what?

This was probably my favorite week because we got to delve into Universal Design for Learning (UDL), which is something I've been wanting to study for a long time. We evaluated the role of multimodal practices in learning and conducted a literature review of multimodal instructional strategies. We also researched methodology for action research and design of research surveys, and then constructed and disseminated a teacher perception survey. Finally, we submitted an eight page paper with our literature review along with a proposal for an action research study that included our teacher perception survey. What's that you say? Sounds like at least three large projects all rolled into one week? It was! It was an unrealistic amount of work for one week; so when I say it was my favorite week, I am strictly referring to the topic, not the work load.
That said, let's check out my key take-aways!

​First of all, the UDL framework outlines steps for planning instruction that meets the diverse needs of all learners in the classroom in order to achieve equitable instruction for everyone. ​I often use the following image from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (2021) when leading professional development to get teachers to think about the difference between equality (everyone gets the SAME thing) versus equity, everyone gets what they need in order to achieve the SAME outcome. However, this graphic refers to differentiation. We differentiate instructional strategies and resources for students so that each student gets what they need in order to support them in mastering the learning objectives. This is NOT the same as UDL, though they are related.

UDL is a framework for planning instruction that anticipates the needs of all learners and provides flexibility and autonomy in order to remove barriers from learning at the onset. This is done by attending to engagement, representation, action, and expression:

1. Engagement involves using strategies to stimulate and motivate enthusiasm for learning. 
2. Representation involves using strategies to provide multiple ways for students to access and understand new information.
3. Action and Expression involves using strategies to provide multiple ways for students to collaborate, synthesize, and express their learning (New Zealand’s Ministry of Education, n.d.).

In the analogy illustrated in the image above, differentiation is represented by providing each bike rider with a bicycle that meets their specific physical needs. If I were to add UDL to the analogy, it would refer to inspecting the riding course and removing any barriers like rocks, stairs, potholes, etc. so that ALL riders will experience as smooth a ride as possible. 

The other half of this week was the teacher perception survey and action research proposal. Since this was part of an ongoing process and I created a final presentation in Week 9, I will end week 4 here and let you learn more about the action research project in subsequent sections.

Module 5 - I think I can, I think I can 

During week 5 we debated the controversial statement "standardized tests are designed with inherent cultural and linguistic biases which may hinder performance among certain demographic groups, regardless of teacher expertise." We also analyzed the data we received back from the teacher perception surveys we designed and disseminated last week; and we submitted a 10 page action research paper related to our teacher perception survey that included a purpose, problem statement, literature review, methodology, results, recommendations, and conclusion. Again, we only had one week to do ALL of this. Crazy, right?! I'm not sure how I survived this week.
But I did!
First of all, my research in preparation for the debate led me to identify the following eight types of bias that are implicit in standardized testing:

• Standardized tests rely on prior knowledge that is culturally relevant (Choi, 2020).
• Standardized tests underestimate the importance of language proficiency (Kim & Zabalina, 2015; Phillips, 2006). 
• Standardized tests do not take into account the impact of cultural differences in the way language is used (Kim & Zabalina, 2015).
• Standardized tests do not take into account the impact of cultural differences in the way scenarios are interpreted (Kim & Zabalina, 2015).
• Timed tests exacerbate bias (Kim & Zabalina, 2015).
• Standardized tests do not take into account cultural differences in student motivation (Phillips, 2006). 
• Standardized tests cause test-taking anxiety that is elevated in some groups due to stereotype threat (Choi, 2020).
• Standardized tests that involve human scoring are subject to subjective bias on the part of the evaluator (Kim & Zabalina, 2015; Phillips, 2006).

​​ Second, I identified the following two purposes for my action research project:

1. Collect data from teachers about their perceptions regarding evidence-based instructional strategies for diverse learners, and their current use of these strategies in the classroom.
2. Identify high-quality, research-based instructional practices that teachers can use to help ensure rigorous, differentiated instruction for diverse learners. 

