Jessi Towne

EDUG 512
PRQ #7
November 12, 2015

How can I direct and facilitate a variety of learning experiences for all
students?
When I was in school, learning was all about standardized tests and making
sure every student was performing at the same level. Learning was about covering
the material that was supposed to be covered instead of uncovering the reasons
behind why we learned what we learned. There was no differentiation for meeting
the needs of all learners. When I become a teacher, I will direct and facilitate a
variety of learning experiences for all students by getting to know my students,
using multiple means of representation, and differentiating the content of the
curriculum.
Knowing your students means that you understand them well enough to be
able to segment instruction according to his or her specific needs. TPE 8.2 states
that an effective teacher uses formal and informal methods to assess students
prior mastery of academic language abilities, content knowledge, and skills, and
maximize learning opportunities for all students (Commission on Teacher
Credentialing (CTC), 2013). According to Vygotsky (1978), students have what is
called a zone of proximal development, which is the difference between their actual
development and their potential development (p. 86). When you know your
students, you know each students zone of proximal development and are able to
adjust your teaching methods to meet their needs. Teachers that really know their
students are effective in differentiating instruction to direct and facilitate a variety
of learning experiences for all students.
Differentiating instruction means providing multiple ways of presenting
information so that students can learn information in the way they learn best.

According to Universal Design for Learning (2008), multiple means of representation

allows the teacher to meet the needs of all students by providing multiple ways of
presenting the instructional material (p. 8). When the students are given multiple
ways of learning the information, they will gain experience and express attitudes of
desire and purpose for the subject matter. Dewey (1973), says that Experience
does not go on simply inside a personit influences the formation of attitudes of
desire and purpose (p. 516). When you differentiate the learning experience for
every student, each person is gaining a new perspective in experiencing the subject
matter.
Curriculum content can be differentiated from the rest of the curriculum in
order for the students to be able to maximize their learning potential. According to
Burden and Byrd (2013), a few ways content can be differentiated are by using
texts, computer programs, videos, and other media to convey key concepts to
varied learnerspresent instruction through both whole-to-part and part-to-whole
approaches (p. 43). When the content of the curriculum is differentiated, then I will
be able to facilitate and direct a variety of learning experiences for each student
according to their needs.
Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn.
Benjamin Franklin was a wise man who knew that experience was the difference
between understanding and truly learning. If I can involve my students in the
educational process, I can equip them for life. When I become a teacher, I will direct
and facilitate a variety of learning experiences for all students by getting to know
my students, using multiple means of representation, and differentiating the
content of the curriculum.

References
Burden, P.R., & Byrd, D.M. (2013). Assessing and Reporting Student Performance.
Methods for effective teaching (6th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson
Education, Inc.
Burkhardt, W. (2014, July 1). Universal Design for Learning: An Overview and
Examples of How to Use It in the Classroom. Retrieved September 24, 2015,
from
http://learn.vanguard.edu/pluginfile.php/420250/mod_resource/content/1/UDL Burkhardt.pdf
Commission on Teacher Credentialing. (2013). California teaching performance
expectations. Retrieved from http://www.ctc.ca.gov/educator-prep/TPAfiles/TPEs-Full-Version.pdf
Dewey, J. (1973). Experience and Thinking. In The Philosophy of John Dewey. (Vol. II,
pp. 494-506). New York, NY: Capricorn Books.

Vygotsky, L.S. (1978). Interaction between learning and development. In Mind in

Society: The development of higher psychological processes (pp. 79-91).
Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.