| The No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) of 2002 and rapidly increasing classroom diversity presents educators with substantial complexity in terms of students with mixed abilities, cultures, and learning styles, along with a mandate for individualized instruction. Educators are evaluating the theory and practice of Differentiated Instruction (DI) to meet the challenges presented by such heterogeneous classrooms. Differentiated Instruction adoption has been slower than expected and research suggests that a teacher's perception may be an obstacle to successful DI implementation. Teachers cite multiple reasons for their trepidation to implementing DI, including: insufficient classroom time, lack of training, lack of administrative support, and fear that inequities may result from and the assessment of minority students against differing standards. The purpose of this study was to inform educators of obstacles to Differentiated Instruction in the form of teacher perceptions. Twelve teachers were interviewed and classroom observations were conducted to examine actual DI use and teachers perceptions of DI.;The study found that more than 75% of teachers surveyed held a favorable opinion of DI as a solution for the challenges posed by the heterogeneous classroom. Teachers cited the following as significant challenges to DI implementation: 1) the amount of time required to create multiple lesson plans, 2) the availability of resources for creating multiple lesson plans, and 3) the need for more training, and 4) the time management required to conduct multiple lesson plans in a single classroom. Future research should focus on identifying efficacious interventions to address teachers concerns regarding training, preparation and classroom time management, and efficient lesson plan creation. A large-scale study on the effect of Differentiated Instruction on later academic achievement to validate the efficacy of continued DI implementation might improve teacher perceptions. |
