January 2012 • Volume 43 • Number 3
Differentiating Instruction for Diverse Learners
Today's middle level schools serve increasingly diverse student populations. This issue focuses on specific strategies to differentiate instruction to effectively teach all students. Articles address differentiating for English language learners and multitasking youth, building student background knowledge as a basis for instruction, and using formative assessments to inform differentiation. The issue concludes with a review of research related to capacity building to support lasting reform in middle grades schools.
Member Access articles are available for purchase.
A View from the Middle
David C. Virtue
What's in a name?
AMLE in Action
Information about what's going on at AMLE and with AMLE affiliates and members.
Make Learning Matter for the Multitasking Generation
Jill Adams
Teachers must implement strategies to help multitasking teens slow down and think critically.
Differentiated Instruction for English Language Learners as "Variations on a Theme"
Laura Baecher, Marcus Artigliere, David K. Patterson, & Adrian Spatzer
Teachers can differentiate instruction to support English language learners.
Building and Activating Students' Background Knowledge: It's What They Already Know That Counts
Douglas Fisher, Nancy Frey, & Diane Lapp
Teachers must assess and build on the background knowledge students possess.
Formative Assessment Jump-Starts a Middle Grades Differentiation Initiative
Kristina J. Doubet
A school focuses on formative assessment to support its efforts to differentiate instruction.
Writing Matters to Urban Middle Level Students
Deborah S. Yost & Robert Vogel
The Writers Matter program motivates urban youth to write about their lives.
Effective Use of Multiple-choice Items in the Mathematics Classroom
Angela T. Barlow & Amy M. Marolt
Well designed multiple-choice items can provide more than a summative check of knowledge and skills.
Departments
What Research Says
Vincent A. Anfara, Jr. & Steven B. Mertens
Capacity building is a key to the radical transformation of middle grades schools
Extensions
Every issue features questions and ideas for extending learning about topics in each article. Use the extensions to promote individual reflection, to stimulate discussion within teams, or to support professional development in your school.
Copyright © 2012 Association for Middle Level Education