These lessons have shown us that style and context matter for our struggling students. A successful curriculum is not just a collection of resources that happen to align to the standards. To bring our English learners and all of our students up to proficiency, lessons need to engage and motivate students to do the hard work of practice.
To have a tool like Learning Upgrade, self paced, and based on common core curriculum is one means to the goal of recognizing the unique qualities and skills of each child with differentiated instruction. After four years, I am convinced that lesson style really does matter.
Tamara Sturak is currently the Computer Instructor at Manzanita Community School in Oakland California. She has taught computer technologies, human factors, and diversity studies in corporate, university, and K-12 settings.
- Here’s how engaging lessons motivate English learners - June 10, 2014