Integrating differentiation in English education methods courses: Learning from the perceptions and experiences of teacher candidates
Abstract
The practice of inclusion as a response to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act means that English teachers teach students who demonstrate a wide range of abilities in the same classroom. This qualitative study explored the developing attitudes toward differentiation of English education teacher candidates participating in a methods course cotaught by an English education professor and a special education professor. Findings revealed that their pedagogical beliefs were influenced by having knowledge of individual students, proactively engaging with professional concepts, and attending to students’ affective needs in academic contexts. The teacher candidates in this study were able to discuss differentiation, but they struggled to implement it in practice; therefore, we argue that instruction on differentiation must be explicitly integrated into English methods courses. Using cognitive flexibility theory, we suggest ways teacher educators can help future teachers develop advanced knowledge of differentiation to meet the needs of their future students
Reference
West, J. A., & West, C. K. (2016). Integrating differentiation in English education methods courses: Learning from the perceptions and experiences of teacher candidates. Teacher Educator, 51(2), 115-135.
Journal
The Teacher Educator
Analysis
Is this article part of a larger project or series of studies?
yes
Does this study draw on a large, preexisting data set?
no
Research Approach
Geographic Setting
Institutional Context
Certification Level
Programatic Focus
Research Location Context
- ELA methods course
- field-based methods course
Preservice Participants
- Graduate Students
- Undergraduates (university based program)
Preservice Sample Size
Duration of Data Collection
Data Sources
- assignments
- Interviews
- Observations
Data Analysis Tools
- Case study analysis
- coding (emergent categories)
- Inductive analysis
Researcher Positionality
- inside (staying their own students)
- Inside (studying their own practices)
Research Questions
In this study, we explored teacher candidates developing attitudes toward differentiation in the context of a co-taught methods class and their practicum placements.
Is this research question explicit from the manuscript? No