Introduction
Context and Research Focus
At first I thought it was just a strong understanding of the days’ lessons that allowed certain students to finish their work so quickly. When these specific students finished their in-class assignments, they would ask if they could be “helpers around the room.” I was quick to utilize this help because, in our classroom, we encourage independence by having the students ask their classmates for help rather than relying on the teachers. After a couple of weeks, I realized there was a handful of students completing their assignments and no longer wanting to help other classmates everyday. Instead, the advanced students wanted a new assignment to work on for themselves rather than answering repetitive questions about a worksheet they already completed. On the other hand, I had a small handful of students that would get angry and frustrated because they were unable to finish their worksheets on time. Two to three times per week there would be a student crying during the math lessons because it was too hard and he/she did not have the confidence to work through the worksheet without one-on-one guidance from a teacher. Due to the commitment I have to instill motivation within my students, I realized a classroom full of frustration and boredom would not encourage my students to deepen their knowledge and understanding and I needed to create an environment where my students were enthusiastic about learning.
Varied Student Abilities
In our classroom, the achievement gap is quite large. We have five students in a Resource Specialist Program (RSP) as well as three students on prescribed medication for behavioral disorders; this is the largest number of RSP students my master teacher has ever had in a class. Unfortunately in the local school district, students are not tested for the GATE (Gifted and Talented Education) program until after they have experienced standardized testing, which takes place in second grade. Therefore, none of the students in my class are eligible for GATE. This has been difficult in my class because of the several students finishing their class work early and finding themselves bored. This has been the case mostly regarding time dedicated to mathematics. On the other hand, the RSP students find the math worksheets too difficult and they are not challenged in a meaningful way because they are leaving class with few problems completed or they are getting too frustrated I find them giving up. These observations led me to wonder what we could to differentiate work more so that students were able to succeed and be challenged at their "just right" level. Another observation in my early weeks in the classroom revolved around the use of technology. Throughout the day, from the moment the students walk in the door as well as in between each subject, my students are asking if they are able to play an app on their iPods. This started me thinking, perhaps the iPods would be a good resource to motivate my students to appreciate and be enthusiastic about mathematics.
Technology in the Classroom
Each student in our class has access to his/her own classroom iPod Touch. My master teacher and I try to promote math applications on the iPods to help the students learn on different levels in a way that may be more motivating than worksheets. The students also have access to seven computers in the classroom and while the computers have only been used for language arts at this point in the semester, the students jump on any opportunity given them to work on the computers. This has prompted my action research question to incorporate technology into the lessons to support differentiation in the classroom. I have seen how much my students like to work on their iPods and rather than seeing this technology as a fun reward for finishing their work, I want my students to understand technology as a tool and utilize their iPods to further their knowledge and understanding. I envision the iPods working as a source to help the students deepen their learning by using various apps that can teach them to find new ways of thinking and discovering ways to express this thinking to other students. I also foresee a mastery of technology helping my students down the road as they obtain ways to further their scholarship in other subjects along with mathematics. While math is such a large focus in my classroom, I decided this would be the opportune moment to actively research how technology can support differentiation among students.
Focus on Math
Math is one of the key focuses in my second grade classroom. It is the subject in which we spend the most time and have the best implemented routine. That said, I have noticed that it is also a challenging subject to teach due to the achievement gap in my class. The structure for math is the same everyday. We start with a mini lesson, continue with guided practice, and we end with independent practice. The total allotted time for math each day is about fifty-five minutes, give or take a few minutes based on the students' understanding. The challenge with this subject lies with the students finishing early and wanting something more to do, as well as those students that are too challenged during independent practice and are frustrated to the point of giving up. This has forced me to ask myself how I can teach math where it is enjoyable and has the right challenge for each student. After noticing the excitement the students have toward the classroom technology, I decided that as I am looking for opportunities for differentiation during our classroom's math time, I would incorporate this technology as well.
Needs Assessment Plan
To assess the different needs of my class in order to understand the differentiation I planned to use in my math lessons, I set up a “needs assessment” plan for my students. My needs assessment was implemented in three parts to really show the reason and motivation I had for this research.
1) I wanted to get a sense of the range of achievement in the classroom, and I did so by checking my students’ math homework every day to see which students had completed their work. I then compared this with the students’ weekly test scores and noted the students’ performance in both categories.
2) I wanted to note the students that were performing differently in my class in order to truly justify a need for strengthening differentiation in my classroom. I did this by tracking the students’ time on task as well as the time it took each student to complete the assigned math worksheet during the allotted math time in class.
3) I wanted to find out about my students’ interest in using technology as a part of differentiation, as well as focusing on their attitudes toward math and the feelings they had about their own achievement. I did this by giving my students a survey based on a “Likert scale” with the following questions:
· I am good at math
· Sometimes I find math confusing
· Sometimes math is boring
· It helps when the teacher explains the math
· I like using technology to help me learn math
The students chose their answers from the following options: Agree, No Opinion, and Disagree. This survey gave me insight into the research I needed to perform and the basis of discovering if technology is a good motivator and differentiation tool for my students.
