Session Information
27 SES 13 B, Social Diversity in Teaching and Learning
Paper Session
Contribution
Multi-grade teaching and learning in primary schools can be motivated by two sources: (1) Firstly, in rural areas children from different ages are instructed together due to small student numbers and due to the concept of school in the place. Thus, motives for multi-grade teaching are primarily grounded on organizational needs. (2) Secondly, the common instruction of children of different ages can be preferred by schools which intend to accentuate a specific educational profile and to improve their quality. Multi-grade teaching, hence, is related to the ideas of reform pedagogy which capitalizes on the student-student-interaction as a core element of a powerful learning environment.
Our research project is allied to the second approach. We aim at the analysis of the learning processes of children in multi-grade groups and at the identification of the specific challenges of multi-grade instruction in comparison to learning and teaching in regular age-homogeneous classrooms in an urban Austrian school. Based on the offer-and-use theory on scholastic instruction (e.g., Helmke, 2003; Lipowski, 2006) the main objective of the research is to enrich the knowledge about successful teaching and learning in a scholastic environment which on the one hand has to deal explicitly with heterogeneity and on the other hand is expected to use the potential of social learning. The crucial point is the question of the contribution of the collaboration in heterogeneous learning groups for the improvement of individual cognitive and socio-emotional learning.
Research has shown that multi-grade teaching can fulfill the need for cognitive as well as social learning in school (e.g., Liebers, 2008; Marsolek, 2003; Summer, 2007). Yet, it also has revealed discrepant effects in terms of cognitive learning outcomes (e.g., Efklides, 2010; Gutiérrez & Slavin, 1992; Roßbach, 2007). There seems to be several factors which have to be reconsidered in order to promote the positive effects of multi-grade teaching. One predictor is the combination of reform-pedagogical methods with multi-grade teaching, other predictors are a successful student-student-interaction, the explicit support of self-regulated learning, and the reduction of heterogeneity with regard to age differences (Pratt, 1983). How these factors contribute to the efficacy to multi-grade teaching has still to be investigated.
Method
Expected Outcomes
References
Efklides, A. (2010). Social effects of collaborative learning in primary schools. Learning and Instruction, 20, S. 177-191. Gölitz, D., Roick, T. & Hasselhorn, M. (2006). DEMAT 4. Deutscher Mathematiktest für vierte Klassen. Göttingen: Beltz. Grund, M., Haug, G. & Naumann, C. (2004). DRT 4. Diagnostischer Rechtschreibtest für 4. Klassen. Göttingen: Beltz. Gutiérrez, R. & Slavin, R. E. (1992). Achievement effects of the nongraded elementary school: A best evidence synthesis. Review of Educational Research, 62, S. 333-376. Helmke, A. (2003). Unterrichtsqualität erfassen, bewerten, verbessern. Seelze: Kallmeyersche Verlagsbuchhandlung. Liebers, K. (2008). Kinder in der flexiblen Schuleingangsphase. Perspektiven für einen gelingenden Schulstart. Wiesbaden: VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften. Lipowsky, F. (2006). Auf den Lehrer kommt es an. Empirische Evidenzen für Zusammenhänge zwischen Lehrerkompetenzen, Lehrerhandeln und dem Lernen der Schüler. Zeitschrift für Pädagogik, 51. Beiheft, 47-70. Marsolek, T. (2003). Empirische Studien zum jahrgangsübergreifenden Unterricht. In P. Heyer, U. Preuss-Lausitz & L. Sack (Hrsg.). Länger gemeinsam lernen. Positionen – Forschungsergebnisse – Beispiele (S. 67-74). Frankfurt a. M.: Arbeitskreis Grundschule. Mayringer, H. & Wimmer, H. (2003). Salzburger Lesescreening 1-4. Handbuch. Manuskript. Pratt, D. (1983). Age segregation in schools. Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Educational Reseach Association. Montreal. Rauer, W. & Schuck, K. D. (2004a). FEESS 1-2. Fragebogen zur Erfassung emotionaler und sozialer Schulerfahrungen von Grundschulkindern erster und zweiter Klassen. Göttingen: Beltz. Rauer, W. & Schuck, K. D. (2004b). FEESS 3-4. Fragebogen zur Erfassung emotionaler und sozialer Schulerfahrungen von Grundschulkindern dritter und vierter Klassen. Göttingen: Beltz. Roßbach, H. (2007). Empirische Vergleichsuntersuchungen zu den Auswirkungen von jahr-gangsheterogenen und jahrgangshomogenen Klassen. In R. Laging (Hrsg.), Altersge-mischtes Lernen in der Schule. Grundlagen der Schulpädagogik, Bd. 28. (S. 80-91). Baltmannsweiler: Schneider Hohengehren. Summer, A. (2007). “Montessori” versus “Regelschule”. Evaluation der Mathematikleistungen von Schülerinnen und Schülern vierter Klassen in Montessorieinrichtungen und Regelvolksschulen. Unveröffentlichte Dissertation. Universität Wien.
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