WGU D187 TASK 2:
ANALYZING STUDENTS
INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES
MASTER OF SCIENCE,
CURRICULUM AND
INSTRUCTION WITH COMPLETE
SOLUTIONS
7
, A. Describe strategies relevant to the practice of differentiated instruction that
you can use to learn the following information about the students in your
classroom:
• individual students’ learning preferences
To learn about individual students' learning preferences, I would mainly rely on
personal interactions and observations of the students. I typically spend a
week to start the year giving students different tasks to work on individually
and in groups, and sometimes at tables and other times moving around the
room to teach them how to work together, but probably more importantly,
learn about how they work with others, how they problem solve, and what
skills they bring to my class. Student surveys can be unreliable in what a
student claims are their learning preferences, and so it's far more reliable to
observe those preferences with your own eyes (Tomlinson, 2017).
• intelligences
Like determining students’ learning preferences, a large part of identifying
students’ intelligence preferences will come down to the interactions I have
with students and the observations I make in the classroom. It is also
advisable to plan for multiple intelligence preferences as I plan my lessons,
incorporating as many preferences as possible to provide opportunities for as
many students as possible while also allowing for various representations of
the content for all students. In addition to observations and interactions with
students, I can give students research-based surveys, designed by researchers
such as Howard Gardner (“Find Your Strengths”), to help them begin
identifying their intelligence preferences.
• culture and gender influences
To gain an understanding of culture and gender influences, a teacher could
employ a student survey. Simply asking questions about the student’s
background, home, and family life would not yield biased answers, as we
might expect when surveying students about their learning styles (Tomlinson,
2017). Still, it could yield insights into their lives that we would not typically
see in a school setting. Again, this is an instance where interactions with
students and building relationships with them can have a profound impact on
how we plan lessons to account for the many different personalities we
encounter in our classes.
• interests
Like understanding students’ cultural and gender influences, I would have
students complete a survey about their lives outside of school. Asking them
questions about what they do in their own time, what they spend their
summer doing, and any specific things they enjoy or don’t want. Students’
answers would help me find ways to incorporate their interests into my lessons
when an opportunity arises, which is always a way to increase student
engagement. This is also an opportunity to build relationships with students
through interactions. Talking to students between classes and having
7
ANALYZING STUDENTS
INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES
MASTER OF SCIENCE,
CURRICULUM AND
INSTRUCTION WITH COMPLETE
SOLUTIONS
7
, A. Describe strategies relevant to the practice of differentiated instruction that
you can use to learn the following information about the students in your
classroom:
• individual students’ learning preferences
To learn about individual students' learning preferences, I would mainly rely on
personal interactions and observations of the students. I typically spend a
week to start the year giving students different tasks to work on individually
and in groups, and sometimes at tables and other times moving around the
room to teach them how to work together, but probably more importantly,
learn about how they work with others, how they problem solve, and what
skills they bring to my class. Student surveys can be unreliable in what a
student claims are their learning preferences, and so it's far more reliable to
observe those preferences with your own eyes (Tomlinson, 2017).
• intelligences
Like determining students’ learning preferences, a large part of identifying
students’ intelligence preferences will come down to the interactions I have
with students and the observations I make in the classroom. It is also
advisable to plan for multiple intelligence preferences as I plan my lessons,
incorporating as many preferences as possible to provide opportunities for as
many students as possible while also allowing for various representations of
the content for all students. In addition to observations and interactions with
students, I can give students research-based surveys, designed by researchers
such as Howard Gardner (“Find Your Strengths”), to help them begin
identifying their intelligence preferences.
• culture and gender influences
To gain an understanding of culture and gender influences, a teacher could
employ a student survey. Simply asking questions about the student’s
background, home, and family life would not yield biased answers, as we
might expect when surveying students about their learning styles (Tomlinson,
2017). Still, it could yield insights into their lives that we would not typically
see in a school setting. Again, this is an instance where interactions with
students and building relationships with them can have a profound impact on
how we plan lessons to account for the many different personalities we
encounter in our classes.
• interests
Like understanding students’ cultural and gender influences, I would have
students complete a survey about their lives outside of school. Asking them
questions about what they do in their own time, what they spend their
summer doing, and any specific things they enjoy or don’t want. Students’
answers would help me find ways to incorporate their interests into my lessons
when an opportunity arises, which is always a way to increase student
engagement. This is also an opportunity to build relationships with students
through interactions. Talking to students between classes and having
7
