Teachers and differentiated instruction: exploring differentiation practices to address student diversity

TLDR

The growing diversity of student populations has prompted calls for differentiated instruction, yet empirical studies provide mixed evidence on teachers’ reported use of DI. This study investigates German native-language and mathematics teachers’ use of DI practices, examining how school track and teachers’ constructivist beliefs influence implementation. Using nationally representative data from Germany’s National Educational Panel Study, the authors performed a mixed analysis of covariance to assess DI practices across school tracks and belief levels. Results show that teachers implement DI only occasionally, with advanced secondary teachers applying it less, while stronger constructivist beliefs are positively associated with greater DI implementation.

Abstract

Given the increasing diversity of the student body, teachers are called to appropriately address students’ various learning needs by means of differentiated instruction (DI). However, empirical research has yielded mixed evidence on teachers’ reported use of DI. Using nationally representative data from the National Educational Panel Study in Germany, this article aimed to explore German (as native language) and Mathematics teachers’ use of DI practices. In addition, this study took into consideration contextual factors, such as school track, and investigated the impact of teachers’ constructivist beliefs on their DI implementation. Results from a mixed analysis of covariance indicated that teachers occasionally implement DI practices. Furthermore, between‐subject effects reported differences across school tracks. It appears that advanced secondary school teachers implement less often DI practices. The covariate of teachers’ constructivist beliefs was also positively linked to overall teachers’ implementation of DI. Implications of the results, as well as further lines of research are discussed.