Teaching for Diverse and Inclusive Classrooms

A teacher's dedication to real student learning is one of their most important responsibilities (McIntyre & O'Hair, 1996). The test results have a significant impact on the teaching profession. Nevertheless, as we teach and decide what to review, change, and reteach, we get immediate and valuable information about their students that informs and impacts their methods. Inclusive classrooms' primary goal is to enhance learning for all students, regardless of their disability. Teachers must ensure that precise information about the various learning styles of students is acquired and then utilize that information to guide instruction (Pelton, 2010). It will allow them to satisfy every student's different demands, ensuring their success and bridging learning gaps. The test result can be provided as follows:

• The data they need to employ effective teaching methods with all students.
• Enables teachers to assign each student the "appropriate" assignment.
• Gives information to all interested stakeholders.
• It enables teachers to learn about the students.

Teachers can learn about their students' behaviours and thought processes by observing them in the classroom. Teachers will be able to learn how students approach challenges and carry out their different jobs by observing them in action. Also, it will reveal important details on how they interact with one another. "Observation is a great teaching resource," claims Dichtelmiller et al. (2007). Teachers are successful when they can instruct while keeping their eyes, ears, and thoughts attentive to what is happening around them. Dichtelmiller et al. (2007) listed the following advantages of observation:

• Teachers can better get to know their pupils so they can establish a good rapport with them. Students will experience safety and security, increasing their learning openness.
• The pertinent data teachers require to judge students' learning will be available.
• There will be an improvement in teachers' understanding of child behaviour and development.
• To accomplish curriculum objectives, teachers can collect proof of students' development.
• Teachers will comprehend what students have completed, communicating information to all parties involved. When they are interested in students, it will make their work more exciting and engaging.

Learner analytics is another practical resource that teachers may use. The act of collecting data on a student's academic performance and using that data to spot patterns and trends that indicate areas needing improvement is known as learner analytics (Ben-Zvi & Garfield, 2004).?

In an inclusive K–12 classroom, learner analytics may be applied in a variety of ways to the advantage of the students (Burden, 2016). The responsibility for making assessments is placed on teachers. They assess students' performance. They evaluate the degree to which the students feel at ease using the educational materials. They want to know how their method of instruction performs in the classroom. To prepare assessments, they gather information from the school all day. We might utilize the two ways listed below to collect and evaluate data on students in a classroom.?

1. Standardized tests, principal milestone evaluations, and project work: Exams taken after each unit or the academic year are how summative data is acquired. Large, multi-week initiatives also supply data. The group's development is commonly seen in this data and is frequently interpreted as such (McIntyre & O'Hair, 1996). Information may be used to assess a class's understanding of a particular level of knowledge or the effectiveness of the instructional materials (Mills et al., 2015). The following are a few options for utilizing test results:

• Formative tests: Low-stakes tests yield the most important and beneficial student data. Exit slips, mini-quizzes, and thumbs up/thumbs down voting are the most popular ways to determine what pupils understand and what to do next (Wiliam, 2011).
• Summative Test: Teachers' most common metric of student learning is summative evaluation, which includes grades on individual activities, essays, and exams. Teachers may use this data to detect learning hurdles or overall curricular dysfunction. For example, if a student's summative rating differs dramatically from past test scores, we, as teachers, may wish to look into underlying difficulties or concerns. It can give insight into non-pedagogical problems such as soft skill challenges or non-educational occurrences. Substantially influence student learning. It enables us to establish empathy and work to re-engage students (Fuglei, n.d.).

1. Observation: Teachers must learn to observe the students. We should watch our behaviours while dealing with our students, whether they are working on individual or group assignments. Each circumstance yields unique information about each student. For example, how do students behave when we walk about the classroom rather than stand in one of the teaching spots? What happens when students talk to us? What will we provide to the class? When a guest speaker addresses the class, how does the behaviour change we find in our students? How do queries get answered? How do the students reply when offered a straightforward question? How long do they spend thinking about the answer and formulating their response? (Fuglei, n.d.). The following are a few options for utilizing test results:

• Provide test results to each student individually and discuss them?
• Provide some attainable, fair goals for the kids to aim toward before the upcoming test after reviewing the results with them to motivate them to perform better (Alber, 2017).
• Make choices about student grouping and differentiation.?
• Based on data, pupils' performance on standardized examinations is divided into four groups: advanced, competent, essential, and below basic.?

Learner analytics is another practical resource that teachers may use. The act of collecting data on a student's academic performance and using that data to spot patterns and trends that indicate areas needing improvement is known as learner analytics (Dani, 2019). In an inclusive K–12 classroom, learner analytics may be applied in a variety of ways to the advantage of the students. Teachers may discover more about how kids are developing, whom they can turn to for help when they need it with a particular subject and the type of learning environment they like. Dani (2019) also thinks that teachers may utilize learner analytics in the classroom to:

• Maintain tabs on students who struggle in the classroom.
• Keep an eye on the student's degree of involvement.
• Create classes that are specifically tailored to the needs of each learner.
• The performance of the pupils should be evaluated and compared.
• Adapt teachings to each learner.

The various advantages of using student analytics in the classroom have been noted by Gisbert et al. (2015):

• Teachers can find students who are in danger.
• It can be utilized to help with finance and decision-making.
• It enables teachers to alter their teaching methods.
• It can increase effectiveness and productivity while empowering teachers to tackle any difficulties in the classroom.

According to Daniels and Minot (2019), employing learning analytics has several advantages for teachers and students. These advantages include the following:

• Collaborative learning also helps students solidify their information.
• By communicating with one another, they can raise their grades.
• One-on-one instruction will be available to students.

Moreover, learning analytics can quickly identify and diagnose students with difficulty and provide instant treatments to boost their motivation and achievement (Welsh, 2020). Student learning outcomes will improve, and resources will be used more effectively and efficiently when learner analytics and observations are used correctly. The quality of teaching and learning will be increased, and all students' learning experiences will be better thanks to these 21st-century core learning methodologies.

References

Ben-Zvi, D., & Garfield, J. (Eds.). (2004). The Challenge of Developing Statistical Literacy, Reasoning and Thinking. Springer Netherlands.

Burden, P. R. (2016). Classroom Management: Creating a Successful K-12 Learning Community. Wiley.

Daniels, L., & Minot, N. W. (2019). An Introduction to Statistics and Data Analysis Using Stata?: From Research Design to Final Report. SAGE Publications.

Dichtelmiller, M. L., Jablon, J. R., & Dombro, A. L. (2007). The Power of Observation. Teaching Strategies.

Fuglei, M. (n.d.). How Do Teachers Improve Instruction Using Test Data? Resilient Educator. Retrieved March 17, 2023, from https://resilienteducator.com/classroom-resources/how-teachers-use-student-data-to-improve-instruction/

Gisbert, M., Bullen, M., & Gisbert Cervera, M. (Eds.). (2015). Teaching and Learning in Digital World: Strategies and Issues in Higher Education. Publicacions URV.

McIntyre, D. J., & O'Hair, M. J. (1996). The Reflective Roles of the Classroom Teacher. Wadsworth.

Mills, G. E., Gay, L. R., & Airasian, P. (2015). Educational Research: Competencies for Analysis and Applications. Vital Source (for Pearson) VST E+p.

Pelton, R. P. (Ed.). (2010). Action Research for Teacher Candidates: Using Classroom Data to Enhance Instruction. R&L Education.

Wiliam, D. (2011). Embedded Formative Assessment. Solution Tree Press.