Biljana Petrovi 1

UDC 371.311.1(497.11)
Osnovna škola “Jovan Jovanovi Zmaj” 371.3::811.111(497.11)
Martinci



Abstract: The aim of this paper is to show ways and methods which teachers
can use in order to perfom successful teaching in a mixed-ability class. Teaching
English in a mixed-ability class implies adjusting teaching materials to the needs
of each and every pupil in the classroom. Every pupil has his/her own interests,
learning styles and abilities. With a little good will and organization, every teacher
can adjust/adapt teaching materials to suit all pupils in the classroom. In order to
prove this, I carried out some research over the course of three months, among
sixth grade pupils in a primary school in Martinci, Serbia, based on the application
of differentiated instructions in the classroom. During this research, two groups
were compared, a control one and an experimental one, in order to examine
whether there was a significant difference in performance in the experimental
group. The research results showed that pupils in the experimental group im-
proved more then those in the control group. These pupils remained motivated
and ready to study and work hard even after the research was completed, and they
even showed better success in other school subjects.
Key words: abilities, learning styles, differentiated instruction, adjustment of
teaching material, advanced pupils, pupils with standard abilities, weak-ability
pupils, pupils’ strong sides, pupils’ potentials, lesson organisation

Introduction

Pupils populating classrooms in Serbia today are a diverse lot. They

come from different cultures and backgrounds, and have different learning
styles, hobbies, personalities, likes and dislikes. Of course, pupils do have
many things in common – they are all children and human beings, they
love to laugh and play. However, pupils today arrive at school with differ-
ent levels of emotional and social maturity, they have different interests,
different learning styles and, most important, they are at different levels of

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ability. Pupils’ differences become an important element of today’s teach-

ing process. What teachers get when they enter a classroom with pupils
who have different interests, abilities and learning styles is a mixed-ability
class.
In today’s educational system, teaching mainly consists of presenting
teaching materials in the same way to all pupils in the classroom, where
each and every pupil is assigned to work on the same type of task. In this
kind of system, many pupils become demotivated, give up studying and do
not show any progress, while the image of their failure at school has a
negative impact on their general development. On the other hand, pupils
who find assignments easy do not always use their full capacity and do not
try to strengthen their advanced potential. These pupils will do only the
tasks which they are supposed to do to achieve the best grade, and then
they tend to stop making an effort, unaware that they might damage their
high potential.
Teaching English in a mixed-ability class implies adjusting teaching
materials to the needs of each and every pupil. Every pupil has his/her own
interests, learning styles and abilities. With a little good will and organiza-
tion, every teacher can adjust teaching materials to suit all pupils in the
classroom. This can be done by identifying pupils’ strengths and potential
and by reinforcing them. As a result, pupils will be more satisfied, more
successful and more motivated.

Applying differentiated instruction when teaching a mixed-ability

class

In a mixed ability class, pupils may be divided into: advanced or gifted

pupils, average pupils and weak pupils. Advanced pupils often show a high
level of intellectual development and potential. Averige pupils work at a
regular pace, they can sometimes be brilliant and express high potential
but they can also sometimes fall behind the advanced pupils. Weak pupils
often can’t catch up with the rest of the class in terms of studying, and
they often fail tests and fall behind because for some reasons they can’t
keep up with what is being taught.
The differentiated instruction (sometimes called the differentiated
learning or, simply, the differentiation) means organizing and developing
teachingmaterials so that all pupils within a classroom can learn effec-

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tively, regardless of differences in ability. Differentiation is a teaching

concept in which the teacher plans for the diverse needs of pupils.

Group work in a mixed- ability class:

