Group Leadership Project Final Product

Part 1
http://screencast.com/t/XCF7mbaU
Part 2
http://screencast.com/t/bHLK8h1vuIa
Part 3/Conclusion
http://screencast.com/t/UwOL8YlM

For our Group Leadership Project we explored the course management system, Moodle.  We used Prezi to make a presentation about Moodle and its capabilities.  Then after developing the Prezi, we used Jing to record the presentation.  We used Jing to record the presentation because of its ease of use and it is what we felt most comfortable with.  The only downside that I have found with Jing is that it only allows you to record five minutes at a time.  This is the reason you see three different parts of our presentation.

I learned a lot about the capabilities of Moodle and Prezi during the development of the final product.  In particular, I learned that you can manipulate almost any image to fit into a Prezi.  With that in mind, I think Prezi gives the user more capabilities than traditional presentation tools.

If I had to develop a similar product again I think I would try out more of the capabilities of the technological tool being implemented.  I have learned a lot by studying the capabilities of Moodle and using some of the options in the class I am teaching.  However, I think I learn best by doing and this would have been an awesome opportunity to try all of the features as I was learning about them.

WPP Final Product

The Problem
The problem that I addressed with my Wicked Problem Project was that I was not getting quality feedback from discussion questions during class.  


The Solution
The solution that I found was using Polleverywhere.com to have students answer discussion questions using the poll everywhere website or by texting their answers.  


TPACK
The technology that I have chosen to use is a classroom polling program called Poll Everywhere.  With Poll Everwhere I can set up poll questions that students can answer by texting from their cell phones or by using computers with internet access.  The goal is to use this technology to enhance my pedagogical strategies in the classroom.  The pedagogical strategies are active classroom discussion and informal assessment.  A large part of my teaching strategy is having active classroom discussions and getting feedback in the form of informal assessments.  Typically, in my Advanced Web Publishing class, I will only get feedback from a few of the students.  As a result, I know what those students know about the content, but what about the other 28 students in class.  I think that by having some of these discussion questions on Poll Everywhere then more students will feel free to respond to questions because they won't have to talk in front of the class and because they may be motivated to use technology in this way. 

This technology also plays an important role with the content that I am teaching.  It could be used for a variety of topics and content.  For my web publishing class, it could be a great tool to have students brainstorm and post their thoughts for web publishing ideas.  This could help students facilitate one another with ideas that they could use on their own web projects.  Discussing, sharing ideas, and reflecting is something that must be done to further understand any content and this technology helps to facilitate that. 

Like I mentioned above, discussions and reflections are an important pedagogical approach to understanding content.  For this, students will reflect on their own knowledge of the content and also be able to learn from others through the live online discussion created on Poll Everywhere.  This students will be able to experience the content by through many different types of questions posed through this resource.


Here is a link to my WPP Final Product.  I recorded my Prezi using Jing.  

http://screencast.com/t/PiWTPZu8R 

Professional Learning Plan

I made a Prezi to make a visualization of my Professional Learning Plan.  I think the most important part of this plan and the Personal Growth Plan that I created in CEP 810 is that it helps us write out goals that are specific, measurable, and attainable.  It helps us measure whether or not we are making improvements and reaching our goals.  Upon reviewing my Personal Growth Plan, I was happy to see that I had met the goals that I made early in my educational technology courses.  My goal with this plan is to get similar results.  Primarily, my goal in my Professional Learning Plan is to not be stagnant in my development as a teacher.  As a result, some of my goals are based off of this.  Most importantly, I have a goal of keeping an updated RSS feed, which is a great method for professional learning.

Here is a link to my Prezi.

http://prezi.com/vqc2ijvsq6g7/kyle-whymer-personal-learning-plan/ 

Part D - Findings and Implications

As we wrap up the end of the WPP project I am pleased to say that I have found a tool to help with the lack of classroom participation and discussion.  The use of Poll Everywhere in the classroom helped to spark interest in classroom discussions and also helped with the percentage of students participating in discussions.  I will definitely continue to use Poll Everywhere as a tool to help improve classroom discussions and get immediate feedback from the students.

Overall, the project was implemented as planned and the findings were similar to what I had hoped for.  As I have stated, I hoped that using Poll Everywhere would help to increase participation and get immediate feedback from the students in classroom discussions.  I found this tool to be successful in meeting its goal because nearly every student in class was participating in providing thoughtful feedback to the discussion questions.  Below I have embedded a screenshot of a classroom discussion using poll everywhere that shows evidence of the projects success.

