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Assignment)3:)Diversity)and)Inclusion)Portfolio)
EDUC)4720:)Differentiation)for)Diverse)Learners))
By)Phoebe)Budge)
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It! is! to! my! understanding! that! my! comprehension! of! differentiation! and! inclusion! will! continue! to!
develop!over!time.!These!two!terms,!although!they!are!interconnected,!have!vastly!different!meanings!
when! used! in! the! classroom.! According! to! Jane! Jarvis,! differentiating! is! often! simply! defined! as!
modifying! and! adapting! the! curriculum! for! individual! students! with! identified! disabilities! or! other!
special!educational!needs!(2010).!However,!as!Jarvis!elaborates,!we!discover!that!differentiation!is!a!
broader!concept!that!is!relevant!to!all!learners!in!all!classrooms!(2010).!General!classrooms!that!are!
differentiated!effectively!find!all!students!are!more!responsive!and!engaged!in!the!learning!(Jarvis,!
2010).!These!days,!teachers!can!expect!to!have!a!range!of!diversity!in!their!classes!(Foreman,!2014).!
The!term!diversity,!according!to!Phil!Foreman,!can!be!applied!to!students!family,!social!and!cultural!
backgrounds,!ethnic!origins!and/or!ability!levels!(2014).!Teachers!are!also!likely!to!teach!a!student!
with! a! diagnosed! disability! (Foreman,! 2014).! The! term! inclusion,! relates! to! the! successful!
incorporation!of!all!students!regardless!of!diversity.!This!is!elaborated!on!in!The!Disability!Standards!
for! Education! (AttorneySGenerals! Office,! 2005),! as! they! describe! the! inclusion! of! students! with! a!
disability!should!involve!a!standard!curriculum!that!does!not!separate!or!discriminate!the!individual.!
Therefore,!it!is!through!differentiation!and!education!surrounding!the!Disability!Standards,!that!one!
can!create!an!inclusive!classroom!for!all!students.!!
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The!school!that!I!was!placed!at!for!my!final!year!practicum!is!classified!as!Category!7!on!the!DECD!
Index!of!Educational!Disadvantage!scale.!According!to!the!2015!external!school!review,!the!schools!
population!includes!1.5%!Aboriginal!students,!5%!students!with!Disabilities,!17%!students!with!
English!as!an!Additional!Language!or!Dialect!(EALD),!1%!young!people!in!care,!and!10%!of!families!
eligible!for!School!Card!assistance!.!Spread!among!the!4!classes!that!I!taught!were!5!international!
students!(all!of!different!readiness!levels),!7!students!with!learning!difficulties,!2!students!with!a!
learning!disability,!and!13!students!with!varying!EALD!levels.!The!subjects!that!I!taught!these!
students!were!year!8!Home!Economics,!year!9!English,!year!10!English!and!year!11!Drama.!Through!
discussion!with!various!staff!members,!it!became!apparent!that!the!level!of!student!readiness!in!
most!classrooms!was!commonly!varied.!As!I!was!working!with!4!different!year!levels,!I!was!in!contact!
with!quite!a!few!different!support!systems!and!year!level!coSordinators!to!ensure!these!students!
were!provided!with!the!appropriate!level!of!support!and!guidance!they!needed!to!succeed.!!!

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Within!my!first!few!observation!days,!I!was!overwhelmed!by!the!constant!disruptive!behaviour!of!
the!students!within!the!classroom.!I!soon!realised!that!I!had!not!witnessed!any!differentiation!within!
the!classroom.!By!chance,!I!sat!next!to!an!international!student!who!was!asked!to!complete!the!
same!English!comprehension!task!as!the!rest!of!the!class.!From!a!short!conversation!with!this!
student!I!learned!that!he!had!only!been!in!Australia!for!a!few!weeks!and!still!needed!to!use!a!
translator!to!assist!with!his!reading!in!the!classroom.!Following!this!lesson,!I!was!provided!with!
access!to!the!schools!DayMap!staff!portal.!From!here,!I!was!able!to!identify!the!diverse!student!
needs!within!each!class.!I!found!myself!in!what!Kristina!Doubet!and!Jessica!Hockett!(2015)!describe!
as!the!inescapable!dilemma;!a!classroom!filled!with!students!of!differing!readiness!levels.!This!led!
to!large!disruptions!within!the!classroom!and!little!work!being!achieved!by!all!students.!When!
beginning!to!plan!each!class!unit,!I!used!the!steps!provided!by!Doubet!and!Hockett!to!cater!for!
varying!readiness!levels.!These!steps!included;!decide!what!all!students!could!probably!benefit!from,!
look!for!distinguishing!patterns,!make!general!notes,!determine!what!students!will!need!to!move!
forward,!generate!ideas!for!tasks,!develop!the!most!advanced!task!first,!develop!clear!directions!and!
materials!and!finally,!bring!everyone!together!(2015).!These!steps!assisted!me!in!creating!unit!plans!
that!catered!for!students!with!different!readiness!levels.!!!)
