Action Research

Presentation
GEORGIA SPARGO 2017
 SCHOOL CONTEXT
The action research took place at Elizabeth North Primary.
Elizabeth North Primary is a DECD operated site and rated at
Category 2 on the ICSEA (Index of Community Socio-
Educational Advantage). The school has 619 students enrolled.
CONTEXT The school community has approximately 60% of students on
school card, 11% of students on negotiated curriculum plans, 9%
of students from non-English speaking backgrounds and 15% of
students of Aboriginal descent. The local community
experiences a high rate of transience and unemployment, and
are affected by issues associated with poverty.
 CLASS CONTEXT
20 Students; 7 boys and 13 girls. There are a range of abilities and
behaviours. 1 EALD student, 3 Aboriginal students, 1 student with
Autism and ADHD, 1 student with I level support and 2 GOM
CONTEXT students. Approx. 1/3 of the class are working below their expected
year level.
 ACTION RESEARCH FOCUS:

Differentiate learning goals and planning to

accommodate the full range of abilities in Numeracy.
Professional Teaching Standard: 1.5. Differentiate teaching to meet the specific learning
needs of students across the full range of abilities
 Differentiate planning and instruction of mathematics.
Conduct pre-assessment and group according to like
abilities, set challenging yet achievable learning goals for
Action like ability groups, implement differentiated mathematics
unit. Implement gearing down, gearing up and individual
support/enrichment strategies supported by Reys et al. &
Brodsky.
 Planning: Week 1

Maths Unit: Money: Year One

Key Ideas Vocabulary Australian Curriculum

Students will recognize Australian coins according to value. - Cents - Equal to Recognize, describe and order Australian coins according to
- Dollars - Value their value (ACMNA017).
Students will order coins according to value. - More than - Size
- Less than

Term 3 Wk. 7 (90mins) MONDAY TUESDAY (90mins) WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY

QUICK MATHS Fluency Cards Fluency Cards Fluency Cards Fluency Cards Fluency Cards

Coin Mat
MENTAL ROUTINE Coin Mat Coin Mat Coin Mat
(Pre-Assessment)

Strategy: Problematized Situation: Strategy:

Coin Ordering Coin Value
PROBLEMATIZED OR (Pre-Assessment) Coin Dot Posters.
STRATERGY LESSON PUPIL FREE DAY Students are asked to order a Create set of coin posters
set of coins. with sticky dots to represent
the cents that are in each
Share/reflect on ordering coin. Then order coin posters
strategies. by Value.
Introduce ordering by value Problematized: Situation
and cents to dollars. Your sister empties her purse
and asks you to choose
which coins you are going to
take to school to buy a treat
from the canteen with.
You lose a tooth and the
tooth fairy leaves you $2.
What coins might she have
left you?
ASIC pay the price online
game
See extension task: Equivalent
Understand numbers in
context. Introduce on smart
board symbols for cents (c )
and dollars ($).
Core Task: Coins and
Numerals cut and paste.
Students to match
independently and order if
capable.
coin amounts.

LEARNING FOCUS: RECOGNISING RECOGNISING RECOGNISING VALUE VALUE

REFLECTION
What did you notice about How did you group your Students share their answers Reflect on new learning about
the coins and the numerals? coins? and reasoning. money this week?

Key Ideas
Students will recognize Australian coins according to
value.
Students will order coins according to value.
Term 3 Wk. 8 (90mins) MONDAY
QUICK MATHS Fluency Cards
MENTAL ROUTINE Coin Mat
PROBLEMATIZED OR Problematized Situation:
STRATERGY LESSON
These cupcakes all cost $2.
They all cost different
amounts. What could they
cost?
Share/Reflect on amounts
and representing one
amount multiple ways.
LEARNING FOCUS: ORDERING/VALUE
REFLECTION
Share Problem Answers.
Planning: Week 2
Maths Unit: Money: Year One
Vocabulary Australian Curriculum
- Cents - Equal to Recognize, describe and order Australian coins
- Dollars - Value according to their value (ACMNA017).
- More than - Size
- Less than
TUESDAY (90mins) WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY
Fluency Cards Fluency Cards Fluency Cards Fluency Cards
Coin Mat Coin Mat Coin Mat Coin Mat
Strategy: ASSESMENT TASK BOOK WEEK PARADE ASSESMENT TASK
Counting up coin
collections to $2. INTRODUCE ICE CREAM INTRODUCE ICE CREAM
ACTIVITY TASK. ACTIVITY TASK.
Introduce strategies using
Strategies PPT. (counting Problem: What could I buy Design your own ice cream
on, counting by 5s and from the menu with $1? shop menu using coin
10s, and representing an amounts (number form).
amount multiple ways).
Money Bingo
Make it more than one way
worksheet.
ICE CREAM SHOP PRETEND
PLAY IN POSITIVE PLAY
ORDERING/VALUE ORDERING/VALUE
ORDERING/VALUE
MONEY IN TRANSCATIONS MONEY IN TRANSCATIONS
Reflect in pairs on Reflect on new learning
strategies. about money this week?
Pre-Assesment
Pre-Assessment

INDUVIUDAL LEARNING NEEDS:
NEPS: Foundation Level
Aiden
Blow up all task sheets to A3 size.
Brief SSO on tasks he needs to
complete.
Scribe or have SSO scribe his
reasoning.
Courtney
Modification of tasks to Foundation
level.
Working in numerals of 0 to 20.
Focus on skills of matching, sorting,
grouping.
Tracking Differentiation
Tracking of Differentiation
DIFFERNTIATION
PRE-CORE CORE EXTENSION
Group: Jett, Bladen, Lachlan, Group: Vanessa, Ciara, Claire,
Group: Connor, Aiden H, Destinee,
Tamara Chloe
Lucy, Aquek
Isabelle & Raquel ?
Count and order small collections of Australian
coins and notes according to their value
(ACMNA034).
- Equivalent values
Recognize, describe and order Australian coins
- Recognize the coins
according to their value (ACMNA017).
- Making up an amount
- Recognize the numerals
- Unable to order by value. Represent money values in multiple ways and
count the change required for simple
transactions. (ACMNA059)
- Relationship between cents and
dollars.
INSTRUCTION: INSTRUCTION: INSTRUCTION:
Small focus group during Numbers in context
and Make it Two Ways tasks.
ADAPTIONS: ADAPTIONS: ADAPTIONS:
Money Bag: keep as a neutral task across the class. Money Bag: keep as a neutral task across the class. Money Bag: keep as a neutral task across the class.
Those not ready to move into value will continue to Confident students can ORDER the cut and paste task Confident students can ORDER the cut and paste task
focus on recognizing the coins and connecting coin to by VALUE. by VALUE.
numeral.
Ask to make at LEAST 5 amounts in tooth fairy problem.
EXTENSIONS: EXTENSION TASKS:
Extension activity book organized for fast finishers/those
ready to move towards complex thinking. (VALUE,
EQUIVILANTS)
Can give fast finishers challenges to layer onto their
problems.
Anecdotal Notes: Tracking
Progression/Grouping
 Differentiated Task Examples
Strategy Lesson:
Numbers in Context

Core Task: Match the Coin,

Numerals and Words.

Extension to Core Task: Extension Task: Above Standard

Order by value. Making Equivalent Amounts

Pre-Core: Small focus

group on floor ordering
coins by value and then
matching to numerals as a
group.
 Differentiated Task Examples
Strategy Lesson:
Counting up/representing coin amounts

Core Task: Make it Two ways task.

Draw and use manipulatives.

Extension Task:
Same task with larger amounts that
challenges students to use a range
of coins.

Pre-Core: Small focus group on floor

ordering coins by value.
 Differentiated Task Examples

Core Task: What

could I buy if I had $1
to spend?
Extension Challenges for student work at year 4/5 level

Individual Adaptions:

Made a foundation level task for

our global delay student. Tracing
numerals.

Blew up task to A3 for student

with sight impairment.
 Reflective Journal
Observation Planning
Feedback from Mentors
Extracts:
Reflective
Reflective
Journal
Journal
I could see through this that there was a base
level of knowledge across all students, but lots of
misconceptions around value and formal
language. There were only 2 students who
Used my reflective journal to highlight:
demonstrated a concrete understanding of What had taken place
value Insights to student learning
Planned and unplanned differentiation
I intend to keep each mental routine quite open Learning points, questions, challenges, plans
and neutral across all ability levels. A. it is quite a for moving forward
fast paced time for questions and B. the higher
ability students can share their thinking with the
rest of the class and lead discussion

One challenge to differentiation in this lesson

was just managing the work load and
management of the room within the time
allowed. In this case, all students worked well
which meant I could focus on my small group
work however where students refused to do so it
would make it impossible for the teacher to
devote their time to a smaller group of
students
 Mentor
Mentor Feedback
Feedback Extracts

Used my Mentor Feedback:

To consider another perspective.
To help evaluate the effectiveness and worth
whileness of differentiating.
Conversation and verbal feedback to critique
my methods.
Assistance in further planning.
 SUCCSESS POINTS:

Pre-assessment and grouping of students allowed me to better understand the

abilities and prior knowledge of students.

