As fast as you like: an explanatory case study of differentiated ESL teaching in a Swedish upper secondary school

Sammanfattning: If the individual characteristics and background of each learner affect their ability to optimally learn the teacher must be flexible and willing to adapt in order to optimally teach. The aim of this study was to observe and document operationalized differentiated English as a second language teaching in one upper secondary school in the southwest of Sweden. The method used was that of an explanatory case study using three teacher interviews and classroom observations. Interview transcripts and observations protocols were coded into themes and analysed. The school, teacher and classes were chosen based on purposeful sampling as previous observations in the school had indicated an atypical teaching method worth documenting as a possible best practise. The theoretical perspectives from which the results were analysed were those of differentiated instruction, individual differences in second language acquisition and content and language integrated learning. The study found that the teachers used differentiated teaching techniques mainly to accommodate learner readiness such as language proficiency but also, to a lesser extent, to accommodate learning styles, personalities and interests. These teaching methods were mainly made possible by the usage of open teacher-learner communication, continuous formative assessment and increased opportunities for language production demonstrating language proficiency. While the findings of this study are limited in their generalizability due to a limited material, the observed and reported amount of adaptation and differentiation over a pro-longed period of time was both unexpected and unique in its extent.