Effectiveness of Differentiated Instruction in
Teaching English for Grade Four Classes
Mary Joy V. Olicia
Researcher
I. Introduction
Like Science and Math, English is a difficult but important subject because the
curriculum considers it as a tool subject needed to understand the different content subjects.
Basically, it is concerned with developing competencies in listening, speaking, reading, writing,
and viewing. Speaking includes skills in using the language expressions and grammatical
structures correctly in oral communication while writing skill includes readiness skills,
mechanics in guided writing, and functional and creative writing (DepEd K to 12 Curriculum
Guide for Grade 4).
The K to 12 Basic Education Curriculum aims to help learners understand that the
English language is involved in the dynamic social process which responds to and reflects
changing social conditions. It is also inextricably involved with values, beliefs, and ways of
thinking about the person and the world people dwell. The curriculum aims that pupils are given
an opportunity to build upon their prior knowledge while utilizing their own skills, interests,
styles, and talents.
However, teachers find difficulties in teaching different kinds of pupils with different
intellectual capacities, talents or skills, interests, and learning styles, especially in heterogeneous
groupings of pupils. This situation calls for teachers to create lessons for all pupils based on their
readiness, interests, and background knowledge. Anderson (2007) noted that it is imperative not
to exclude any child in a classroom, so a differentiated learning environment must be provided
by a teacher.
Differentiated instruction is based on the concept that the teacher is a facilitator of
information, while students take the primary role of expanding their knowledge by making sense
of their ability to learn differently (Robinson, Maldonado, & Whaley, 2014).
Wilson (2009) argued that differentiated instruction is the development of the simple to
the complex tasks, and a difference between individuals that are otherwise similar in certain
respects such as age or grade are given consideration. Additionally, Butt and Kusar (2010) stated
that it is an approach to planning, so that one lesson may be taught to the entire class while
meeting the individual needs of each child.
According to Tomlinson (2009), DI as a philosophy of teaching is based on the premise
that students learn best when their teachers accommodate the differences in their readiness
levels, interests, and learning profiles. It sees the learning experience as social and collaborative.
The responsibility for what happens in the classroom is first to the teacher, but also to the learner
(Subban, 2006). Additionally, DI presents an effective means to address learner variance which
avoids the pitfalls of the one-size-fits-all curriculum. Stronge (2004) and Tomlinson (2004)
claimed that addressing student differences and interest enhance their motivation to learn and
make them to remain committed and to stay positive as well.
Stravroula (2011) conducted a study investigating the impact of DI in mixed-ability
classrooms and found that the implementation of differentiation had made a big step in facing the
negative effects of socioeconomic factors on students’ achievement by managing diversity
effectively and providing learning opportunities for all students. The positive change in students’
achievement had shown that differentiation can be considered an effective teaching approach in
mixed-ability classrooms.
Furthermore, Servilio (cited by Robinson, 2014) studied the effectiveness of using DI to
motivate students to read and found out that an average of 83.4% of the students’ grades
improved in reading, 12.5% remained the same, and 41% of the grades decreased.
As an educator, the teacher-researcher was motivated to conduct this action research on
the effectiveness of DI in teaching English to Grade Four pupils for a week-long lesson. She also
wanted to know the effect of this method on the academic performance of the pupils from the
results of the diagnostic and achievement tests.
In light of the previous statements, this study determined the effectiveness of conducting
DI in Grade Four English classes. Specifically, it answered the following.
1. What is the performance of the two groups of respondents in the pretest?
1.1. Control group
1.2. Experimental group
2. What is the performance of the two groups of respondents in the posttest?
1.1. Control group
1.2. Experimental group
3. Is there a significant difference between the pretest scores of the control and experimental
group?
4. Is there a significant difference between the posttest scores of the control and experimental
group?
