Differentiated Instruction and Student Achievement

Differentiated instruction (DI) has been suggested as the solution to educational inequalities and the solution to responding to students’ achievement levels or mixed learning needs (Gamoran, 2009; Prast et al., 2018). Yet, teachers have reported not feeling well-prepared, nor fully understanding the concept of DI even after receiving district-level [in-service] DI professional developments ( Gamoran, 2009; Pozas et al., 2020). Postsecondary institutions need to incorporate DI curriculum into their teacher preparation programs to train teachers regarding DI concepts and how to implement DI practices successfully within heterogeneous classes.