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This!particular!school!had!a!separate!student!support!system!in!place.!Students!were!able!to!visit!
this!support!system!one!day!a!week!to!be!provided!with!oneSonSone!or!small!group!assistance!
provided!by!specialist!teachers.!Having!this!specialised!support!system!in!place!seemed!to!take!a!
small!amount!of!pressure!off!the!teachers.!This!is!because!they!were!ensured!that!their!students!
would!be!provided!with!assistance!in!completing!their!inSclass!exercises!and!assignments.!However,!
within!Foremans!discussion!of!inclusion!within!the!classroom,!he!makes!a!list!of!restrictive!
educational!settings!that!are!provided!by!school!systems!(2014).!Having!a!special!unit,!much!like!the!
one!I!witnessed!on!placement,!located!in!a!regular!school!is!ranked!number!4!on!the!restrictive!scale!
due!to!its!process!of!taking!individuals!out!of!their!regular!classes!(Foreman,!2014).!A!select!number!
of!teachers!were!not!pleased!by!the!implementation!of!this!system.!For!a!large!majority!of!teachers,!
this!meant!that!classes!with!multiple!students!who!were!attending!support!on!one!particular!day!
were!missing!out!on!the!teaching!content!from!that!lesson.)This!often!resulted!in!a!lot!of!reSteaching!
of!the!same!content!on!different!lessons!throughout!the!week.!I!believe!that!my!mentor!had!much!
resentment!towards!the!extra!work!they!were!asked!to!complete!to!support!these!students!which!
was!aided!by!a!fixed!mindset.!However,!this!attitude!did!not!reflect!the!large!majority!of!teachers!at!
this!school.!A!few!extended!support!systems!were!also!provided!to!students,!such!as;!counselling!
and!the!school!Chaplain.!)

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The!schools!Context!Statement!references!their!mission!to!educate!students!to!be!inspired!to!
achieve,!discover!and!learn!about!the!importance!of!community,!to!respect!others!and!become!
active!as!global!and!local!citizens!(School,!2016).!The!Context!Statement!continues!on!to!state;!We!
believe!that!young!people!learn!best!when!they!feel!valued,!listened!to,!challenged!and,!most!
importantly!when!they!feel!cared!for!and!safe!(School,!2016).!This!relates!to!Jane!Jarvis!findings!in!
Learning!to!Teach!in!the!Secondary!School!(2015).!Within!this,!Jarvis!elaborates!on!Guiding!
Principles!for!Effective!Differentiation,!one!of!which!is!Supportive,!shared!learning!
environment(2015).!Jarvis!makes!note!of!the!importance!of!students!learning!most!effectively!when!
they!feel!supported,!safe!and!valued!within!the!classroom!(2015).!The!remaining!guiding!principles,!
which!are;!quality!curriculum!and!clear!learning!objectives,!formative!assessment!to!inform!decision!
making!and!flexible!grouping!and!ways!of!working,!are!not!mentioned!as!a!part!of!the!School!
Context!Statement!(Jarvis,!2015).!Although!it!is!not!essential!for!these!principles!to!be!a!part!of!the!
Schools!Context!Statement,!I!believe!that!all!these!would!be!highly!beneficial!if!implemented!within!
the!school.!
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In!reading!the!School!Context!Statement!before!I!began!my!placement,!I!was!able!to!analyse!how!
this!was!executed!within!the!school!within!the!first!two!observation!weeks.!An!inclusive!
environment!and!efforts!to!include!students!within!the!local!community!was!evident!within!the!
school!as!a!whole,!as!this!was!discussed!in!the!what!worked!and!what!didnt!work!segment!in!
each!weekly!staff!meeting.!However,!I!do!not!believe!that!I!witnessed!this!inclusive!environment!
within!the!classes!that!I!was!placed!in!during!my!8Sweek!practicum.!This,!however,!could!be!a!
reflection!of!the!short!amount!of!time!that!I!was!on!placement.!Whilst!I!observed!the!classes!I!was!
planning!to!teach,!I!began!to!examine!Jarvis!three!pillars!of!inclusive!teaching!for!diverse!learners!
