Blog Topic #13

It is hard for me to talk about differentiation and teaching when I don’t do those things yet! But I definitely see how VTS could be used to differentiate. The main thing that comes to mind is image selection. I think selecting the right image makes all the difference in a VTS discussion. Working with my own group this semester, I have seen a difference in reactions based on the images I choose. Generally, if an image deals with subject matter that my group is familiar with, they would have a lot to say about it. On the other hand, if the image had content that they were not so familiar with, it would take them longer to reach their own interpretations. With gifted students, it would make sense to challenge them with images that may be a little more difficult to understand, whereas with struggling students, image selection may involve something that is more familiar to them. But this is not something that I have experienced yet since I’m working with college art majors.  Working with them, I realized that I had to keep challenging them, and so in terms of differentiation, I always tried to find an image that I thought would be more challenging than the last. The one time that I really saw my group struggle was the first time I showed them a photograph. The whole semester I had showed them paintings, and then I showed them a photograph; I think they were just stumped by the sudden change. I did however, select the photo because I thought they were able to deconstruct the image, and they were able to do so and quite well. After that VTS, I found myself looking for images that were more and more challenging because that was the sort of thing I was able to do with this group. Again, in terms of differentiation, I think selecting the right image makes all the difference in how much, or how little a group will participate in discussion.