Bridging the Gap: Developmentally Appropriate Practices for diverse learners in Moose Jaw and Beyond!

Kia ora (hello) from Moose Jaw! This week, Longworth Education has brought me, a New
Zealand-based educational leader, all the way to the heart of Saskatchewan, Canada, to
collaborate with the amazing teachers of the Holy Trinity Catholic School Division. While
miles apart, one challenge resonated deeply: the tension between developmentally
appropriate practices (DAP) and prescribed learning outcomes.
DAP is all about understanding how children learn best at different stages. It acknowledges
that development isn’t a race, and some children take longer to grasp concepts than others.
This is where readiness comes in. Imagine a child learning to ride a bike. They need the
strength, coordination, and balance to manage it. Similarly, for academic concepts, children
need a foundation of prior knowledge and skills before successfully building new ones.
Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) beautifully captures this. The ZPD is the
space between what a child can do independently and what they can achieve with support. A
skilled teacher acts as a guide, scaffolding learning within the ZPD. However, if we push a
child beyond their ZPD, frustration sets in, and learning stalls. If this pattern becomes
entrenched in a learner’s experience of school, disengagement can occur, and eventually
school refusal.
Here in Moose Jaw, back home in New Zealand, and teachers across the globe face
classrooms with an increasing diversity of learners. These students may learn at different
paces and have unique needs. DAP empowers teachers to embrace this diversity, creating a
nurturing environment where all students feel valued and challenged appropriately.
The pressure to meet standardised outcomes, often based on age norms, can create a
dangerous situation. Development is not a switch we can flick on or off. A child can’t be
“made” ready any faster than their own unique developmental journey allows.
So, what can we do?
 Trust Teachers: Educators are the experts in their classrooms. They know their
students’ strengths, weaknesses, and individual learning styles. Empowering them to
make informed decisions based on DAP principles is crucial. Unfortunately, many
policy makers do not recognise this expertise, and instead operate from a top-down
model of accountability – setting arbitrary, non-evidence informed outcomes that do
little to reflect the non-linear process of learning our children follow.
 Focus on Progress, Not Pressure: Let’s celebrate growth and development, rather
than solely fixating on achieving specific outcomes by a certain age. Progression
should always be what we strive to achieve – whether small steps or giant leaps. As
long as learning in moving in the right direction, students are learning and teachers
are successful in the way in which they are ensuring this learning is occurring.
 Embrace Flexibility: Curriculum should be a flexible framework, adaptable to the
needs of the learners in the classroom. Rather than setting rigid, non-flexible
outcomes based targets, that are not supported by evidence reflective of human
development – curriculum should ensure children are engaged in learning experiences
that can be adapted to their diverse interests, talents and needs in the learning space.

 Collaboration is Key: Sharing best practices and fostering a global network of
educators allows us to learn from each other, regardless of location. Learning that
despite being half a world away, educators face similar challenges here in Moose Jaw,
from those based in New Zealand demonstrates that it’s the system, not teaching
fidelity that needs addressing.
By prioritising DAP and trusting the expertise of our teachers, we can ensure that every child,
in Moose Jaw or anywhere in the world, thrives in a supportive learning environment that
meets their individual needs. After all, it’s about ensuring we grow learners for life, not just
learners for benchmarks, examinations or grades.