homogenous and heterogeneous grouping

There are several means/methods of differentiation in a mixed-ability

class. One way is grouping pupils. There are two ways of doing this. One is
homogenous grouping and the other is heterogeneous. Homogeneous
groups are organized so that students of similar abilities, interests and
learning styles are placed together, working on materials suited to their
particular level. If teachers apply this type of grouping in a mixed ability
class, they may have one group that consists of advanced pupils, two or
three groups that consist of pupils who have average abilities, and one or
two groups that consist of pupils with weak abilities. Homogenous group-
ing is also called ability-based grouping.
In homogeneous grouping, the teacher divides class into several groups
according to pupils’ abilities and readiness. The teacher ensures that dif-
ferences between pupils in their group are reduced to a minimum. During
the lesson, the teacher prepares different tasks for each of the groups. The
advanced group gets more challenging tasks, groups that consist of average
pupils get different tasks, and group with so called “slow” pupils gets tasks
which are appropriate for their level of ability. For example, after reading
a new text, groups with average pupils may do the task called “answer the
questions about the text”, the advanced group can do another task – “think
of and write a different ending to the story” or to write their own composi-
tion on a similar topic, whereas the group of weak pupils may have to link
the names of the characters from the text with their basic descriptions or
answer simple questions.
The advantages of homogeneous grouping are numerous. First of all,
pupils havethe chance to work at their own pace. Secondly, they are moti-
vated to work on the tasks designed for their ability levels because if they
show progress, they can move from a weaker to a stronger group. Finally,
all the pupils become active and learn. Weak pupils now have their own
different tasks and they can’t hide behind the advanced pupils.
The other way of grouping is to put pupils of different abilities within
the same single group. This is called heterogeneous grouping. In this kind
of grouping pupils are at varied learning levels. The important thing is to

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prevent weak pupils from hiding behind the advanced and average ones in
the group. In order to make everyone participate in the lesson, group work
should start with weak pupils. After reading the text, weak pupils should
have the task of connecting the names of the characters from the text with
their descriptions, or to answer simple yes/no or true/false questions.
Stronger pupils may assist them. After that average and advanced pupils
answer the questions about the text and after that advanced pupils think
about possible different endings of the story. The teacher makes sure that
everyone is active within each group by choosing a leader. The leader’s
task is to report the results of the task. Groups change leaders so that
every member of the group gets the chance to be a reporter. The hard
work of every individual within a mixed ability heterogeneous group is
very important. The result of the group work lies in the effort of each indi-
vidual, no matter if the pupil is weak, average or advanced.

Individualisation in a mixed-ability class

What would be the ideal condition for learning in a mixed-ability class?

Most of you may agreethat it would be ideal if each and every pupil could
get his/her own teacher. But let’s face the facts, this is impossible. Al-
though we (teachers) can’t literally divide ourselves into twenty-five
pieces, we have to find a way to devote ourselves and our teaching to the
needs of each and every pupil in a mixed-ability class. This is not an easy
task. Some pupils would ask for more attention, some will need help more
often. In order to meet each pupil’s needs, teachers should organize addi-
tional classes. Weak pupils who find it hard to follow regular school les-
sons should attend such additional classes. In this way they have an oppor-
tunity to work at their own pace, there isn’t any strict time limit and
what’s more, there isno peer pressure. Also, every school should provide
mentors for advanced pupils. Their tasks would be to work with advanced
pupils, motivate them, encourage them to be better and keep track of
these advanced pupils’ achievements.

Teaching advanced pupils in a mixed- ability class

Advanced pupils, also called “gifted” or “talented” pupils have several

common characteristics. First of all, they have excellent problem-solving
skills and they easily connect things in the lesson and recognize hidden

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principles. Secondly, they have excellent communication skills and use

appropriate vocabulary. Thirdly, they learn quickly and do not forget what
they have learned. Also, advanced pupils have an excellent attention span,
they are flexible and creative, and they solve problems by applying differ-
ent approaches. Finally, they set high standards for themselves and they
show initiative and originality, and look forward to more demanding chal-
lenges.
One of the most important and most demanding tasks that teachers
have when teaching advanced pupils is to motivate them. Advanced pupils
often have problems with motivation because they usually do regular tasks
at school easily, with very little effort. In order to solve this, teachers
should give them more challenging and more demanding assignments.
Teachers should motivate advanced students to think about and solve
more complex problems.
In a mixed ability class, gifted pupils should be treated as gifted!
Teachers should apply different criteria when marking and evaluating the
work of advanced, weak, and average pupils. Advanced pupils should al-
ways do more complex and more demanding tasks, they should be encour-
aged to express abstract thinking and to compare ideas, and they should
always be given tasks which activate the process of thinking.
In a mixed ability class, not all advanced pupils are the same. Some ad-
vanced pupils will show their excellence at the beginning of the school
year, but not at the end. Some will show progress in many different fields
for a short time, while others will show progress in only one field of study
but this could last throughout the school year.
It is very important for gifted students not to fall into the trap of their
own success. In other words, it is important for advanced students to know
that, even if they get the best grade, their learning should not stop. Having
better grades than the rest of the class is one thing but meeting expecta-
tions is another. Advanced pupils should be taught not to compete with
other pupils but to compete with themselves and their own abilities. Also,
in order to learn better, advanced pupils should have access to a computer
room, library and other school facilities which can help them improve
their knowledge.

