Abstract

Differentiated instruction is an educational approach that adjusts instruction to meet the needs of every student. This is done through a combination of strategies proven effective in teaching at the student’s point of learning acquisition. Because traditional instruction tends to ‘teach to the middle’, the needs of advanced and struggling students are not always adequately addressed. This article is aimed at presenting and discussing the results of a short-scaled study on the effectiveness of differentiated instruction strategies on young learners’ achievement and motivation.

Key words: Differentiated instruction, vocabulary teaching, motivation, academic acheivement 

1. Introduction

The Greek EFL classroom of the 21^st century is under evolution and in this last decade it is  evident that the population of our schools is changing, perhaps more so than ever before.  In large part, this is due to changes in

1. societal expectations
2. as well as due to economic and political factors
3. that directly affect public education.

More than that, students enter school replete with differences in personality, background and capabilities. According to Tomlinson (2000, p.1) “students who are the same age differ in their readiness to learn, their interests, their styles of learning, their experiences, and their life circumstances”.Today’s classroom is a tapestry of the world around us.  Seated side by side are students of various nationalities and cultural background;

• students diagnosed with learning problems;
• gifted students;
• children with dissimilar learning needs and a plethora of capabilities,
• varying interests and preferred learning styles;
• motivated and unmotivated students (Tomlinson et al, 2003).

This mosaic of students is a representation of our society which is transforming itself, requiring a similar transformation in the role of the teacher and the instruction modes currently used.  If teachers want to face successfully the complex pedagogical dilemmas of today’s classroom, they should learn to develop classroom routines that exploit learner variance instead of ignoring it (Lou et al., 1996). Students should not be expected to change themselves in order to fit in the agenda; on the contrary, teachers should modify the curriculum and presentation techniques in order to meet their students’ needs (Tomlinson, 1999, 2001).    

In light of the above reality the study presented in this article sought to investigate whether differentiated instruction (DI) can equip the teacher with the necessary knowledge and tools to provide all learners with equal opportunities to learn and thrive. In particular, the research sought to examine how the implementation of DI strategies into primary school vocabulary teaching may affect young learners’ achievement and motivation.