In our county the middle school science curriculum is very detailed and developed. The learning platforms listed below provide opportunities for teachers to differentiate based on student choice. The applications that I will discuss are Phet, Edpuzzle, and Discovery Education.
Students perform science simulations with Phet. The teacher may ask students to search the website for a simulation related to the standard. To complete the assignment, students perform the simulation, write a description or draw a picture of the simulation, and explain how the simulation helps support the learning standard.
The Edpuzzle learning platform provides teachers with videos, aligned to standards, and includes checks for understanding. The teacher may assign several video options on the platform. Students choose from these options which video appears more interesting.
Discovery education is a website which includes 100s of videos and explorations standard aligned for middle school science. The teacher may ask students to search for a video and exploration related to the key term and standard. To complete the assignment, students must watch the video, provide notes, and perform the exploration.
These learning opportunities provide students with a selection of resources and might be considered an interpretation of Universal Design for Learning, since learner preferences, and different methods to demonstrate learning, are considered (Antonenko, Dawson, Cheng, & Wang, 2020).
The strategies provide more student choice. Choice boards are another way to approach students’ differentiation. There are many articles on the topic of Choice boards on the Edutopia website. (Novak & Petit, 2024).
References
Antonenko, P.D., Dawson, K., Cheng, L., Wang, J. (2020). Using Technology to Address Individual Differences in Learning. In: Bishop, M.J., Boling, E., Elen, J., Svihla, V. (eds) Handbook of Research in Educational Communications and Technology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-36119-8_6
Novak, K., & Pettit, M. E. (2024, September 24). Using edtech tools to differentiate learning. Edutopia. https://www.edutopia.org/article/using-udl-aligned-edtech-toolshttps://drive.google.com/open?
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