Session 5: Responding to Diversity: Adapting and Differentiating Curriculum and Instruction (I)

E-learning/Self-directed Activity Instruction Sheet

Session 5: Responding to Diversity: Adapting and Differentiating Curriculum and Instruction (I)

Task A: A perspective of intelligence, diversity and education

1.    Listen to an excerpt of Sir Ken Robinson’s talk on youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KLi-vJSNP6U&feature=related (8:42)

2.    Write about your thoughts and/or feelings of his talk in your e-portfolio.

In the video, Sir Ken Robinson brought up the notion of multiple intelligences through the clever use of anecdote, examples and humor. He challenges the education system and calls for the cultivation of creative thinking and the recognition of multiple intelligence.

Source:  http://www.best-career-match.com/multiple-intelligences.html

What struck me was the point about “kids will take a chance. If they don’t know, they’ll have a go… They’re not frightened of being wrong… if you’re not prepared to be wrong, you’ll never come up with anything original.” 


Indeed, I often recount my days as a child where fear was never in my dictionary. 
I would climb trees, jump off my double-decker bed, touch spiders and ask numerous questions. As I embark on my education journey, where I was supposed to gain more knowledge and become a more confident person, I seem to have lost a bit of my fearlessness along the way. 
I am now equipped with the knowledge that according to social norms, girls should behave themselves, act feminine and climbing trees is a big NO NO. I acquired the knowledge that jumping off from a height is dangerous and irresponsible as I would worry my parents or bring inconvenience to others who have to watch over me or tend to my injuries. I discover that spiders are not insects but arthropods and the possible symptoms of a spider bite include muscular weakness and wheezing. As I enter adolescence, I grew more self-conscious and worried about asking the ‘wrong’ question or appear ‘dumb’ in front of my teachers and peers. 


Yes, I realized that I learned and gained knowledge as I grew older; but at the same time, I also lost some of my capacity to acquire more. Like what Sir Ken Robinson mentioned, it could be that I was educated out of my creative capacities. That is not to say that the Singapore education system is off tangent or wrong, but rather, I believe that living in this globalized era and a highly cosmopolitan society like Singapore, we need to broaden our perspective on intelligence and creativity- beyond traditional academic abilities to include a diverse range of intelligences.  

This would certainly have implication on teaching and learning as such a perspective implies that everyone has a potential; the crux is to find the optimal pathway to learning for the particular individual. For example, a student who is stronger in terms of linguistic intelligence may prefer words to another student who tends more towards logical-mathematical intelligence and learn best through numbers or logic. 


Personally, I feel that I am more of a spatial person as I like to associate pictures/images to the concepts and see the connection in my brain. Having such awareness prompted me to be aware of my teaching strategies. Just because I prefer pictures and learn best with them does not necessarily translate that my students are likewise. I need to be aware that some people might be bodily-kinesthetic inclined and require physical experiences such as concrete manipulatives or learning journeys while others might be able to grasp concepts more easily through the use of music (e.g., multiplication songs).

In the video, Sir Ken Robinson mentioned a famed British ballerina and choreographer, noted for her iconic musicals Cats and The Phamtom of the Opera. Intrigued by her life story, I did some online research and found the following:

Lynne's gift for dancing was discovered by a doctor. Lynne had been underperforming at school, so her mother took her to the doctor and explained about her fidgeting and lack of focus. After hearing everything her mother said, the doctor told Lynne that he needed to talk to her mother privately for a moment. He turned on the radio and walked out. He then encouraged her mother to look at Lynne, who was dancing to the radio. The doctor noted that she was a dancer, and encouraged Lynne's mother to take her to dance school.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gillian_Lynne

Her story reminded me of the importance of a more knowledgeable other such as the doctor or even a teacher. While her teacher suspected a learning disorder, the doctor had another take on the issue and encourage Lynne’s mother to nurture her talent for dancing. Thus, it is essential as an educator not to dismiss the “others” in our classroom. 

Source: http://wik.ed.uiuc.edu/index.php/Intelligence(s)

As my teaching philosophy is that everyone has the potential to live up to his full potential and teachers are there to as bridges to support students, bridging their gaps in knowledge and bringing them closer to their potential, I aspire to be the talent-scout and see each child holistically- both his/her strengths and weaknesses, working on their weaknesses while emphasizing and tapping onto their strengths and never put a child down. 

Source: http://www.frogview.com/show10.php?file=14750

Task B: Learning about learning styles

1.    Read the article: Dunn, R. (1990). Understanding the Dunn and Dunn learning styles model and the need for individual diagnosis and prescription. Reading & Writing Quarterly, 6(3), 223 - 247. URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/0748763900060303

2.    Based on the article, tell us what you think your learning profile might be. Submit this short write-up of your learning profile to your tutor in Session 6.

According to Dunn (1990), learning style is defined as” the way each learner begins to concentrate on, process, and retain new and difficult information” (p.224). The Dunn and Dunn learning styles model consists of five learning style stimuli, within each stimulus there are several elements (Hawk & Shah, 2007). The five stimuli and their respective elements are:

(1)   Environmental (sound, light, temperature, and furniture/seating designs)

(2)   Emotional (motivation, persistence, responsibility, and structure)

(3)   Sociological (learning alone, in a pair, in a small group, as part of a team, with authoritative or collegial adult, and wanting variety vs rountines)

(4)   Physiological characterisitics (perceptual strengths, chronological energy pattern/time-of-day energy levels, and need for intake or mobility while learning)

(5)   Psychological processing (global vs analytic, right vs left, and impulsive vs reflective)

My learning profile

(1)   Environmental:

a.     Sound (quiet, low/no distractions)

b.    Light (well-illuminated setting)

c.     Temperature (cool)

d.    Seating (soft seats with back support, rolling chairs distract me)

(2)   Emotional:

a.     Motivation (Need encouragement and see short term results/improvements)

b.    Task persistence (require short breaks, begin a task, stay with it for a short amount of time, stop, do something else, return to original task)

c.     Responsibility (Conformity)

d.    Structure (prefer structured tasks with clear directives but allow to self-organize and direct the pace and procedure)

(3)   Sociological:

a.     Prefer learning alone to understand the concept before moving on to group discussion

b.    Prefer routines that have a predictable structure yet at the same time need some variety to arouse my interest

(4)   Physiological:

a.     Perceptual strengths (visual and emotional)

b.    Time of day energy level (morning person)

c.     Intake (snack in between)

d.    Mobility (occasional)

(5)   Psychological:

a.     Analytic (learn better when information is presented step by step in cumulative sequential, logical pattern; learn in a quiet, well-illuminated setting)

b.    Global (learn with some form of intake, take short breaks, work on several tasks simultaneously, need encouragement and short, varied tasks that are interesting)

c.     Impulsive

Hawk, T. F., & Shah, A. J. (2007). Using learning style instruments to enhance student learning. Decision Sciences Journal of Innovative Education, 5, 1-19.