ABSTRACT
The mindset of a teacher contributes greatly to his or her responsiveness to the needs of students. Deficit thinking is a practice of making assumptions about a child’s ability based on perceived deficits or because of race, low-income status, English language acquisition, or a variety of other factors. Educators who value differentiated instruction need to be very aware about the beliefs they hold deep within themselves regarding student intelligence. The chapter discusses the necessary steps to have a responsive, differentiated classroom. In Differentiation and the Brain: How Neuroscience Supports the Learner-Friendly Classroom, the importance of providing multiple means of representation and expression when developing a preassessment is emphasized. Preassessment and compacting are necessary components when creating flexible small groups in the classroom. Elementary classrooms incorporate flexible groups in reading only. Perhaps movement among the groups is not as fluid as it should be, but most primary classrooms operate several reading groups.
