Using the continuum starts with the belief that all students can learn and that all students deserve learning experiences that invite them to develop proficiency of learning goals. Carol Ann Tomlinson and Marcia B. Imbeau (2010) state:
The degree to which a teacher melds respect for the individual and belief in the capacity of the individual to succeed with the intent to know each student as individuals determines the likelihood that the goal of maximizing the capacity of each learner is operational. (p. 37)
This means when we determine that some students need support to build readiness, we can develop these supports through targeted small-group instruction. At the same time, those students who are exploring the targets within a goal can spend time independently practicing while peer assessing and self-assessing against strong criteria and exemplars. Meanwhile, students who have already reached proficiency may be working together to solve a real-world problem that invites further synthesis and application of the skills within the learning goal. Every student is engaged in learning experiences that honor where they are in their own learning continuum. This supports their needs as whole people by clarifying possibilities for learning that place them at the center of this consideration. Student learning flourishes when it emerges out of positive and purposeful interactions among the context (elements may include the environment, resources, purposes, or peers), the student, and the teacher. Each part is essential and, together, what results is compelling and empowering learning for everyone. Developing and nurturing this relationship is the most important thing we can do to soften the edges of classroom decisions, which flow out of this relationship.
Benefits
Using the learning continuum allows us to do the following.
• Imagine various ways each learner may experience the continuum.
• Ensure we develop student readiness in order to increase deep learning.
• Design preassessments that honor students’ prior knowledge and skills before beginning a learning experience.
• Create differentiated and responsive learning experiences that anticipate a variety of needs.
• Equip our students with a shared understanding of growth and proficiency so they experience efficacy and confidence in their learning.
• Increase the validity and accuracy of assessment events to determine learning progress.
• Open up our search for resources that support each student’s journey toward proficiency and beyond.
• Plan learning experiences for students who need enrichment, so they are not just doing more of the same things.
The continuum allows us to differentiate in meaningful ways for students. For example, if the learning goal is product based (for example, write a narrative essay), then the processes used to develop understanding and get to the written product can vary (for example, brainstorm topics, collaborate with others to develop the story, design an outline using a digital tool). If the learning goal is process based (for example, analyze relationships), then the product that demonstrates proficiency can vary (for example, a Venn diagram, T-chart, or debate). We have the autonomy to be flexible with how students will move through each stage and how we will meet their individual and collective needs. Karen Hume (2008) notes, “This is the art of teaching: our ability to hold expectations constant, but to pitch our instruction, based on evidence, to the right degree of challenge and the right amount and kind of support for each individual” (p. 5). We can expand when needed, support when needed, challenge when needed, and cheer when needed.
The continuum invites both teachers and learners to open to the possibility that learning happens in different ways, at different times, and with different amounts and types of practice. This is important because, as Kochhar-Bryant (2010) explains, “Assessment and grading must recognize that students learn at different rates and show growth in many ways. This more encompassing and informative system honors all the ways humans grow” (p. 176). A classroom where differences are embraced creates a climate where learning will flourish. This is just one way to work toward the larger, lifelong goals of accepting diversity, showing empathy, and practicing patience.
Exploring the Stages for Creating the Learning Continuum
The learning continuum is composed of four stages: (1) building readiness, (2) exploring the learning goal, (3) clarifying proficiency, and (4) enriching understanding. Each stage includes questions that clarify the purpose of the learning and provide a catalyst for deeper investigation. These questions support the need for purposeful engagement and intellectual challenge, creating soft edges. See table 2.1 for a brief summary of each stage’s main objectives.
While students generally move through the learning process in the order of these stages (sometimes returning to earlier stages to review or clarify content), actually creating the learning continuum requires backward planning. For this reason, we will first discuss the proficiency stage, which is the goal we want students to reach, followed by the preceding stage, exploring, and the initial stage, building readiness. We will then examine enriched understanding after exploring the first three stages.
Table 2.1: Stages of the Learning Continuum
Clarifying Proficiency
While enrichment is part of the continuum and will be discussed later, the best way to ensure absolute clarity in our assessment practices and ready ourselves for planning is to begin developing the learning continuum by clarifying proficiency. This stage focuses on the indicators of proficiency for the learning goal. It also includes a demonstration of independence, confidence, and consistency. Essential questions guide this stage.
Identifying indicators of proficiency allows us to very clearly define what it looks like when students produce artifacts of learning that demonstrate the learning goal. Because thinking happens internally, we must rely on (and invite) outward indicators of learning to infer the degree of proficiency.
It can be helpful to think of this stage as a door—call it the doorway of proficiency. This is the door a student walks through when he or she shows the understanding and skill named in the learning goal. The student must be able to independently place his or her hand on the doorknob, turn it, open it, and walk through (an exception to this may occur in the primary grades, where proficiency could occur with assistance). As educators, we do our very best to prepare students to walk through the doorway of proficiency but, in the end, we need them to be able to do it on their own. This is our shared destination, and it represents the proficiency stage of our continuum.
When working through the process of clarifying indicators of proficiency, there are three steps that will help guide us in our work: (1) identify and explore key verbs, (2) clarify the context of the verbs, and (3) explore essential questions. By engaging in these first two steps (clarifying the key verb or verbs and their context), we are essentially articulating the indicators of proficiency. We must have a strong sense of both the content and the processes to reveal the content. These kinds of considerations are important because they invite a deep understanding of the intent or purpose of the learning goals and the ways they could be lived in our classrooms. This clarity leads directly to responsive instruction and contextual assessment practices. Without clarity, the edges of our planning and subsequent assessment will harden.
Identify and Explore Key Verbs
To clarify what proficiency means for learning goals,