Mathematics Teachers’ Views and Use of Differentiated Instruction: The case of two teachers in the Winneba Municipality, Ghana

To ensure that the global sustainable development goal on education is achieved, the
implementation of differentiated instruction (DI) is beginning to gain attention in the
Ghanaian education system. But is Ghana embracing and implementing DI effectively in
the mathematics classroom? This paper investigated two junior high school (JHS)
mathematics teachers’ views and use of DI in their mathematics classrooms. Qualitative
data obtained through observations and semi-structured interviews in an embedded mixed
methods study that employed the Solomon four group quasi-experiment design were
analyzed and in this report. The results show that teachers used flexible grouping, tiered
assignment, end of unit assignments, worksheets and ICT tools (though extremely
challenging) as the convenient DI strategies. The interview data after the experiment
disclosed that, DI impacted students’ performance positively. However, the data showed
that DI is time consuming, extremely challenging, expensive and required resources not
readily available in public schools. Recommendations are made for the embracing of
convenient strategies of DI in Ghanaian classrooms.