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Teaching weaker pupils in a mixed-ability class

When teaching weaker pupils in a mixed ability class, teachers should

pay attention to criticizing. Teachers should not criticizetheir pupilsfor
doing a task in the wrong way. Weak pupils almost never do tasks correctly
and it they are criticized, they may even lose their already low motivation
and self esteem. Instead of criticizing, teacher should focus on good things
that weak pupils do. Each and every pupil has his or her strong sides.
Every teacher should find pupils’ strong sides and try to strenghten them.
Also, teachers should always give weak pupils some kind of feedback and
reward for good work. Teacher should always say “excellent” and “very
good” when a weak student has done a task correctly. In this way, weak
pupils become motivated and may for the first time think, “I can finally do
it” or “I am good at this”. To sum up, it is very important for teacher not to
focus on what a pupil doesn’t know, but to focus on what a pupil does
know.
Weak pupils have knowledge gaps, so they should be assigned to work
with mentors or teaching assistants. Sometimes advanced pupils can have
these roles and help weak pupils to overcome learning problems. Weak
students should be given clearly defined, not so demanding activities and
tasks. Also, they should be given activities where they have to follow a few
simple steps in order to finish the task, or activities which are connected
with their personal interests, and which are simple and easy to under-
stand.

Problems which teachers encounter when teaching a mixed-ability

class

There are several problems that each teacher may encounter when
teaching a mixed ability class. First of all, pupils differ a lot. Teachers
should find out about pupils’ interests, experiences, learning styles, back-
grounds, culture, and level of ability in order to adjust teaching materials
to each and every pupil’s needs. Secondly, pupils do not respond in the
same way to teaching materials. Teachers should be able to make their
lessons interesting and to adjust them to pupils’ ability levels. Thirdly, not
all pupils participate actively in the lesson. While some pupils will want to
speak and answer the questions, others will be silent and will hide behind
talkative ones. Teachers can solve this by assigning a presentation to each

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pupil in the class, where they will have to talk about a particular topic such
as music, sport, books etc. Also, within successful group work, every mem-
ber of a group gets the chance to be a group leader, so in this way teachers
encourage all pupils in the class to talk. Also, discipline of pupils who have
completed their tasks may be a problem because they may disturb other
pupils. Teachers can deal with this by preparing tiered activities – addi-
tional exercises and tasks suitable for each ability group in the class. Fur-
thermore, pupils should be able to answer open questions that emphasize
the process of solving a problem and encourages critical thinking. Finally,
different homework activities should be given to different ability groups!
In this way a teacher avoids the problem of weak pupils never doing their
homework. Advanced pupils may get to finish the story, write their own
opinion, average pupils can have the taskof retelling the story or answer
the questions, weak pupils may answer simple questions about the text or
they can connect drawings with characters’ names etc.

Evaluation in a mixed- ability class

How should pupils in a mixed-ability class be evaluated? First of all,

the teacher should make it clear that pupils are not supposed to “study for
grades” but for knowledge. Secondly, pupils shouldn’t compete with
friends from the class, but with themselves and their own abilities. Pupils
will show real progress only if they become better than they used to be. In
other words, if pupils show progress (compared to their state at the begin-
ning of a month), they deserve a higher grade. Thirdly, grades should mo-
tivate pupils to work harder! The accent is not on what grades pupils get.
The accent is on areas in which pupils show progress and on areas in which
they don’t. Finally, there should be various methods for evaluation: writ-
ten tests, oral exams, conversation etc. Pupils get marks regularly, and
they can be graded during each lesson (for their participation). The
teacher’s task is to follow the progress of each and every pupil in a mixed-
ability class!

Conclusion

To conclude, adjusting teaching materials to the needs of each and

every pupil in a mixed ability class is a key to pupils’ success, motivation
and satisfaction at school. Every pupil has his/her own interests, learning

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styles and abilities. With a little good will and organization, every teacher
can adjust teaching materials to all the pupils in the classroom. This can be
done by using differentiated instruction, by identifying pupils’ strong sides
and potential and by strengthening them. As a result, pupils will be more
satisfied, more successful and more motivated. The aim of this kind of
teaching is to show that each and every pupil, whether with advanced,
normal or weak abilities, can make progress, strengthen his/her potential
and achieve better success in school.

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