Differentiated tasks meant students had more appropriate learning tasks to meet
their learning abilities. If I hadnt leveled tasks I would have had a group of students
who were bored and another group being left behind.

Analysis Tracking and staying on top of progression of students was pivotal to ensuring

of Data
students weren't being held back or pushed too far (notes/observations, checklists,
marking and annotating work consistently). Example: Students in core who
progressed to extension group and students in core who worked with me in pre-
core work.

A lot of the most effective differentiating is informal and unplanned. The more
practiced the teacher the easier it is to differentiate for students as you go. i.e.
different levels of questioning.
 CHALLENGES

Anne Baker Problematized situations did not allow for differentiation as they are
supposed to be open tasks for all students. So many lessons I had to sacrifice this
wider goal of adapting instruction and tasks to individual needs and adapt to the
sites math's program.

It is time consuming to plan for 3-4 different ability groups, particularly as a

Analysis
beginning teacher when planning generally is still a new process. It calls for critical
thinking and analysis.

of Data Differentiating to abilities often meant adapting tasks for the levels of grouping but
also gaps in knowledge. Adapting not just the level of the task but the nature of it.

Juggling classroom management and keeping up with extra work such as checklists
and notes was challenging where students were demanding your attention.

Grouping to ability can create concepts of the smart group and the dumb
group within the classroom community.
 Analysis of data and what was learned from the action research project?

In analysis of my data I was looking to see if differentiation had enhanced engagement and learning
outcomes. My collection methods remained the same however I relied much more on verbal feedback
from my mentors as they didn'tt have time to complete feedback forms. My analysis points continued to
feed back through my planning, the action stage, I made an effort to reconsider my grouping, level of
tasks, or which areas of my instruction were not accommodating individual needs.

Differentiation can not only mean more appropriate learning tasks are delivered to groups of students,
and the range of ability levels are accommodated. It can mean also that teachers stay more in touch
with their students prior knowledge and progression through content. It can mean we can tailor the level
as well as nature of tasks to suit the specific needs of groups. We can teach content with it in mind that
we want to see students reach their potential, not a curriculum determined stop point.

RELFECTION For beginning teachers particularly, but even for expert teachers, differentiating well demands time,
dedication and consistency. During planning, teachers must consider opportunities to level tasks and
how they will do so. They need to pre-asses students, and constantly re-asses how students are grasping
concepts. Tracking such as well as the added pressure of having different groups of students completing
different tasks can challenge teachers and classroom management. It requires to teachers to reflect on
their teaching, programs and student learning which again, requires time and also a critical eye.

How will this extend teaching practice moving forward?

This Action Research has made me determined to keep differentiation at the forefront of my teaching
practices as I move forward into my career. Particularly as a beginning teacher where it would be easy
to let it fall into the too hard basket. My goal is to focus on incorporating differentiation into my planning
and becoming more proficient at juggling classroom management and the added layer of coordination
differentiating can add. As well as the continued implementation of informal differentiating.
 ACTION RESEARCH IMPLICATIONS ON BELIEF STATEMENT:
Put further emphasis on the importance of accommodating individual learning
needs and particularly the range of abilities across your learners.
I can see now that differentiation will cross over into professional knowledge. As
you have to have competent knowledge of curriculum, content, planning and
programs to successfully differentiate across diverse learning areas.

Belief
IMPLICATIONS OF PLACEMENT EXPERIENCE ON BELIEF STATEMENT:
I would reiterate the focus on relationships for dealing with extreme behaviors.

Statement Strong systems are incredibly important for hands-off management.

Got a taste for how teachers in disadvantaged schools working with students
who have challenging home lives are much more than educators and
classrooms are much more than learning places. Teachers are often the only
reliable adults in their lives and classrooms are their home place, where they
belong.