EDUC 307 Instructional Practices for Differentiated Instruction

Course Description

This course addresses the principles and best practices for differentiating instruction to meet the individual needs of the learner. *Please note, this course is not part of a program leading to eligibility of a Virginia state teaching license (or license in any other state). Individuals seeking to obtain a state teaching license should contact soelicensure@liberty.edu for recommended course options.

For information regarding prerequisites for this course, please refer to the Academic Course Catalog.

Course Guide

View this course’s outcomes, policies, schedule, and more.*

View Course Guides

*The information contained in our Course Guides is provided as a sample. Specific course curriculum and requirements for each course are provided by individual instructors each semester. Students should not use Course Guides to find and complete assignments, class prerequisites, or order books.

Rationale

Differences in intelligence, development, social preferences, and physical and spiritual maturity cause students to have disparate needs and learning styles. Therefore, effective instruction must provide learners with multiple options for processing information and understanding ideas. Through the concept of differentiated instruction, introduced in this course, teachers are equipped to address the learning diversity found in today’s classrooms.

Course Assignment

Textbook readings and lecture presentations

No details available.

Course Requirements Checklist

After reading the Syllabus and Student Expectations, the student will complete the related checklist found in the Course Overview.

Discussions (4)

Discussions are collaborative learning experiences. Therefore, the candidate will complete 4 Discussions throughout the course. The purpose of Discussion assignments is to generate interaction in regard to relevant course topics. The candidate is required to post 1 thread of at least 250 words, and respond to 1 other candidates’ with a reply of at least 150 words. Each thread must include at least 1 citation in current APA format. Acceptable sources include textbooks, journal articles, and notes. Any sources used should be cited in current APA format. (CLO: A, B, C, D)

Unit Plan Assignments (6)

Unit Plan: Foundation Assignment

The candidate will complete the Unit Plan: Foundation Template explaining the ideas for the Unit Plan: Foundation Assignment. The document must include a unit theme, character principle, proposed grade level, subject, and primary SOL for subject. (CLO: A, E)

Unit Plan: Alignment Assignment

In preparation for creating a detailed lesson plan and a week learning module later in the course, the candidate will complete an assignment on aligning state standards, written objectives, and correlating assessments. The state standard (SOL) should be taken from the Unit Plan: Foundation Assignment. The candidate will first complete the Unit Plan: Alignment Explanation and Practice activity (this portion is for practice only). Following this, the candidate will complete the Unit Plan: Alignment Template with the following information: state standard, cognitive level, 3 learning objectives, and 3 corresponding assessments. (CLO: D, E)

Unit Plan: Lesson Plan Assignment

The candidate will locate his/her selected grade level, subject area, and state standard derived from the previous two Unit Plan Assignments, and then the candidate will choose one relevant topic around which he/she will develop a detailed lesson plan. The candidate will then complete his/her lesson plan using the provided Unit Plan: Lesson Plan Template. This lesson plan will then fit within his/her Unit Plan: Module Assignment. (CLO: A, D, E)

Unit Plan: Differentiated Assignment 

The candidate will add a plan for differentiation to the Lesson Plan created in the previous assignment. The candidate incorporates specific differentiated instruction within the teaching of the concept as well as the practice of it. The candidate will utilize the provided Unit Plan: Differentiated Template to complete the assignment. The candidate will complete the first portion of the template, the lesson preparation details, with the details from the previous assignment. When creating the Class Description/Diversity, the candidate will ensure that the class (grade level, type of school, number of students, disability categories, placement, and any other relevant data) is clearly described. It should also include a description of the characteristics of the varying abilities and disabilities. The description of the class should have a student who is ESL as well as a disability. In the plan for differentiation, the candidate will describe how to differentiate his/her lesson plan to meet the learning needs of the students described in the Diversity portion. (CLO: C, E)
 
Unit Plan: Module Assignment
 
In this assignment, the candidate will build an entire module of lessons for the subject and state standard he/she has been working with. The candidate will complete the assignment in the provided Unit Plan: Module Template. After writing a brief unit description, the candidate will create a class description and make sure to include a student with ESL and a student with a disability. The unit description and class description must total at least 1 page. After this, the candidate will create a week’s worth of block lesson plans for his/her chosen SOL (or his/her own state standard if chosen) as described in earlier assignments and include a sample assessment/evaluation for each of the 5 days of instruction in his/her block plans. The candidate will utilize the grading rubric as well as the provided sample to guide him/her. (CLO: B, D, E)
 
Unit Plan: Accommodations Assignment
 
Utilizing the provided Unit Plan: Accomodations Template, the candidate will create 10 accommodations to support students as if they were participating in the week of lesson plans the candidate submitted in the previous assignment. One of the accommodations will be the classroom arrangement which will apply to all students in the class. For the remaining 9 accommodations, the candidate will choose and create accommodations for nine student profiles from the provided Case Studies document. Within the plan for 10 accommodations, the candidate must include a section for classroom arrangement, rewritten text, and adaptive/assistive technology, as well as 7 additional and appropriate accommodations to support the special needs of the remaining students. Each accommodation should be described in detail, include some type of visual, and should coincide with the curriculum and needs of the students for success in the general classroom. The candidate will utilize the provided sample to help guide him/her, as well as the rubric which explains specific expectations and details that need to be included in the final plan. The candidate will utilize Microsoft Copilot to help generate ideas for each accomodation and must include AI citations where appropriate. (CLO: C, E)

Quiz: Assignment Progression

The candidate will read the Assignment Progression Chart and complete a quiz. This quiz will contain 5 multiple-choice questions, is limited to 1 hour, and allows for multiple attempts with the highest attempt counting as the grade. (CLO: E)

Quizzes (5)

The candidate will complete 5 quizzes based on assigned textbook readings. These quizzes will be completed within McGraw-Hill. The candidate may utilize the textbook or other resources when completing each quiz. (CLO: A, B, C, E)

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