Differentiating Instruction With Technology:

            What Is It?

                              How do you do it?


Part 1:  The Deception

From time to time,  I present workshops about differentiating instruction and technology to a group comprised mostly of teachers. I've learned from my experiences that most of the participants  who attend my workshops have minimal computer skills. They are comfortable with Microsoft Word, their eMail, and looking for information on the Internet.Occasionally, I get one or two teachers who are really  advanced with their computer skills - but it's not the norm.  With this information in mind, I start my workshop by assigning the participants the following activity.  Please read the activity thoroughly.
  

Welcome Activity – “It’s All About You!”

Directions:

  1. All participants will create a PowerPoint presentation introducing themselves to the group.
  2. Presentations must consist of at least 10 slides.
  3. There must be at least 4 different slide transitions.
  4. You must import a minimum of 5 graphics from the internet.
  5. You must use one streaming video.
  6. Hyperlinks should be included to at least three of your favorite websites.
  7. Please use the slide master setting for a consistent, but creative background.
  8. Custom animations should be selected for a pre-timed presentation, not to exceed 4 minutes.
  9. You will have one hour to complete this assignment. This assignment will count towards the requirements recently amended by the N.J. DOE for receipt of professional development hours for this workshop.


After I hand out the assignment, I advise the group that they better get going on it because “the clock is ticking.”  Then, I make myself look busy fumbling with paperwork. In reality, I’m peaking out of the corner of my eye to see how everyone is coping with this arduous task!  (If you haven’t read through the assignment, go back and read the directions.  You will see that it requires advanced skills in the use of PowerPoint, as well as manipulating files, graphics, videos, etc.)  Ninety-five percent of the participants usually sit frozen in their seats, not knowing where to begin, as my average workshop participant has limited or no knowledge about PowerPoint. 

After a few quiet moments, the participants start to make some noise.  One person will raise their hand and ask for help – or someone else will quietly call me over and confide in me that they don’t know PowerPoint.  As soon as the ice is broken, everyone chimes in to let me know they are feeling intimidated. (Sometimes with laughs, and sometimes with dirty looks!)

Instead of soothing them, I take the opportunity to let them know how disappointed I am about their incompetence. “What do you mean, you don’t know PowerPoint?,” I ask.  I advise them that I know how to use it, so they should know how to use it, too. “What’s wrong with you?” I ask over and over again.  I then go into a gentle tirade about the situation.  Their faces go blank – and in one workshop, a woman asked if she could have her money back!

Then, it’s my turn to break the ice – and I say to the group, “Okay – I have another assignment, which you may like better.”  At that point, I hand out the following assignment:

Welcome Activity  # 2 – “It’s All About You!”

Directions:

  1. All participants will introduce themselves to the group by completing one of the following activities:

    1. A PowerPoint presentation about yourself
    2. A written paper about your life
    3. An oral presentation about yourself
    4. A collage, using magazine pictures, about yourself
    5. A picture using crayons, magic markers, or paint depicting yourself
    6. Create a bulletin board about yourself and your family
    7. Create a poster with pictures depicting your life and yourself.
    8. Create a skit or short play introducing yourself to the group
    9. Create a video presentation for the group about yourself
    10. Design a scrapbook page(s) about yourself

By now, everyone realizes the first assignment wasn’t real – that I was trying to make a point.  The second assignment was “doable,” in that everyone in the group could find an activity they were comfortable with, or knew how to do.  What differentiation is, then, is a way of looking at teaching with the premise of "one lesson, one activity, doesn't fit everyone."