EDLS6507 Research Methods 1

Annotated Bibliography

Topic: Supporting the struggling student in a differentiated classroom at the Secondary Level.

By:

Nyeisha George-Minott

EDLS6507 Research Methods

Date of submission: 22 September 2016

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Annotated Bibliography

Carr J., & Bertrando S. (2012 September/October ). Top 10 Instructional Strategies For

Struggling Students. Leadership, 24-26, 38.

This publication speaks mainly of instructional strategies and tools that can be leveraged

in classrooms to support all students. Key areas such as inquiry based approaches and

scaffolding were discussed. The aim is to create a school culture that incorporates several

tools that aid the struggling student. The article was published in the Leadership

magazine dated September/October 2012 by authors John Carr and Sharen Bertrando. A

the time of publication John Carr was a senior researcher at WestED and Sharon Betrando

was a special education resource specialist, Center for Prevention and Early Intervention

at WestED. West ED is a nonpartisan, nonprofit research, development and service

agency working with education throughout the United States and abroad. Located in San

Francisco California the agency is dedicated to improving education and other important

outcomes for children, youth and adults. With 50 years of service under their belts, I see

this as a credible source to support my topic. The published article does offer key insights

into the best practices in supporting the struggling student which is one aspect of the

research topic I wish to address.

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Corley A. M. (2005). Differentiated Instruction. Focus on Basics: Connecting Research &

Practice, pp 13 - 16.

In this journal published in March of 2005, the article titled "Differentiated Instruction"

written by Mary Ann Corley highlights the need for teachers to plan their lessons to the

learners at hand rather than expected learners to adjust to lesson plans teachers organize.

Teachers need to understand and know their learners, the learners current level, strengths

and challenges, interests and preferences, and needs and goals. Differentiated Instruction

is defined and key areas teachers differentiate which include content, process and

product. The challenges faced when implementing differentiated instruction is also

outlined. Mary Ann Corley is a Principle Research Analyst for the American Institutes for

Research. At the time of publication she served as director of California Literacy

Professional Development Project (CALPRO) among several positions she has held.

With her level of expertise in her field I find her to be a valuable and credible source for

the topic at hand. I especially like the instructional strategies and techniques outlined in

the Techniques for Differentiating Instruction section. In one instance for example she

mentions assigning tiered activities to allow learners to work on the same concepts but

with varying degrees of complexity, abstractness and open-endedness. Another point

mentioned was, chunking or breaking assignments and activities into smaller, more

manageable parts and providing structured directions for each part. Both of these

strategies are quite relevant to my research topic, specifically that of dealing with

students in a differentiated classroom.

Hobgood B. (2010). Reaching Every Learner: Differentiating Instruction in Theory and Practice.

Retrieved from: Learn NC: http://www.learnnc.org/lp/editions/every-learner/6778

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While reading through this online publication Hobgood, posits the importance or reason

for differentiation. He highlights classrooms made up of students of other cultural

backgrounds and languages, younger students who may be at grade level with their peers

but lack social skills, even online learning and student with special needs. Teachers have

to deal with this wide cross section of students which places a great demand on the skills,

knowledge and disposition of teachers. He too outlines critical areas that define

differentiated instruction, (process, content, and product) but added a fourth

(environment) where he thinks differentiation can occur. This author Bobby Hobgood,

has a M.A.T from the School for International Training and an Ed.D from the University

of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. His dissertation research focused on the role of teacher

presence in online, advanced placement courses. He was a former high school French

teacher. Having written several notable online articles and other publications this source

and its content supports my topic. How can teachers support students if they don't have

the skills and coping mechanisms to relate to the diverse classroom the encounter today?

Tomlinson A. C. (1999). The Differentiated Classroom: Responding to the Needs of All

Learners. ASCD.

The book The Differentiated Classroom: Responding to the Needs of all Learners

published in 1999 by the ASCD: Professional Learning and Community for Educators

(Formally the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development). The ASCD is

an educational leadership organization, global community of Educators dedicated to

excellence in learning, teaching and leading. Carol Ann Thomlinson so ably outlines how

teachers can approach students and the classroom. Several chapters of the book describe

actual lessons, units and classrooms with differentiated instruction in action. She looks at
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both elementary and secondary classrooms in nearly all subject areas. The advice she

offers speaks to both the novice and experienced teacher and school administers who

want to incorporate differenced approaches in their classrooms. At the time of publishing

Carl Ann Tomlinson is Associate professor of Educational Leadership, Foundations and

Policy at the Curry School of Education, University of Virginia. She co-authored several

books including Leadership for Differentiating schools and classrooms along with Susan

Demirsky Allan and Assessment and Student Success in a differentiated Classroom along

with Tonya R. Moon. The Wealth of knowledge and decades of experience this author

and her book are an invaluable resource as an aid in assisting me with this topic. The key

areas outlined match well with the topic of research.

Willis S, & Mann L. (2000). Curriculum Update. Differentiating Instruction: Finding

Manageable Ways to Meet Individual Needs. Retrieved from:

http://www.ascd.org/publications/curriculum-update/winter2000/Differentiating-

Instruction.aspx

Scott Willis and Larry Mann co-authored an article in the Curriculum Update Magazine

titled Differentiating Instruction: Finding manageable Ways to meet Individual Needs in

association with the ASCD. In the Article the uniqueness of students and predicament

educators face in dealing with the diversity of students they face in the classroom.

Teachers are aiming to tailor instruction to individual needs. The proposition is that

education is not a one size fits all situation. Strategies include modifying instruction to

meet students readiness levels, learning preferences, and interests while taking the

approach of differentiating content, process and products. The authors also make mention

and quote aspects of Carol Ann Tomlinsons book The Differentiated Classroom:
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Responding to the Needs of all Learners. They outline strategies for the both the

elementary classroom and at the secondary level which is the emphasis of my research,

Supporting the student in the differentiated classroom at the secondary level.