Needs Assessment Implementation and Findings
After checking in the students’ math homework every day, I was not surprised by the students who consistently had their homework completed and turned in on time and those who did not. It was just as I expected: the students finishing their in-class assignments early were getting in their homework everyday, while my more frustrated and developing students were struggling to get their assignments turned in. On top of this, the students getting in their homework on time were consistent, if not improving, in their math tests while those students lacking homework completion were inconsistent with their scores and were not improving at the same rate as my more advanced students.
Along with keeping a journal of observation notes for the above aspects, I was able to implement a ten-minute survey for my students between our designated math time and lunch. The results from the survey are shown below:
Survey Question % To “Agree" % With “No Opinion" % To “Disagree”
I am good at math 54.2% 20.8% 25%
Sometimes I find
math confusing 79.2% 8.3% 12.5%
Sometimes math
is boring 54.2% 8.3% 37.5%
It helps when the
teacher explains
the math 83.3% 4.2% 12.5%
I like using technology
to help me learn math 95.8% 4.2% 0%
At first I thought it was just a strong understanding of the days’ lessons that allowed certain students to finish their work so quickly. When these specific students finished their in-class assignments, they would ask if they could be “helpers around the room.” I was quick to utilize this help because, in our classroom, we encourage independence by having the students ask their classmates for help rather than relying on the teachers. After a couple of weeks, I realized there was a handful of students completing their assignments and no longer wanting to help other classmates everyday. Instead, the advanced students wanted a new assignment to work on for themselves rather than answering repetitive questions about a worksheet they already completed. On the other hand, I had a small handful of students that would get angry and frustrated because they were unable to finish their worksheets on time. Two to three times per week there would be a student crying during the math lessons because it was too hard and he/she did not have the confidence to work through the worksheet without one-on-one guidance from a teacher. Due to the commitment I have to instill motivation within my students, I realized a classroom full of frustration and boredom would not encourage my students to deepen their knowledge and understanding and I needed to create an environment where my students were enthusiastic about learning.
Varied Student Abilities
In our classroom, the achievement gap is quite large. We have five students in a Resource Specialist Program (RSP) as well as three students on prescribed medication for behavioral disorders; this is the largest number of RSP students my master teacher has ever had in a class. Unfortunately in the local school district, students are not tested for the GATE (Gifted and Talented Education) program until after they have experienced standardized testing, which takes place in second grade. Therefore, none of the students in my class are eligible for GATE. This has been difficult in my class because of the several students finishing their class work early and finding themselves bored. This has been the case mostly regarding time dedicated to mathematics. On the other hand, the RSP students find the math worksheets too difficult and they are not challenged in a meaningful way because they are leaving class with few problems completed or they are getting too frustrated I find them giving up. These observations led me to wonder what we could to differentiate work more so that students were able to succeed and be challenged at their "just right" level. Another observation in my early weeks in the classroom revolved around the use of technology. Throughout the day, from the moment the students walk in the door as well as in between each subject, my students are asking if they are able to play an app on their iPods. This started me thinking, perhaps the iPods would be a good resource to motivate my students to appreciate and be enthusiastic about mathematics.
Technology in the Classroom
Each student in our class has access to his/her own classroom iPod Touch. My master teacher and I try to promote math applications on the iPods to help the students learn on different levels in a way that may be more motivating than worksheets. The students also have access to seven computers in the classroom and while the computers have only been used for language arts at this point in the semester, the students jump on any opportunity given them to work on the computers. This has prompted my action research question to incorporate technology into the lessons to support differentiation in the classroom. I have seen how much my students like to work on their iPods and rather than seeing this technology as a fun reward for finishing their work, I want my students to understand technology as a tool and utilize their iPods to further their knowledge and understanding. I envision the iPods working as a source to help the students deepen their learning by using various apps that can teach them to find new ways of thinking and discovering ways to express this thinking to other students. I also foresee a mastery of technology helping my students down the road as they obtain ways to further their scholarship in other subjects along with mathematics. While math is such a large focus in my classroom, I decided this would be the opportune moment to actively research how technology can support differentiation among students.
Focus on Math
Math is one of the key focuses in my second grade classroom. It is the subject in which we spend the most time and have the best implemented routine. That said, I have noticed that it is also a challenging subject to teach due to the achievement gap in my class. The structure for math is the same everyday. We start with a mini lesson, continue with guided practice, and we end with independent practice. The total allotted time for math each day is about fifty-five minutes, give or take a few minutes based on the students' understanding. The challenge with this subject lies with the students finishing early and wanting something more to do, as well as those students that are too challenged during independent practice and are frustrated to the point of giving up. This has forced me to ask myself how I can teach math where it is enjoyable and has the right challenge for each student. After noticing the excitement the students have toward the classroom technology, I decided that as I am looking for opportunities for differentiation during our classroom's math time, I would incorporate this technology as well.
Needs Assessment Plan
To assess the different needs of my class in order to understand the differentiation I planned to use in my math lessons, I set up a “needs assessment” plan for my students. My needs assessment was implemented in three parts to really show the reason and motivation I had for this research.
