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ERIC Number: EJ997221
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2012
Pages: 12
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0022-8958
EISSN: N/A
Programs in Practice: Differentiated Instruction--Begin with Teachers!
Hewitt, Kimberly Kappler; Weckstein, Daniel K.
Kappa Delta Pi Record, v48 n1 p35-46 2012
In Oakwood City School District, differentiation is--and has been for a number of years--their primary academic goal. In Oakwood, the Core Team, a group of teacher leaders and administrators that has been instrumental in the implementation of differentiation, has used Tomlinson's (2007) "fire and light" metaphor to identify strategies to ensure deep implementation. "Light" symbolizes efforts to beckon and draw teachers toward the change. Such strategies include professional development, modeling, celebration, and teacher leadership. Not all teachers, however, respond to being beckoned by the light. "Fire" strategies are, therefore, necessary for the few who resist change in the face of overwhelming data in support of the change. "Fire" symbolizes the use of cognitive dissonance to help those who need to change to understand, through the presentation of data, that their current behaviors are less effective than the proposed changes. Cognitive dissonance makes it difficult for people to maintain status quo performance, because over time they come to realize that the status quo might not be what is best for students. "Fire" strategies that help to increase awareness and create cognitive dissonance include differentiated supervision, providing "required choice" professional development, and aligning teacher evaluation to the change initiative. This article focuses on the last of these--aligning teacher evaluation to the change initiative. (Contains 1 figure.)
Routledge. Available from: Taylor & Francis, Ltd. 325 Chestnut Street Suite 800, Philadelphia, PA 19106. Tel: 800-354-1420; Fax: 215-625-2940; Web site: http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: Elementary Secondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A