There are certainly other problems that occur in the classroom that I could address as a teacher in a similar type of project.  After having completed this project I think one thing that I may approach differently as a teacher with other problems in the classroom is to research technological tools and resources that may prove to be beneficial in these other situations.  I learned some valuable lessons in this project with using technology to improve discussions.  Of course, I would let others know about the awesome capabilities of using classroom polls to improve discussion and get immediate feedback.  Another thing I might let other teachers know about is how the students are able to answer questions anonymously using this technology.  As a result, I think I would tell them that it may be something worth addressing before using the technology.  If I were to use this resource in class again I think that I would point out the importance of having real, quality responses to the discussion questions as a way of improving everyone's understanding.  I definitely will continue to use Poll Everywhere as a resource in the classroom and I think I will explore some other online polling programs as well to continue to improve classroom discussion and feedback.

Data Visualization and Mobile Learning Lab

Poll Everywhere
I have used Poll Everywhere a few times in class now.  I have used the questions to survey project ideas and to use as a way to informally assess the students.  The best part about it is that the students enjoy using it to participate in class.  Below you can see a screenshot of one of my classroom polls using Poll Everywhere.  

Classroom 2.0

This is another great resource to explore the ideas and learn from other teachers that are using web 2.0 technology in their classrooms.  I found it useful to learn tips from other teachers about using cell phones in the classroom.  Below you can see a screenshot of me joining the classroom 2.0 group.  

Part B - Storyboard and Script

Here is a link to our Storyboard and Script for the course management system, Moodle.  We used Google Presentations to make the storyboard and we used the "Speaker Notes" feature to add the script to the presentation.  We also added the script in a separate Google Doc.

I chose to focus my part of the storyboard on how using Moodle is different than using website builders like Google Sites and Foxbright.  Primarily, it gives teachers the option to have students upload their assignments.  Essentially, Moodle is a lot like the course management system we use at MSU, Angel.

The work on our final product will be much easier as we already have a detailed script.  We are going to adding to our focus and using a collaborative tool, such as Prezi, for our product.

Part C - Implementation

Here is a link to my podcast discussing the implementation of my WPP.

http://www.msu.edu/~whymerky/Podcasts/WPPImplementationPodcast.mp3    


Here are a couple of screenshots of the responses to the poll questions.  

Web-Conferencing

For our group project Marcus and I had a web conference using Vyew.  The web conference was good for meeting and discussing our project but we also encountered some problems.  One of those problems is that Vyew does not have a recording function.  As a result, we used Jing to record the web conference.  This was also a problem because it only picked up my voice.  I am not quite sure why my voice was the only one that was recorded.  However, this is a major issue if you want to record a web conference.  Next time I think I would try something like Skype and try to record the web conference using Camtasia.

Vyew did have some cool features, such as the ability to edit the screen, and upload images.  I've added a screenshot of our conference below that shows some of those features.

As you can see, I uploaded an image for Moodle and added some text on the same screen that Marcus had already added some text.  You can also see that we were able to use the chat feature as well.  That came in handy for us when the discussion audio and video were freezing and lagging.

This could be useful in my class as a way to have students be able to respond through the chat while I use the editing functions.

Part B - Application of TPACK

TPACK is the combination of technology, content and pedagogical aspects of a lesson.  It focuses on the importance of using all aspects of these to create the most quality lessons.  For example, just adding technology to a lesson for the sake of adding technology without focusing on necessary content knowledge is ineffective lesson planning.  With that in mind, the focus of my WPP is driven in all aspects of TPACK, without just focusing on using this new technology option. 

The technology that I have chosen to use is a classroom polling program called Poll Everywhere.  With Poll Everwhere I can set up poll questions that students can answer by texting from their cell phones or by using computers with internet access.  The goal is to use this technology to enhance my pedagogical strategies in the classroom.  The pedagogical strategies are active classroom discussion and informal assessment.  A large part of my teaching strategy is having active classroom discussions and getting feedback in the form of informal assessments.  Typically, in my Advanced Web Publishing class, I will only get feedback from a few of the students.  As a result, I know what those students know about the content, but what about the other 28 students in class.  I think that by having some of these discussion questions on Poll Everywhere then more students will feel free to respond to questions because they won't have to talk in front of the class and because they may be motivated to use technology in this way.

This technology also plays an important role with the content that I am teaching.  It could be used for a variety of topics and content.  For my web publishing class, it could be a great tool to have students brainstorm and post their thoughts for web publishing ideas.  This could help students facilitate one another with ideas that they could use on their own web projects.  Discussing, sharing ideas, and reflecting is something that must be done to further understand any content and this technology helps to facilitate that.

Like I mentioned above, discussions and reflections are an important pedagogical approach to understanding content.  For this, students will reflect on their own knowledge of the content and also be able to learn from others through the live online discussion created on Poll Everywhere.  This students will be able to experience the content by through many different types of questions posed through this resource.

Part A - Brainstorm Session

For our Group Leadership Project we are exploring course managment systems.  In particular, we are focusing on Moodle and its capabilities.  As a group, we have met in an online meeting forum called Vyew to discuss our project and the timeline for completion.  Here is a link to the screencast that we created using Jing. 

Again, our group met on the online conferencing forum called Vyew.  Vyew is a free web based meeting forum that allows users to share screens, chat through text, and upload on and edit the screen.  The catch is that it is add supported, although that did not bother me much. 

Vyew has its advantages and disadvantages.  Some of those advantages include the ability to share screens, chat, upload images and documents, and a page that is editable.  However, it is not without its problems or disadvantages.  One disadvantage that we encountered was that it froze or had a lag on a couple different occasions. 

Part A - Description of Need or Opportunity

For this Wicked Problem Project I am going to attempt to tackle the common classroom problem of getting limited discussion or feedback on questions directed to the class.  In my years of teaching science, and now as a web publishing teacher, I have had trouble getting a wide variety of students to share their thoughts in classroom discussion.  It always seems like a limited few are answering all the questions.  What are the other students thinking during the discussion?  Do they know the answer to the proposed question and they are too shy or lacking the confidence to respond?  Or, are the lost entirely, or just not paying attention?

Regardless of the reasons for the problem, I feel like I have a potential solution.  I think that using classroom polls and surveys will help to get the active feedback that is essential in classroom discussion and in my ability to informally assess the students' understanding in a more complete fashion.  One way I plan on accomplishing this is by using www.polleverywhere.com.  With this, students can answer questions using their cell phones or by using the polleverywhere website URL address.  By using this service, the students can respond to my discussion questions without having to speak to the whole class.

I plan on introducing this to the class in the daily bell question.  The questions would be used to get students to review something we have learned in a previous class, or to think about what they will be doing for the day.  I will give the students the first 5-10 minutes of class to respond to the question, and I will be able to track how many of the students have responded to the question.

I have found a couple different examples of this service as an educational tool.  In this blog by digital teach, I saw a quick video of this being used in a science classroom.  Another article discusses the uses of polleverywhere in the classroom and includes some details about how to set up and use the service.  I particularly like how it includes benefits of the service including, "increasing classroom participation and attentiveness".  

I plan to implement this immediately in my web publishing class.  As I discussed, I will be using it for a bell activity a few times a week to start.  If successful, I plan on using it in future classes, including my science classes.  An indication of success would be all of the students in the class responding to the prompting questions in thoughtful ways.  This should also boost student attentiveness during discussions and increase motivation as they get to use their mobile phones in class.

Video Bio

Here is a link to my video bio on screencast.com.

http://screencast.com/t/9JvLvHFYnD7 

Funny Tech Moment mp3

Here is a link to my first podcast.

http://www.msu.edu/~whymerky/Podcasts/FunnyTech.mp3

Final Reflections - CEP 811

I have learned a lot about teaching with technology in the past eight weeks in this course.  One thing I have learned is that using technology will not necessarily make you a better teacher.  However, if you integrate technology as a way to increase effective teaching strategies then you can provide students with great learning opportunities.  One way that I have seen this is through the application of UDL principles.  Integrating technology into lessons can often make lessons accessible to students that normally would have had barriers with the lesson.  For example, providing audio to a slide show presentation allows a student with visual impairments to have access to the same learning material.  Integrating technology such as podcasts can allow teachers to add audio like that.

Web-based technologies like WebQuests have helped me re-evaluate my use of technology in teaching.  Previously, I thought that having students research content using the internet was a way of incorporating technology in the classroom.  Now, I realize that there are more effective ways to integrate technology by finding or creating WebQuests that are more guided and provide more variety of learning opportunities using the web.  

I would say that I have met and exceeded my goals for learning about technology integration into the classroom in this class.  Through exploration of web site creation, I have been able to design a Google Site that I will be able to use in my classroom when school begins in the fall.    

I have a couple specific goals for integrating technology in my classroom and one goal that will be long-term and continuous.  The short term goals include finding WebQuests to meet some of my content and adding to my classroom website.  My long term goal is to continue to stay up to date on an ever changing technological world.  The technologies that we are using to teach with today and teach our students about, are likely to be replaced by new technologies in the near future.  I plan to stay updated on new technological capabilities by subscribing to educational technology blogs and sites on an RSS reader.  

810 Personal Learning Reflection

Over the past seven weeks I have learned quite a lot about teaching with technology.  After reviewing and reflecting on my Personal Growth Plan, I believe that I have accomplished many of my goals and improved on my skills with technology.  My primary areas of growth have been in the areas of creating meaningful Google Sites and expanding on my knowledge of Google Docs.  I can attribute most of my growth in those areas due to the completion of our SIG Project.  Through the course of that project, I learned how to set up a Google Site that is easy to navigate and how to embed video and Google Docs.  Also, I learned how to set up Google Forms as a tool in Google Docs that allows me to have an answer sheet within my web site to collect assessment data.  

Of course, there are areas that I would still like to learn more about with integrating technology into my classroom.  Although, I have been introduced to topics in mobile learning and have explored using cell phones in the classroom, I would like to have more concrete ideas on how I would like to apply this in my classroom.  I feel like I would need more time to get a better understanding of some classroom polling sites to get the technology classroom ready for me.   

Overall, I have been happy with my growth in using technology in the classroom.  Before taking this class my use of technology in the classroom was limited to PowerPoint presentations and researching topics using the internet.  Now, I am familiar with many technologies that will help students learn better and I am ready to implement them starting next school year.  Most importantly, I feel I have the background knowledge and motivation to continue to improve my use of technology in the future.    

Throughout this course I have learned that its not just about using technology in the classroom but integrating it to help teach more effectively.  Using Google Docs allows students to collaborate on assignments and allows teachers to give effective and immediate feedback.  Also, I have learned about lessons that follow the TPaCK structure that are most effective when combining technology, content and pedagogy.  When used correctly, technology can add to a lesson and help motivate students.  

There are so many ways to integrate the internet to improve technology in teaching.  In today's world it is important to make sure students are prepared with the proper skills for the 21st century.  With this in mind, integrating personal learning networks for students is important.  They can use twitter, social networks and social bookmarks to stay connected with learning opportunities.   

The assignment that I thought exemplified good teaching and technology was our SIG project about Google Sites and Docs.  I feel like it is a good lesson for the TPaCK standards.  It provides technology, differing pedagogical aspects, and the proper content for students to learn best.  

As stated above, I feel like I have met the goals of my Personal Growth Plan.  I feel like I have learned about using mobile devices in the classroom (although I would still like to learn more).  Mostly, I feel that I am ready to implement a classroom website using Google Sites and that I can use Google Docs in a variety of ways.  

One of the most important things that I have learned from this class is that technology is constantly changing and we need to make sure we keep up with it in education.  My new goals are mostly to continue to learn about new technologies that I can use in my classroom.  Also, I hope to learn more details about some of the technologies I have learned about, such as classroom polling websites.  My plan is to continue to use my RSS reader to make sure I stay updated on new technologies I can use in my classroom.  

Online Teaching Experiences

It is important for students to have many experiences with online learning.  Not only are online learning experiences mandatory, but they develop many 21st century skills that students need to be successful in today's world.  Also, they can provide great opportunities for students to learn in a variety of ways and learn the content necessary for the topics being studied. 

One of the most applicable resources for my students would be the use of WebQuests.  My students are all at different places in their curriculum at any given time because I am at an alternative and adult education center.  As a result, WebQuests can provide the necessary content and instruction whenever the students are ready for lesson.  The cool thing about WebQuests is that you can find different ones to meet the content that you are trying to teach.  I found one called "What is the Mole???" that could help teach content about the mole and mole conversions. 

A couple different pedagogical strategies could be accomplished by using WebQuests.  WebQuests could be used for classroom projects in which the teacher would like the students to explore the material using inquiry rather than providing all of the content themselves.  WebQuests are perfect for this because they are more directed than regular internet based research assignments.  The appropriate links for exploration are given to the students rather than having them find the best content by searching the internet.  Also, I like to give supplemental material to students that allows them to choose the assignment they would like to complete.  I think WebQuests would be perfect for this type of lesson because they can often provide a different perspective other than the resources that were being used in the classroom. 

Unfortunately, not all online learning experiences are applicable to all students.  For example, interactive discussions online and podcasts would not work for my students because of the lack of resources available.  Specifically, the computers in my classroom do not have microphones and therefore would not allow students to have discussions or record their voice online. 

Wikis Lab

I created a Wikipedia article for my school because there was not one present already.  I encountered some difficulty getting started and citing my source but eventually was able to provide a nice little article about my school.  I added information about what the school is, where it is located, and its mission statement.  The article could definitely be expanded on in the future.  

Here is a screenshot of my Wikipedia article.

Here is a link to the Wikipedia article that I created for Harrison Center.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harrison_Center

I also created a wiki called kwhymewiki that has a home page with embedded widgets and another page with a link to my blog.

Here is a link to my wiki.
http://kwhymewiki.wikispaces.com/

Creative Commons

Incorporating images in the science classroom is a must.  It is especially important because many of the topics we talk about are microscopic and using images can help students visualize for better understanding. The Periodic Table is an image that is essential in chemistry.  As a chemistry teacher, I am constantly using the Periodic Table to show students how they can gather information about the elements.  Having Creative Commons as a resource makes it easier to gather images, such as the periodic table, and use them comfortably with the proper permission.  Below is an example of an image of the Periodic Table that I could use in my classroom.  

 

Photo Attribution: 

Original Image: "periodictable2"

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5043/5350444403_ec3d692283.jpg

By: Mrs. Pugliano 

Released under an Attribution-Share Alike License 

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/deed.en  

Here is a link to a picture I posted on Flickr.  The picture is from a lab in which we were investigating the length of day versus the changes in leaf color.  

Photo Attribution:

Original Image: "Changing Leaves" 

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2311/5792638544_61f2880678_m.jpg 

By: kwhymer

Released under an Attribution-Non-Commercial-Share Alike License 

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/

Learning Styles

I have had a lot of experience working with learning styles over the past few years.  I taught at a school for three years that focused on teaching students with different learning styles.  There is not much doubt in my mind that every person learns differently.  However, I have a hard time believing that we can find out exactly how someone learns best by taking a five minute quiz.  

I have taken a couple different learning style quizzes.  It seems like every time I've taken a quiz the results have come out differently.  With that being said, I think I have found which ways I learn best.  One strategy that instructors have used that has been effective for my learning style is using real world examples.  I feel like it helps me relate a concept and then be able to apply that knowledge later.  Another way is learning through inquiry labs.  I feel like putting the information together myself and working with hands on material helps me understand new information better.  Of course, some types of lessons have been less effective for me.  Listening to lectures has always been difficult for me to grasp information as I am not an auditory learner.  Lectures have always been more effective for me if I have visuals to go along with it.  

It is very difficult for teachers to incorporate all learning styles into every lesson.  There are times when a teacher needs to introduce new material in which a lecture and notes is the best option available.  Instead, teachers should focus on having a variety of lessons to meet many different learning styles.  As a science teacher I do this by having students ask questions, research material, learn from data tables and charts, work with hands on models, do labs that require movement, and many other types of lessons.  

Universal Design for Learning

UDL Guidelines – Mole Conversion Lesson Checklist
I.    Provide Multiple Means of Representation:	Your notes
1.     Provide options for perception
1.1 Offer ways of customizing the display of information	Feature: Videos can be re-sized
1.2 Offer alternatives for auditory information	Barrier: Content in video only.  Needs to have captions or speech to text.
1.3 Offer alternatives for visual information	Barrier: Content in video only.
2.     Provide options for language, mathematical expressions, and symbols
2.1 Clarify vocabulary and symbols	Feature: Vocab terms included in video tutorial
2.2 Clarify syntax and structure	Feature: Relating Conversion factors
2.3 Support decoding of text, and mathematical notation, and symbols	Feature: Include Conversion formulas
2.4 Promote understanding across language	Barrier: Content in English only
2.5 Illustrate through multiple media	Feature: Video Tutorial
3.     Provide options for comprehension
3.1 Activate or supply background knowledge	Feature: Linking to any conversion factor
3.2 Highlight patterns, critical features, big ideas, and relationships	Feature: Provides multiple examples
3.3 Guide information processing, visualization, and manipulation	Feature: Provides scaffolding with examples
3.4 Maximize transfer and generalization	Feature: Gives cue to practice
II.   Provide Multiple Means for Action and Expression:	Your notes
4.     Provide options for physical action
4.1 Vary the methods for response and navigation	Barrier: No alternatives for physically responding
4.2 Optimize access to tools and assistive technologies	Barrier: No access to assistive technology
5.     Provide options for expression and communication
5.1 Use multiple media for communication	Barrier: No alternative media
5.2 Use multiple tools for construction and composition	Barrier: No alternative options
5.3 Build fluencies with graduated labels of support for practice and performance	Feature: Provides scaffolding
6.     Provide options for executive functions
6.1 Guide appropriate goal setting	Feature: Include objectives in tutorial
6.2 Support planning and strategy development	Feature: Include stop and think in tutorial
6.3 Facilitate managing information and resources	Barrier: No organizational tool options
6.4 Enhance capacity for monitoring progress	Barrier: No rubric available
III.  Provide Multiple Means for Engagement:	Your notes
7.     Provide options for recruiting interest
7.1 Optimize individual choice and autonomy	Barrier: Only one option for showing understanding
7.2 Optimize relevance, value, and authenticity	Feature: Uses in real world
7.3 Minimize threats and distractions	Feature: Safe learning environment.  Variation in length of work sessions.
8.     Provide options for sustaining effort and persistence
8.1 Heighten salience of goals and objectives	Feature: Include with objectives
8.2 Vary demands and resources to optimize challenge	Barrier: No alternatives present
8.3 Foster collaboration and community	Feature: Google Docs discussion
8.4 Increase mastery-oriented feedback	Feature: Timely feedback
9.     Provide options for self-regulation
9.1 Promote expectations and beliefs that optimize motivation	Barrier: Multiple options not provided
9.2 Facilitate personal coping skills and strategies	Feature: Teacher emphasizes learning process
9.3 Develop self-assessment and reflection	Barrier: No option for reflection

Universal Design for Learning or UDL is a new way to design curriculum to meet the needs of diverse learners.  In other words, its a proactive approach to ensuring that all students have equal ability to learn in your classroom.  Instead of attempting to fix the student by modifying or retrofitting the curricula, UDL attempts to change the curricula to better fit the students.  The goal is shifted from the traditional approach of remembering facts to the UDL approach of creating better learners.

Discussion Questions
1.  At the core of UDL is the premise that often the curriculum is disabled (and disabling!). It is not flexible; it often poses barriers, and consequently prevents rather than supports optimal learning experiences. Do you agree or disagree with this view? Why or why not?

• Traditional curriculum is, more often than not, quite disabling for the diverse needs of students.  It has been tailored to teach the imaginary majority of students.  The reality is that every class has a diversity of learners and they all have different needs to be met in order to learn to their best potential.  Many traditional curricula are based on learning from lectures and the text book, with written tests for assessments.  This type of curriculum can create barriers in learning for students with visual disabilities, reading disabilities, and even students with attention deficit disorders.  It also does not provide the flexibility to allow students that understand the material quickly to move on or learn at a higher level.  With all of this in mind, I would say that I agree with that viewpoint. In contrast to traditional curriculum, the UDL approach offers flexibility by providing multiple means of representation, action and expression, and engagement.  It meets the basic learning needs of individuals and helps create motivated learners.    

2.  What are the benefits of analyzing the curriculum for strengths and weaknesses rather than focusing on the student’s strengths and weaknesses? What are the challenges of this approach? 

• The curriculum can be changed without lowering expectations.  On the other hand, focusing on the student's strengths and weaknesses often results in retrofitted lessons (an afterthought to meet needs of students) and lowered expectations.  Curriculum that is designed for strengths and weaknesses can be proactive in meeting the needs of students.  This can remove the barriers associated with learning and ensure that all students can meet the high expectations.  The major challenge here is that there needs to be a paradigm shift in the way that teachers think about lesson planning and teaching.