1) I wanted to get a sense of the range of achievement in the classroom, and I did so by checking my students’ math homework every day to see which students had completed their work. I then compared this with the students’ weekly test scores and noted the students’ performance in both categories.
2) I wanted to note the students that were performing differently in my class in order to truly justify a need for strengthening differentiation in my classroom. I did this by tracking the students’ time on task as well as the time it took each student to complete the assigned math worksheet during the allotted math time in class.
3) I wanted to find out about my students’ interest in using technology as a part of differentiation, as well as focusing on their attitudes toward math and the feelings they had about their own achievement. I did this by giving my students a survey based on a “Likert scale” with the following questions:
· I am good at math
· Sometimes I find math confusing
· Sometimes math is boring
· It helps when the teacher explains the math
· I like using technology to help me learn math
The students chose their answers from the following options: Agree, No Opinion, and Disagree. This survey gave me insight into the research I needed to perform and the basis of discovering if technology is a good motivator and differentiation tool for my students.
Needs Assessment Implementation and Findings
After checking in the students’ math homework every day, I was not surprised by the students who consistently had their homework completed and turned in on time and those who did not. It was just as I expected: the students finishing their in-class assignments early were getting in their homework everyday, while my more frustrated and developing students were struggling to get their assignments turned in. On top of this, the students getting in their homework on time were consistent, if not improving, in their math tests while those students lacking homework completion were inconsistent with their scores and were not improving at the same rate as my more advanced students.
Along with keeping a journal of observation notes for the above aspects, I was able to implement a ten-minute survey for my students between our designated math time and lunch. The results from the survey are shown below:
Survey Question % To “Agree" % With “No Opinion" % To “Disagree”
I am good at math 54.2% 20.8% 25%
Sometimes I find
math confusing 79.2% 8.3% 12.5%
Sometimes math
is boring 54.2% 8.3% 37.5%
It helps when the
teacher explains
the math 83.3% 4.2% 12.5%
I like using technology
to help me learn math 95.8% 4.2% 0%
For my survey, I used non-tech as well as tech-based questions to provide a baseline about attitude and beliefs that can be assessed again later in my action research to determine if there is change among my students. I have found this data helpful in allowing me to rationalize the need for strengthening differentiation in my classroom and supplementing that differentiation with technology. After implementing my needs assessment plan, I found that my students who were on-task for well over half of the independent practice time were completing their homework and improving test scores and vice-versa to those students off-task. This has proved to me that I need to find a way to motivate my students to stay on-task.
As the above table shows, 95.8% of my students like to use technology to support their learning. As a result of this official finding, I will use technology to enhance my students’ learning in hopes of motivating and encouraging a deeper level of knowledge and a want to further their learning. I look forward to using my data to find ways to encourage my students to learn in a way that will stimulate their learning goals.
As the above table shows, 95.8% of my students like to use technology to support their learning. As a result of this official finding, I will use technology to enhance my students’ learning in hopes of motivating and encouraging a deeper level of knowledge and a want to further their learning. I look forward to using my data to find ways to encourage my students to learn in a way that will stimulate their learning goals.
A Recap of the findings of my needs assessment:
· Students finishing in-class assignments early were getting homework turned in everyday
· Students getting homework in were either consistent or showing improvement in the math tests
· Frustrated and developing students were struggling to get their assignments turned in
· Students lacking homework completion were inconsistent with test scores and were not improving at same rate as the more advanced students
· Survey shows most students find math confusing at times
· Survey shows over half of the students find math boring
· Survey shows 95.8% of students prefer to work with technology to assist them in learning mathematics
· Differentiation is needed to remove frustration and boredom from the classroom
All of these student and classroom observations, along with my needs assessment, eventually led me to my official action research question.
· Students finishing in-class assignments early were getting homework turned in everyday
· Students getting homework in were either consistent or showing improvement in the math tests
· Frustrated and developing students were struggling to get their assignments turned in
· Students lacking homework completion were inconsistent with test scores and were not improving at same rate as the more advanced students
· Survey shows most students find math confusing at times
· Survey shows over half of the students find math boring
· Survey shows 95.8% of students prefer to work with technology to assist them in learning mathematics
· Differentiation is needed to remove frustration and boredom from the classroom
All of these student and classroom observations, along with my needs assessment, eventually led me to my official action research question.
Action Research Question
What happens when technology is used to support differentiation in second grade mathematics?
Sub-questions
· How does the use of technology-based differentiation impact students’ math achievement?
· How does it impact students’ engagement in the math lesson?
· How does it impact students who are high achievers? How about those who struggle with math?
· How does the use of technology-based differentiation change student-to-student interaction in the classroom?
· How does the use of technology-based differentiation change student-to-teacher interaction in the classroom?
What happens when technology is used to support differentiation in second grade mathematics?
Sub-questions
· How does the use of technology-based differentiation impact students’ math achievement?
· How does it impact students’ engagement in the math lesson?
· How does it impact students who are high achievers? How about those who struggle with math?
· How does the use of technology-based differentiation change student-to-student interaction in the classroom?
· How does the use of technology-based differentiation change student-to-teacher interaction in the classroom?