(2015).!The!first!two!pillars!were!demonstrated!within!the!classroom!(Philosophy!and!Principles),!the!
third!pillar!(Practices),!however,!was!not!(Jarvis,!2015).!This!final!pillar!focuses!on!Proactively!
planning!to!address!differences!in!readiness,!interest!and!learning!profile!as!well!as!collaboratively!
planning!for!students!with!special!educational!needs!(Jarvis,!2015).!Through!my!mentors!planning!
of!lessons!and!assessment!tasks,!there!was!little!connection!between!creating!effective!
differentiated!tasks!that!sufficiently!linked!to!the!curriculum.!According!to!Pagliano!and!Gillies!
(2008),!the!act!of!reflection!of!student!progress!and!practices!needs!to!occur!to!inform!the!
progression!of!the!implemented!differentiated!curriculum.!Therefore,!if!there!was!constant!
reflection!of!the!differenced!tasks!that!were!implemented,!I!believe!the!classroom!would!be!on!its!
way!to!being!highly!effective!(Pagliano!and!Gillies,!2008).!!

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Throughout!my!placement,!I!attempted!to!include!differentiation!as!much!as!I!could!within!each!
classroom.!Within!the!first!10!observation!days,!I!made!notes!on!each!individual!student!relating!to!
their!learning.!It!was!very!important!to!me!to!be!able!to!understand!these!students!learning!needs,!
personalities!and!interests!before!I!began!planning.!These!notes!were!often!as!simple!as!finishes!
provided!work!quickly!or!student!A!is!heavily!distracted!by!student!B!and!C,!but!excels!with!their!
written!English!work.!This!idea!was!grasped!from!a!piece!written!by!Tomlinson!(2003)!as!I!aimed!to!
be!able!to!track!the!progression!of!each!student!over!6!weeks,!rather!than!teaching!to!the!average!
level!of!which!students!should!be!at.!These!notes!on!each!student!helped!me!create!differentiated!
unit!plans!for!each!class.!The!way!in!which!I!established!my!unit!plans!was!by!using!the!principles!of!
Understanding!by!Design!created!by!Wiggins!and!McTighe!(2011).!I!aimed!to!create!unit!plans!that!
included!a!big!idea!and!essential!questions!which!did!not!have!a!simple!yes!or!no!answer.!By!
using!this!framework,!I!was!able!to!work!backwards!and!see!what!I!wanted!the!students!to!know,!
understand!and!do!by!the!end!of!the!unit.!This!provided!me!with!a!more!freedom!to!create!
interesting!differentiated!tasks!for!the!students!to!complete!so!that!each!student!can!end!up!with!
the!same!learning!outcomes,!but!the!path!they!may!take!to!get!there!can!be!different!(Wiggins!&!
McTighe,!2011).!While!using!the!notes!I!had!previously!made!on!each!student,!I!put!a!lot!of!effort!
into!creating!an!interesting!unit!for!all!students!within!each!class.!!
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Within!my!first!week!of!teaching!these!units!of!work,!I!learned!that!there!were!still!students!who!
were!still!disengaged!with!English.!One!student!in!particular,!had!a!negative!attitude!towards!English!
as!a!subject,!and!therefore!had!a!very!low!attendance!rate.!This!student!was!difficult!to!
communicate!with,!and!was!defiant!in!producing!any!individual!or!group!work.!Through!discussion!
with!my!mentor,!and!other!subject!teachers,!I!was!able!to!establish!that!this!student!had!a!
troublesome!homeSlife!which!affected!his!engagement!in!school,!resulting!in!constantly!being!
behind!in!class.!Following!this,!the!student!was!then!absent!for!5!consecutive!lessons.!When!the!
student!returned!to!school,!I!was!able!to!have!a!conversation!about!how!we!can!engage!him!in!the!
English!class!with!a!separate!task.!The!student!expressed!that!he!loved!art.!Through!this,!I!built!a!
unit!plan!based!on!the!core!text!studied!in!class,!that!incorporated!visual!tasks!such!as!opportunities!
to!make!character!profiles,!posters!and!book!covers!(including!blurbs).!By!my!final!week!of!teaching,!
it!was!evident!that!the!student!was!more!engaged!within!English!and!began!contributing!to!class!
conversations.!Although!I!also!created!differentiated!assessment!plans!for!a!number!of!other!
students!whilst!on!placement,!this!particular!experience!was!satisfying!as!a!preSservice!teacher.!It!

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was!evident!that!my!hard!work!was!paying!off,!and!a!student!who!had!given!up!all!hope!was!giving!
the!subject!of!English!a!second!chance.!!
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Whilst!attempting!to!cater!to!each!students!learning!needs,!I!found!myself!constantly!trying!to!keep!
up!with!the!altered!tasks!I!had!provided!to!a!number!of!different!students.!I!found!that!by!getting!
the!English!students!into!a!structured!lesson!routine!assisted!this.!For!example,!each!year!9!student!
was!expected!to!bring!a!book!to!each!lesson!and!read!for!the!first!5!minutes!of!the!class.!In!this!time,!
