Submitted as partial fulfillment of the requirements for the master's degree in educational management. NU will clearly identify my name(s) as the author(s) or owner(s) of the Submission, and will not make any changes, except as permitted by this License, to your Submission. Implementation of differentiated teaching approaches in practice to meet the needs of students is currently one of the widespread issues that require many teachers to change and change their perceptions and practices towards teaching and learning.
The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore teachers' perceptions and practices about differentiated education in one of the intellectual schools in South Kazakhstan. To conduct an in-depth analysis of the problem in one of the secondary schools of southern Kazakhstan, a case study approach was carried out.
Introduction
Therefore, strengthening knowledge should be one of the main focuses when teaching children (TIMSS, 2015). One of the main objectives of this national curriculum is to provide quality education for all, regardless of their learning capacity. Therefore, a differentiated teaching approach is one of the most important approaches that teachers should use.
The purpose of this qualitative study is to explore teachers' perceptions and practices about differentiated instruction in one of the intellectual schools in southern Kazakhstan. This chapter demonstrates an introduction to the thesis, research problem and purpose of the study, research questions and its significance.
Literature review
The use of traditional teaching in the classroom did not encourage learners to develop their thinking and creative skills because teacher-centered learning limited them to only memorizing facts (Yakavets, 2014). The purpose of the learning profile differentiation is to help learners see how they learn best as individuals, and what works best for them (Roiha, 2014). The learning environment in a classroom also plays an important role in supporting the learners to achieve success and progress.
Additionally, changing teaching methods or changing classroom layouts as often as possible can encourage students to progress toward high achievement (Tomlinson, 2014). As a way of moving from traditional to personal assessment, it is suggested that students be taught to keep personal portfolios where each student's progress and other information can be found.
Methodology
I sent an informed consent letter to the school principal detailing the purpose of the study and the procedure for conducting the study. I then had an individual meeting with the school principal to discuss all the details of the research and get his permission. The participants signed the informed consent letters and they were given copies of the same consent forms.
An audio recording of the interviewee's speech is essential as it enables the researcher to go back and analyze the data thoroughly and deeply (Creswell, 2014, p.243). Focus group discussion was conducted with five other different subject teachers to get the shared perceptions and concerns of the teachers about differentiated instruction. The focus group discussion (FCD) added to my findings from the individual interviews and expanded some of the teachers' answers.
This section presents the process of analyzing data collected from interviews, focus group discussions and observations. In this research, a manual analysis was used to analyze field notes of observation of qualitative data. I also saved copies of the interviews on Google Drive to make sure I had extra copies.
Participants were informed about the purpose, approach, length and nature of the study so that they could determine what was required of them. Participants were informed about the purpose of the study and all the procedures, including what they had to do. I also strictly protected the confidentiality and anonymity of the participants by using a pseudonym.
Findings of the study
The study showed that the teachers who participated in this study are aware of the concept of differentiation, but they perceive this concept in their own way. Participants in the focus group discussion observed that differentiation is a way of preparing graded tasks for different students in the classroom. Although seven of the participants out of eight have worked at this school for more than three years, they could not tell what types of differentiation teachers should use in a regular classroom.
One of the barriers to teachers not using the differentiated approach is that it is time-consuming. One of the teachers said that she does not know any type of differentiation apart from graded tasks. During the history lesson, the students learned about the founding of the Ak Orde, one of the most important events in the history of the Kazakh nation.
Students were expected to create their own programs at the end of class. This was a contradiction because she was also one of the teachers who answered that she knew nothing about types of differentiation. I couldn't find relevant articles in Russian, and I suspect that this is one of the challenging issues in Russia as well.
The focus group participants confirmed that they individually try to develop their expertise, but they face problems with research articles due to their poor knowledge of English. Finding resources and adapting them to the student's level is a time-consuming process. Before starting work with a new class, teachers must identify the learning styles, characteristics and interests of the students.
Discussion
They also partially try to take into account learners' readiness, interests and learning profiles to predict the differentiated teaching. However, they are not ready to share their practices because they believe that they have insufficient experience, they have limited understanding of differentiated instruction and they do not use all elements of differentiation properly. What they were anxious about was finding time to help their colleagues implement differentiated instruction.
Teachers' practice of differentiated instruction has been researched around the world in various educational organizations (Clift & Brady, 2005; Darling-Hammond, 2010; Santangelo & Tomlinson, 2012) and research results show that teachers need good modeling. This study also demonstrates that teachers strongly need support to ensure the correct use of differentiated instruction. The practices of the teachers also showed that the time for planning and carrying out lessons depends on the experience of the teachers.
One of the important challenges facing teachers is the issue of standardized tests. Participants of the current study mentioned that the use of differentiated instruction depends on the grades. In their study, McTighe and Brown (2005) tried to find an answer to the question of whether standards and differentiation can coexist (p. 242), and it was maintained that teachers should make it a target for differentiated instruction to use in the classroom despite the fact that there was a need to meet exam outcomes.
Some interviewees of the current research were quite satisfied that they had already implemented differentiated instruction in their classroom and used it on a regular basis, but the observation revealed that they rate themselves higher. The participants further indicated some of the challenges they face such as lack of time, lack of resources and lack of knowledge. Stuart and Rinaldi (2009) stated that in enriching teachers' understanding and implementing differentiated instruction in a regular classroom, teachers' cooperation and collaboration play a key role.
Conclusion and Implications
Teachers know about certain types of differentiated strategies and use them successfully in their classrooms, but they are not confident that they are using differentiated instruction appropriately in their practice. Some of them prefer not to implement differentiated teaching in the classroom because they are afraid of using it in the wrong way. However, teachers' practice in differentiated teaching appeared to depend on the age group and grade level of the students they taught.
Some participants could not indicate what types of differentiation they knew, but lesson observations revealed that they use differentiated instruction successfully in their classrooms. Additionally, teachers recognize the importance of using differentiated instruction in the classroom to provide students with all learning opportunities to succeed, but there are several barriers teachers face that prevent them from using differentiation in their practice. Searching for resources, finding them, and adapting them to the level of their students is a time-consuming process, so teachers find it difficult to plan every lesson with elements of differentiated instruction.
The participants in the research appreciated the support the school administration provided to develop their understanding of differentiated instruction. Thus, policy makers are suggested to develop the manual of differentiated instruction in Russian and Kazakh, and to distribute it to all mainstream schools so that teachers obtain guidance on its types, forms and use. Inappropriate and insufficient knowledge about differentiation causes confusion, fear and improper use of differentiated teaching in the classrooms.
Teachers understand the value of differentiated instruction and have some experience using them in their classrooms. It is important to take immediate measures to encourage teachers to develop their knowledge and skills on differentiated teaching (dedicate time, develop sharing practices between experienced and non-experienced teachers, reduce workload, provide available resources (in Kazakh, Russian) and PD on differentiated teaching). 2014) Introduction to Research in Education. Initiating differentiated instruction in mainstream classrooms with inclusion learning support students: A multiple case study.
Retrieved September 28, 2018, from https://www.brighthubeducation.com/teaching-methods-tips/106939-history-of-differentiated-instruction/. Teacher learning through self-regulation: An exploratory study of alternatively prepared teachers' ability to plan differentiated instruction in an urban elementary school.
