Penguatan Kompetensi Profesional Guru melalui Penerapan Differentiated Learning

Abstract

Teacher professionalism faces various challenges, including curriculum changes, technological developments, diverse student characteristics, and increasing workloads. These conditions require teachers to develop adaptive learning strategies that are responsive to students’ individual needs. This community service activity aimed to strengthen teachers’ professional competence through the implementation of differentiated learning at SMP Swasta Pertiwi Ambon. The activity employed a participatory approach by actively involving teachers through several stages, including preparation, observation, material delivery, discussion, learning design practice, and reflection. The results of the qualitative evaluation indicated an improvement in teachers’ understanding of differentiated learning, particularly in considering students’ learning readiness, interests, and learning profiles. Teachers also demonstrated improved abilities to identify students’ learning needs and design differentiation in learning content, processes, and products. Furthermore, the activity encouraged a positive change in teachers’ perspectives, as they began to view student diversity as a condition that should be accommodated in the learning process. Teachers also showed enthusiasm and initial readiness to gradually implement differentiated learning strategies in their  classrooms. However, continuous assistance is still needed, particularly in developing diagnostic assessments, grouping students, managing instructional time, and providing diverse learning materials.