A review by krpollard
Making the Difference: Differentiation in International Schools by William Powell, Ochan Kusuma-Powell

3.0

This was a very inspiring text with many good ideas for differentiation, and overall I would recommend international school teachers and especially international school administrators read this. However, I only gave the text three stars because for one, I disagree with much on the chapter behind girls and boys learning differently. The authors discuss much of the science, which I also question in terms of nature vs. nurture, and then fail to responsibly address the implications of these studies. And second, I found that there wasn't enough emphasis on how to make differentiation happen in less than ideal environments. For example, I teach in a school where collaboration doesn't happen and where I teach five or six classes each at different grade levels. The authors admit that differentiation is hard at first, but give few recommendations for a person in my situation, which makes me feel somewhat helpless. I resent the idea that the quality of my teaching is at the mercy of the quality of the school in which I teach.