I also evaluated the date I collected from my teacher perception survey and determined that participants had the highest  awareness of instructional strategies related to student-self efficacy, hands-on learning, and providing students with opportunities to engage in concrete experiences before introducing abstract representations. Participants had mixed perception of the need to provide multiple modalities for students to explore new concepts; and demonstrated lowest perception of strategies related to proactively including differentiation in the overall design of instruction. Ethnographic analysis of the open ended-response questions helped to clarify that teachers, on average, had a significantly high perception of evidence-based strategies for diverse learners, but were not completely aware of the the underlying theories or how to translate these theories into practice. 

Module 6 - ​Okay, this is getting rediculous

This week I got to research more about integrated unit plans and I developed a science lesson sequence that integrated math, social studies, and ELA standards. I then assessed my lesson plan using the ADDIE Framework for curricular design. The ADDIE framework includes the following phases:

1. Analysis: determine the instructional goals and identify the attributes of the learner audience and learning environment.
2. Design: Develop and storyboard the scaffolded learning experiences in the learning sequence, including activities, assessments, and resources. 
3. Develop: Build the curriculum per the specifications laid out in the design phase and test it out to ensure the design meets the objects outlined in the analysis phase. 
4. Implement: Train the instructor on how to use the curriculum and develop a system for collecting ongoing feedback about how well the curriculum meets learner needs.
5. Evaluate: Analyze the feedback data collected throughout the implementation phase and at the end, and reflect on how to improve the curriculum moving forward.

The summative assignment for this week was to create a slide presentation on the process of creating socioculturally sensitive, integrated curricula. Check out my slide presentation below. It includes examples from the lesson I designed. 

Module 7 - Hello, is anyone out there? 

During week 7 I enjoyed researching classroom management strategies for diverse learners and creating an infographic highlighting my findings. I used Canva for the first time and love all of the templates it provides but hate all of the technical glitches I encountered. So I guess you could say I have a love, hate relationship with Canva now. Learning to use Canva and creating the infographic took two full days - and I do mean all day Saturday AND all day Sunday! But I'm proud of the infographic I made, which can be downloaded here. I've also included screenshots below. But sometimes its frustrating to put so much work into something without an authentic audience, so hello, is anyone out there? Give me a shout out in the comments if you read my infographic. Thanks!

Module 8 - Good Grief!

In week eight we focused on evidence-based, student-centered instructional strategies. I collected so many great resources this week. Well, that happens every week, but still, I'm really excited to share the plethora of graphics I found...

Note. From TeachThought (n.d.a.).

Marzano's Nine High Impact Strategies for Teaching Critical Thinking

Note. From Cates (n.d.) and TeachThought (n.d.b.).

Gaming Dynamics to Boost Student Engagement

Note. From MacMeekin (2013).

Grouping Strategies

Note. From MacMeekin (2013).

After researching evidence-based, student-centered instructional strategies, we had to evaluate the instructional strategies we found this week and consider how we know if an activity fulfills the criteria for authentic or student-centered instruction and what indicators reveal if an activity creates a more engaging learning environment among diverse students. I developed the following table.

​Student Engagement Indicators

Note. Palasigue (2009) provided insight for the factors indicated above.  

We also had to conduct a qualitative interview with a veteran teacher from a different cultural background than our own to discover how they ensure  rigorous and appropriate technology, resources, and instructional materials to engage learners in their own classroom. We had to incorporate all of this into a best-practices guide of at least eight pages for novice teachers to direct their selection of resources, technology, materials, and classroom management strategies for a rigorous and appropriate curriculum for all learners; AND it had to be aligned with key conclusions from UNESCO's “Education: The Necessary Utopia." Good Grief! I wonder if my instructor realizes that more is not always better. Sometimes more just means that students only have time to focus on the abundant surface ideas and not enough time to go deeper and make important, meaningful connections. ​

Check out my guide!...

Module 9 - I see a light at the end of the tunnel

Week 9 already? Hahahahahahahahah!!! I cannot believe the weekly requirements of this course.
Anyway, this week we had to create a audiovisual presentation sharing the results of our action research project. As anyone who has ever made a video knows, it's a lot of work. But with no further adieu, here you go...

Click Here to View My Video
Student-Centered Instructional Strategies
​for Teaching Diverse Learners

Module 10 - I think I'm going to need a longer break

​During this final week of the course, we researched strategies for effectively using technology in the classroom to support diverse learners, and then created this blog. I create the following table to address technology in the classroom.

​Examples of Benefits of Integrating Technology into Instruction for Diverse Learners

Note. The strategies in the table are adapted from New EdTech Classroom (n.d.). Additional sources for the table include American College of Education (2019), Edutopia (2007), and Little (2013).

I also found this great little set of suggestions from Edutopia (2007)...

When asking questions like, “How will technology help your students better understand content,” think about diverse learners and how technology will enhance learning for all students. For example, some students may not have access to the internet or may come from homes where technology is limited for cultural reasons. I work with a district in Southern California that has a lot of Native American students who live on a reservation where the community does not allow internet for culture reasons. Other students may have disabilities that make them less able to access certain technologies. Text to speech, ability to change font size, language translators, and built in dictionaries are examples of accessibility features that can make certain technologies work better for students with special needs. Work with families to identify barriers to technology use, and collaborate with families and your school site on effective solutions. 

“When technology integration in the classroom is seamless and thoughtful, students not only become more engaged, they begin to take more control over their own learning, too. Effective tech integration changes classroom dynamics, encouraging student-centered project-based learning.”   (Edutopia, 2007, para. 1)

I made it! I survived this course and learned so much in the process. But there was so much great content that I'm going to need time to finish processing through it all in order to work on successfully translating theory into practice. I think I'm going to need a longer break. My next course starts in two weeks - eek!

​​I just want to thank all of my friends and family who put up with my text messages and Facebook posts venting about the amount of work in this class. I really do appreciate all of your encouragement!

​One great thing that happened this term is that I coordinated a series of Equity in Education workshops for California teachers and I used stuff I researched each week to help inform those workshops. You can access the  videos, slide decks, and any additional resources from the various workshops from this Google folder.
​

I hope you got a lot out of this blog and I invite you
​to share your own resources in the comments section.
​

References

• Adams, B. (2018). Toward relevant immigrant pedagogy: Teacher and student Interactions In an urban classroom.  Journal of Behavioral and Social Sciences, 5, 119-135.
• American College of Education. (2019). CI6103 Curriculum and Instructional Design for Diversity: Module 1: Part 2: Reflecting on Multimodal Strategies [Presentation Transcript]. Canvas@ACE. 
• Athuraliya, A. (2021). The ultimate list of graphic organizers for teachers and students. Creately. https://creately.com/blog/diagrams/types-of-graphic-organizers/. 
• Bandura, A. (1977). Self-efficacy: Toward a unifying theory of behavioral change. Psychological Review, 84(2), 191–215. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-295X.84.2.191.
• Campbell, Y., & Filimon, C. (2018). Supporting the argumentative writing of students in linguistically diverse classrooms: An action research study. RMLE Online: Research in Middle Level Education, 41(1), 1–10.
• Cates, M. (n.d.). Common Core integrating with Marzano and Danielson [Slide Presentation]. Palm Beach County Schools. https://www.plan.lib.fl.us/files/MarzanoHandout1.pdf​
• Cimermanová, I. (2018). The effect of learning styles on academic achievement in different forms of teaching. International Journal of Instruction, 11(3), 219–232.
  
• Choi, Y.W. (2020). How to address racial bias in standardized testing. Next Generation Learning Challenges. https://www.nextgenlearning.org/articles/racial-bias-standardized-testing.
  
