In the context of continuously increasing social changes and demands the urgent need to seek for effective alternative teaching methods emerges. To this end, it seems that differentiated teaching may have positive results as far as the aforementioned situation is concerned, which leads to the existence of students of mixed abilities. The applicable functionalism of differentiated teaching provides the learning context with the multilevel activation of the psychospiritual potential of each student, their active involvement in the teaching process and the development of incentives to build the newly acquired knowledge while at the same time it takes into account the level of preparedness of each student, the specific individual interests and the learning profile. On this basis, the purpose of this paper is to present an indicative teaching example with the implementation of differentiated instruction at the fifth class of elementary school in which 20 students of mixed abilities participated. The results of the teaching scenario concerning the application of differentiated instruction showed maximization at learning results and gave the chance of considering an alternative way of teaching. The results of the experimental group of students that had received differentiated instruction were compared by graded difficulty worksheets and a questionnaire for the participation and cooperation demonstrated by the students during the scenario with the results of the control group at the other fifth class at the same school that had not received differentiated instruction. The main conclusion showed that differentiated instruction has the potential to treat students equally while functioning as a mean for students’ activation, substantial participation during teaching in order to better acquire knowledge.

Limited evidence exists on how teachers contribute to student learning gains in early childhood education. This study draws on the Dynamic Model of Educational Effectiveness (DMEE) and investigates the impact of teacher factors on pre-primary students’ mathematics achievement. It also examines whether the five proposed dimensions—frequency, quality, focus, stage, and differentiation—can clarify the conditions under which these factors influence learning. Using a stage sampling procedure, 463 students and 27 teachers from Greek pre-primary schools were selected. Mathematics achievement was assessed at the beginning and end of the school year, while external observations measured the DMEE factors. Analysis of observation data using multi-trait multilevel models provided support for the construct validity of the measurement framework. Teacher factors explained variation in student achievement gains in mathematics. The added value of using a multidimensional approach to measure the functioning of the teacher factor was identified. Implications of the findings are drawn.

Implementation of “Activity Theory” in the framework of Differentiated Teaching: A Case Study

In the context of the ever-increasing structural changes, high demands and pedagogical challenges of the modern educational reality, the need to search for innovative alternative teaching methods that will contribute to the dynamic exploration and redefinition of the concept of effective school learning becomes imperative. Based on this logic and given the multifaceted heterogeneity of the student population in terms of learning readiness, interests and learning profile, it seems that Differentiated Instruction constitutes a modern teaching perspective capable of responding to the complexity of the multi-level activation of the psycho-spiritual potential of each student, in the acquisition of skills, in their active involvement in the teaching process and in the development of motivation for the construction of new knowledge. The purpose of this research study is to briefly present the effectiveness of Differentiated Instruction when applied in preschool education during the 2023-2024 school year. In order to quantitatively investigate the didactic utilization of Differentiated Instruction in the educational process, an experimental application is presented in which an observation key was used as a research tool. The results of the research demonstrated the maximization of the all-round development of all students in mixed-ability classes and highlighted the dynamics of Differentiated Instruction in terms of activating interest and the ability to enhance cognitive and metacognitive skills. The research findings, although limited, constitute the impetus for strengthening scientific and pedagogical dialogue and reflection on the meaning-making of alternative and innovative teaching applications, as well as the further implementation and utilization of Differentiated Instruction in everyday school practice. Article visualizations: