Different or Differentiated? Recoupling Policy and Practice in an Era of Accountability

• In Event: Intense Challenges and Opportunities in Curriculum Policy

Abstract

Differentiation is an instructional practice teachers employ to modify their classroom content, process, and products based on student readiness, interest, and learning profile. Many school districts recognize the benefits of differentiated instruction and thus mandate classroom time for it. In this paper, we investigate how teachers in one such district resolved differentiation policy to practice in a high-stakes testing environment. We found, during the designated time for differentiation, teachers regularly remediated small groups but did not similarly address the academic needs of advanced students, thus not enacting the disciplinary standard for differentiation. We suggest teachers are recoupling practice and policy but misaligning it to the disciplinary definition of differentiation, which we contend has broader implications for instructional policymaking.

Authors

• Allison W. Kenney, RMC Research Corporation

• Susan Dulong Langley, University of Connecticut

• Vonna Hemmler, Amherst College

• Carolyn M. Callahan, University of Virginia

• Elizabeth Jean Gubbins, University of Connecticut

• Del Siegle, University of Connecticut