Running Head: DIFFERENTIATING HOMEWORK

Differentiating Homework
Jason Carter
University of St. Mary

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2
Context

The school I teach at is Knoxville middle school located in Knoxville, Iowa. The students
are primarily white, lower to middle class kids. Our school system has one of the highest free
and reduced lunch counts in the state (Curriculum and Instruction, 2013). The town thrives on
the local sprint car racetrack and a 3M factory. Without these assets, the town wouldnt survive.
Each grade level consists of about 125-140 students. I teach three math classes and a technology
literacy class. For math, each of my classes are basic classes, which means I do not have any
students labeled as accelerated, slow paced, or special ed. My math classes are blocked periods,
which last eighty minutes per section. Each of my sections has roughly 26 students per class with
no co-teachers or aids.
My teaching style is task-oriented (Fischer, Fischer, 1979 p.245-254). In my classroom,
there are certain things that need to get accomplished. Our school is driven by Iowa Core
(Curriculum and Instruction, 2013). We are a school in need of assistance, so our test scores
matter. To ensure that my students are obtaining all of the information they need for their tests, I
have to be task and goal oriented. I dont like to deviate from my plans unless absolutely
necessary. I do take time to check for understanding and help struggling students; but my lessons
as a whole are never changed for the struggling learners. This is a big reason I chose the
differentiation action research topic.
The Issue
The question I am posing for my research is one about differentiating my homework. If I

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implement differentiation with my homework assignments, will homework scores and student
motivation to do homework improve? For every assignment sent home, I would make three
different assignments. One would be for my accelerated learners, one for my average and the last
for my struggling learners. They would all have the same objective, but the content and amount
of work would vary. Im implementing this strategy in hopes that every student will adequately
be able to reflect what they have learned. When all the students are assignment the same, I feel
that the struggling learners have a tough time keeping up and the gifted children get bored. I
chose this as my topic because I have an issue in my classroom with homework quality. Many
students are either turning in excellent work or poor work, with very few in the middle. This tells
me that my message may not be delivered successfully to all learners, and at the same time not
challenging some. Over the course of the school year, I have observed my recorded homework
scores, which have lead me to make this decision.
In education, differentiation is a hot topic. We have meetings about differentiation
strategies, in-services about how to differentiate our instruction and our administrators are
pushing us to differentiate homework. The Australian Journal of Language and Literacy tells us
that Effective teachers not only provide differentiated instruction and tasks, which take account
of individual needs, but also manage to facilitate the inclusion of all children within and across
tasks (2005 p. 226). I feel confident that by conducting this research, I will be bettering my
classroom.
Desired Outcome
I am hoping that by conducting this research, the data will show that differentiation of
homework assignments causes student scores to go up, and motivation to get assignments finish

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will also increase. Everything I have read has supported the idea that differentiating task and
assignments benefits student learners. Something needs to change in my classroom to ensure that
the kids are able to turn in quality work, and also be challenged with their work. I feel that by
making three different homework assignments, all of my learners will be capable of reflecting
what they know.
Negotiations
After reading Mills logistics for implementation (2012 p.71), I researched to find out if
there were any ethical issues associated with my research topic. According to Hendricks,
informed consent is required if there is any chance of harm during a research project (2013).
Fortunately, my project requires no consent form. I anticipate facing the obstacle of lazy
students. Students who dont try on their homework assignments (or dont work to the best of
their ability) could skew my data. I think I can navigate this by including them in my research
process. If I explain to them why I am changing their assignments (without revealing who has
which assignments), I feel the students will appreciate that I care enough about their education to
try new things and do their best work.

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References
Curriculum and instruction. (2013). Retrieved from
http://www.knoxville.k12.ia.us/departments/curriculum_and_instruction.php

Fischer, B., & Fischer, L. (1979). Styles in teaching and learning. Educational Leadership, 245254.
Hendricks, C. (3013). Improving schools through action research: A reflective practice
approach. (3rd ed., pp. 1-193). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education.

Literacy teaching practice: Differentiation. (2005). Australian Journal of Language & Literacy,
28(3), 225-231.

Mills, G. (2014). Action research: A guide for the teacher researcher. (5th ed., pp. 1-258). Upper
Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education.