engleski

Differentiated Instruction in the EFL classroom: Insights from the Croatian context

The aim of this paper is to examine the attitudes of Croatian teachers of English as a foreign language (EFL) towards the role and use of differentiated instruction in the language classroom. Using an online questionnaire, we investigated how frequently the participants encountered various classroom situations or performed specific activities when teaching English to mixed-ability groups, and which type of students were most likely to receive differentiated instruction. Also, we inquired into their familiarity with nine differentiated instruction strategies defined by Tomlinson (2001), and drawing on their experience of teaching English as a foreign language (TEFL), explored their opinion on the strategies they used in the classroom, the challenges they faced when using differentiated instruction, and the factors that caused mixed-ability classrooms. The findings in this study reveal a gap between teachers’ perceptions of differentiated instruction at the theoretical level and their actual use in EFL practice. Teachers seem to be aware of student differences and claim that they use differentiated instruction, in particular with weaker students. They also maintain that they are familiar with specific teaching strategies ; however, when reference is made to classroom practice, the participants seem to demonstrate inadequate knowledge and tend to use a rather limited repertoire of strategies. The findings also reveal that the participants have a negative attitude towards mixed-ability classes, which they believe have an adverse effect on teaching and learning. It will be argued that teachers would benefit from more training in the field so as to be able to capitalise on student diversity and put theory into practice in the EFL classroom

Differentiated instruction, EFL, ELT, English teachers, mixed-ability, TEFL

nije evidentirano