Differentiating Instruction for At-Risk Students: What to Do and How to Do It

No single approach to teaching is effective with all children; each helps those with identified learning-style strengths to increase their knowledge base within the first three or four months of classroom use. Some learners will want to continue using a single method; others will prefer a variety of approaches. When the activities described herein are introduced to students whose learning styles they match, most will demonstrate strong abilities to learn and remember new and difficult content within the first four months of beginning_if not earlier. This book is written to prevent more children from becoming at risk and to help those who already have fallen behind their classmates and do not enjoy school. Each chapter describes different instructional strategies, a summary chart shows how to match at-risk learners with the specific approach most likely to substantially increase their academic achievement. These instructional approaches are designed to engage youngsters in action-oriented activities that gradually increase cognition and help children to internalize and retain what they are taught. Applications of these instructional strategies are suggested for increasing performance in literacy, mathematics, science, and social studies.

Table of Contents:
Chapter 1 Who Are Students At Risk of Academic Failure and How Should We Teach Them? Chapter 2 What Is Learning Style? Chapter 3 Teaching Global Students Globally Chapter 4 Redesigning Classrooms for Increased Comfort and Concentration Chapter 5 Teaching Tactual Students Tactually Chapter 6 Teaching Kinesthetic Students Kinesthetically Chapter 7 Teaching Peer-Motivated Students with Small-Group Techniques Chapter 8 Teaching At-Risk Students with Contract Activity Packages Chapter 9 Teaching Visual/Tactual Students Who Need Structure with Programmed Learning Sequences Chapter 10 Teaching Unmotivated Students with Multi-Sensory Instructional Packages Chapter 11 Experimenting with Learning-Style Instructional Strategies in Practitioner-Oriented Steps Chapter 12 Research on the Dunn and Dunn Learning-Styles Model: How Do We Know It Works? Chapter 13 How Schools, Parents, and Courts Can Respond to Federal Law and Improve Classroom Teaching for At-Risk Students

About the Author :
Rita Dunn is professor and director of the Center for the Study of Learning and Teaching Styles, St. John's University. Andrea Honigsfeld is associate professor and associate dean in the Division of Education at Molloy College in New York.

Review :
Whereas some pedagogical approaches will be more effective with particular learners, stimulating and engaging teaching through individuals' learning styles is effective for all students. The effectiveness of both differentiation and learning styles is confirmed by research and is critical for teachers who work with at-risk students. This book provides a guide for educators world-wide to differentiate through a organized approach to learning. Dunn worked to identify research-based methods of instruction in education long before it became the mandate to employ such interventions. This compilation of years of well-researched strategies advocated by Dunn and Honigsfeld is a valuable resource for educators at all levels. As schools engage in the strategic work of closing the achievement gap for their at-risk populations, differentiation is the most important tool. Principals and teachers committed to supporting the needs of diverse learners should read this book. It is filled with practical resources and strategies for enhancing the delivery of instruction and increase results for nontraditional learners! Differentiated Instruction for At-Risk Students is a superb text that guides educators to use the learning styles of different kinds of at-risk students to help them to be successful. The instructional approaches provided are realistic and responsive to at-risk students' learning styles. Guidelines for implementing each strategy with graphics and instruments. are also provided. Here is an easy to use, realistic guide that can make a different for our lowest achieving students. Dunn and Honigsfeld have done an outstanding job synthesizing over 850 research studies and translating them into hands-on learning styles strategies for use with at-risk K-12 students. This is a book for teachers and administrators that combines innovative instructional approaches with administrative suggestions for preventing school failure and focusing on the goal of preventing learners from falling through the cracks. A must-have for all professional libraries!