I!was!able!to!take!the!roll!and!then!set!up!individual!students!with!their!differentiated!task!before!
providing!instructions!to!the!remaining!students.!In!the!future,!I!aim!to!work!on!my!time!
management!skills.!This!relates!to!creating!a!structure!within!the!class,!as!this!approach!worked!on!
placement,!as!well!as!learning!how!to!think!critically!about!what!lesson!should!be!taught!next!based!
on!where!the!students!are!at.!I!struggled!with!the!latter!of!these!two,!as!some!of!my!unit!plans!were!
disrupted!by!excursions,!immunisations!and!school!photos!meaning!I!had!to!decide!if!students!were!
able!to!progress!without!those!lessons.!To!assist!with!this,!I!used!exit!cards!to!see!how!much!
students!were!comprehending.!However,!better!management!of!this,!I!believe,!will!improve!my!
teaching!practice!with!diverse!learners!in!the!future.!!
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References:))
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AttorneySGenerals!Department.!(2005).!Disability!Standards!for!Education!2005!(Plus!Guidance!
Notes).!Retrieved!from!
http://docs.education.gov.au/system/files/doc/other/disability_standards_for_education_2
005_plus_guidance_notes.pdf!

!Doubet,!K.,!Hocket,!J.!(2015).!Differentiating!According!to!Student!Readiness.!Differentiation.in.
Middle.and.High.School:.Strategies.to.engage.all.learners.!Retrieved!from!
http://web.a.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.flinders.edu.au/ehost/ebookviewer/ebook?sid=11715
9faS5e83S4e8bSabb5S
12048d74518c%40sessionmgr4009&ppid=pp_173&hid=4101&vid=0&format=EB!
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Foreman,!P.!(2014).!Introducing!Inclusion!in!Education.!Inclusion.in.Action.!Retrieved!from.!
http://flex.flinders.edu.au/file/cd1a0bacS804cS43e2S834aS
6bb7b1f22bc6/1/Introducing%20inclusion%20in%20education2.pdf!!
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Jarvis,!J.!(2010).!Differentiation.for.the.many,.not.the.few.!Retrieved!from!
http://web.seru.sa.edu.au/pdfs/SERUpdate%20June%202010.pdf!!
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Jarvis,!J.!(2015).!Inclusive!Classrooms!and!Differentiation.!In!WeatherbySfell,!Noelene!(ed.),!Learning.
to.teach.in.the.secondary.school..Retrieved!from!http://flex.flinders.edu.au/file/611cb843S
4030S4b6dSb879S0acd48745619/1/Inclusive%20classrooms%20and%20differentiation..pdf!!
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Pagliano,!P.,!&!Gillies,!R.!M.!(2008).!Curriculum,!adjustments!and!adaptations.!In!A.!F.!Ashman!&!J.!
Elkins!(Eds.),!Education.for.inclusion.and.diversity!(3rd!ed.,!pp.!201S234).!Retrieved!from!
http://flex.flinders.edu.au/file/6ca17ef0S296dS4e2cS8895S
fb148534a5c8/1/Curriculum%20adjustments%20and%20adaptations.pdf!!
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School!Review.!(2015).!External.School.Review.!Retrieved!from!https://www.bhs.sa.edu.au/aboutS
bhs/externalSschoolSreview/!!
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School,!P.!(2016)!School.Context.Statement..Retrieved!from.http://www.bhs.sa.edu.au/wpS
content/uploads/2013/10/ContextSStatementSAprilS2016.pdf!!!
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Tomlinson,!C.!A.!(2003).!Deciding!to!teach!them!all.!Educational.Leadership,!61(2),!6S11.!Retrieved!
from!http://www.ascd.org/publications/educationalS
leadership/oct03/vol61/num02/DecidingStoSTeachSThemSAll.aspx!!
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Wiggins,!G.!P.,!&!McTighe,!J.!(2011).!Essential!questions!and!understandings.!In!The.understanding.
by.design.guide.to.creating.highHquality.units!(pp.!70S88).!Retrieved!from!
http://reader.eblib.com.ezproxy.flinders.edu.au/(S(wlvcg3xzxjr1oyi3ige1i1d2))/Reader.aspx
?p=698904&o=478&u=a3gvhMYMHb%2fNVCUWO0HhPw%3d%3d&t=1434415708&h=77D0
EAAE80457D6CAC0EE746E44026DA8F2252A1&s=36822035&ut=1451&pg=81&r=img&c=S
1&pat=n&cms=S1&sd=2!.

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