Curriculum and Instruction: Vehicle for Addressing Student Needs

My favorite part of this chapter was the topic of curriculum and instruction being the vehicle for differentiation. The different aspects that go into this are:

• Scaffolded
• Important
• Focused
• Engaging
• Demanding

The chapter focuses in on each one of these to accurately describe how these are the tools that actually drive curriculum and instruction as the vehicle.

Important: 

-What we study is essential to the structure of discipline

-What we study provides a roadmap toward expertise in a discipline

-What we study is essential to building student understanding

-What we study balances knowledge, understanding, and skill

Focused:

-Whatever we do is ambiguously aligned with the articulated and essential learning goals

-Whatever we do is designed to get us where we need to go

-Both the teacher and students know why we're doing what we're doing

-Both the teacher and students know how parts of their work contribute to a bigger picture of knowledge, understanding and skill

Engaging:

-Students most often find meaning in their work

-Students most often find the work intriguing 

-Students see themselves and their world in their work

-Students find the work provokes their curiosity

Demanding:

-The work is most often a bit beyond the reach of each learner

-Student growth is nonnegotiable 

-Standards for work and behavior are high

-Students are guided in working and thinking like professionals

Scaffolded:

-The teacher teaches for success 

-Criteria for success are clear to students

-Criteria for classroom operations and student behavior are clear to students 

-Varied materials support growth of a range of learners

-Varied avenues to learning support a variety of learners

-Small and large group instruction focuses on varied learners needs