• ​Cornell University. (n.d.). The Cornell note taking system. The Learning Strategies Center. https://lsc.cornell.edu/how-to-study/taking-notes/cornell-note-taking-system/.
• Doran, P. R. (2015). Language accessibility in the classroom: How UDL can promote success for linguistically diverse learners. Exceptionality Education International, 25(3), 1–12.
• Edutopia. (2007). How to integrate technology. George Lucas Foundation. https://www.edutopia.org/technology-integration-guide-implementation
• Hahn Tapper, A. J. (2013). A pedagogy of social justice education: Social identity theory, intersectionality, and empowerment. Conflict Resolution Quarterly, 30(4), 411–445. https://doi.org/10.1002/crq.21072.
• Integrated Learning Strategies. (n.d.). Learning styles: Why “one size fits all” doesn’t work. https://ilslearningcorner.com/2016-02-learning-styles-one-size-fits-all-doesnt-work/​
• Kain, P. (1998). How to do a close reading. Writing Center at Harvard University. https://writingcenter.fas.harvard.edu/pages/how-do-close-reading.
  
• Kim, K. H. & Zabalina, D. (2015). Cultural bias in assessment: Can creativity assessment help? International Journal of Critical Pedagogy, 6(2), 129-147. 
  
• Little, T. (2013). 21st century learning and progressive education: An intersection. International Journal of Progressive Education, 9(1), 84–96.
• LSI Analysis & Presentation. (n.d.) David A. Kolb's learning style inventory. https://lsibba310.weebly.com/introduction-to-kolb-learning-style-inventory.html
• McCarthy, G. (2015). Motivating and enabling adult learners to develop research skills. Australian Journal of Adult Learning, 55(2), 309-330. 
• New EdTech Classroom. (n.d.). How to use education technology in the classroom: The ultimate guide. https://newedtechclassroom.com/how-to-use-education-technology/
• New Zealand Ministry of Education. (n.d.). UDL and differentiation and how they are connected. https://inclusive.tki.org.nz/guides/universal-design-for-learning/udl-and-differentiation-and-how-they-are-connected/ 
• Nganga, L. (2014). Multicultural curriculum in rural early childhood programs. Journal of Praxis in Multicultural Education, 9(1), 29–49. https://doi.org/10.9741/2161-2978.1073
• Palasigue, J. T. (2009). Integrating whole brain teaching strategies to create a more engaged learning environment. Online Submission.
• Pappas, C. (2013). The myth of learning styles. eLearning Industry. https://elearningindustry.com/the-myth-of-learning-styles​
  
• Phillips, M. (2006). Standardized tests aren't like t-shirts: one size doesn't fit all. Multicultural Education, 14(1), 52-55.
  
• Picciano, A. G. (2017). Theories and frameworks for online education: Seeking an integrated model. Online Learning, 21(3), 166– 190. https://doi.org/10.24059/olj.v21i3.1225
  
• Robert Wood Johnson Foundation [@RWJF]. (2021, Jan 14). When it comes to addressing our nation's critical health challenges, the greatest opportunity for lasting change often lives within public policies that affect #healthequity and well-being [Tweet]. Twitter. https://twitter.com/RWJF/status/1482016169007759360?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1482016169007759360%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.rwjf.org%2F 
• Saulnier, B. (2016). The application of writing across the curriculum (WAC) techniques in a systems analysis & design flipped classroom. Information Systems Education Journal, 14(4), 13–19.
• TeachThought. (n.d.a.). 28 student-centered instructional strategies. https://www.teachthought.com/pedagogy/28-student-centered-instructional-strategies/
• TeachThought. (n.d.b.). What are Marzano’s 9 instructional strategies for teaching and learning? https://www.teachthought.com/learning/instructional-strategies/
• Tajfel, H., Turner, J. C., Austin, W. G., & Worchel, S. (1979). An integrative theory of intergroup conflict. Organizational identity: A reader, 56-65.​​