So All Can Learn

John McCarthy consults and coaches educators internationally on innovative practices that support student voice, with Differentiation a core principle. Starting out as a high school teacher, and later an adjunct professor, McCarthy has taught and witnessed learning in many settings—urban to rural communities, areas of high affluence to entrenched poverty, and cultures with a fixed mindset to havens of innovation in some of the most surprising locations.

Not only does McCarthy provide the basics to bolster the masterful in his book, but he also formats the text in a way that provides maximum ease and effectiveness for deciphering and digesting his essential themes. . . . So All Can Learn: A Practical Guide to Differentiation by John McCarthy proves to be a book worth reading and discussing with educators interested in the serious yet accessible pursuit of differentiating their classroom. It is potent in the ways that count most, and McCarthy consistently brings home the central message that “because they [the students], not me, are in control of learning . . . differentiation becomes just how learning happens” (p. xi).

• Foreword: Syndee MalekIntroductionChapter 1: What is Differentiation, Really?The Challenge and Promise of DifferentiationLens on LearningThe Differentiation RelationshipThe “Real” Differentiation RelationshipFinal ThoughtsInvitations to ReflectionsChapter 2: Differentiation Can Be Done WellThe Dorothy PrincipleMaking Differentiation VisibleAssistance When Lesson Plans Run into StudentsCrossroad LessonsFinal ThoughtsInvitations to ReflectionChapter 3: Assessments Matter: making learning specific and realisticAssessment for LearningFormative Assessment Cycle (FAC)Finding TimeMultiple Ways to Demonstrate LearningEliminating Assessment FogFinal ThoughtsInvitations to ReflectionChapter 4: Informative Assessments for The Whole LearnerLearning In and Out of Airplane ModeChoice-Based StrategiesThe Whole Student: Four Data Paths that influence LearningFair is not always Equal: 4 Pathways Merge into OneFinal ThoughtsInvitations to ReflectionChapter 5: The Truth about Differentiated Instruction1. Differentiation is Too Difficult2. There is not enough time to differentiate3. The curriculum is over packed4. Need to prepare for the high-stakes tests by covering all the material5. Crowded classrooms makes differentiation too difficultFinal ThoughtsInvitations to ReflectionChapter 6: Learner Voice MattersThe Realms of DifferentiationLearner Voice over Student ChoiceLetting Go of ControlEliminating Airplane Mode in Education – Part TwoTeacher Growth-Mindset Leads to Learner VoiceCreating a Culture for Student VoicePedagogical Needs for Student VoicePractical Support of Student VoiceFinal ThoughtsInvitations to ReflectionChapter 7: Differentiation in Practice: Readiness for ALLReadiness GuidelinesTeaching Readiness through ContentTeaching Readiness through ProcessTeaching Readiness through ProductsFinal ThoughtsInvitations to ReflectionChapter 8: Differentiation in Practice: Interests for ALLInterests GuidelinesTeaching Interests through ContentTeaching Interests through ProcessesTeaching Interests through ProductsFinal ThoughtsInvitations to ReflectionChapter 9: Differentiation in Practice: Learning Preferences for ALLLearning Preferences GuidelinesLearning Profile CardsTeaching Learning Preferences through ContentTeaching Learning Preferences through ProcessesTeaching Learning Preferences through ProductsFinal ThoughtsInvitations to ReflectionAppendix: Differentiation and ResearchThe Differentiation LensFinal ThoughtsInvitations to ReflectionAcknowledgmentsAbout the Author