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Mixing it

Mixed-age teaching - in other words, teaching a mixture of ages, year groups and abilities in one class - is perhaps more common than might be expected. All local education authorities in England have schools operating mixed-age classes, and, according to the DCSF, the number of schools taking this approach is rising.

There's little doubt that the classroom-management skills of teachers with mixed-age classes are potentially stretched with more frequency than those of other teachers, but in reality, even mono-age classes require teachers with mixed-age and ability skills.

Positive benefits
Studies from previous decades have shown that children can develop cognitively and socially through interacting with older and younger children. One important fact to have emerged is that children benefit greatly from the opportunity to become an 'expert' for younger children to learn from. Younger children look to the older ones to teach them, and older children view the younger ones as in need of teaching and support. Educationalists have argued that this can nurture thinking skills, problem-solving skills, vocabulary and other social competencies.

In the mixed-age classroom where this level of interaction between children has been effectively achieved, there is likely to be a greater general sense of cooperation. Friendship groupings can cross traditional age boundaries and younger children can often view older children as part of the hierarchy of authority in their school when they share the same classroom. This inevitably leads to a diminished need for teacher intervention in the event of bad behaviour.

Perhaps not insignificant is the fact that mixed-age teaching resembles more closely the family setting that children with siblings find themselves in at home. Growing up with other children of various ages means that they are more than capable of adapting to mixed ages in the classroom.

Mixed-age groups are also an environment in which older children who are not yet achieving age-related goals may not feel the 'failures' they would in a mono-aged class.

Possible drawbacks
While there are many clear benefits to both teachers and pupils in the mixed-age classroom, there are some potential drawbacks that several studies have picked up. Perhaps most significant of these is the apparent risk that low-attaining children, especially if among the youngest in the group, can be intimidated by the level of attainment of the oldest and most able in the room.

There can also be potential difficulties when significant gaps between maturity levels in the group arise. Clearly this can be more challenging the older the average age of the class.

From a purely practical perspective, there's no doubt that planning can be more complex than that for a single-age class, and additional time may be required. It may also take longer to prepare appropriate resources, especially if you're to avoid children working simply as individuals within the group setting. Planning policies in schools, as well as sample schemes of work, need to take the extra needs of the mixed-age teacher into account.

Making it work
Although the way in which an individual teacher interacts with the class and approaches the challenges of mixed-age teaching will have most influence on its success, there are key tools and techniques that can help to maximise its benefits.

Time-management and overall teacher effectiveness lie at the heart of successful mixed-age teaching.
Classroom rules and routines, and set procedures and consequences help to create slick lessons for all types of grouping. Reinforce these often throughout so that they become second-nature for pupils.
Think about your room layout. Does the arrangement you use help you to manage multiple layers of activity?
A culture of independent learning following teacher-directed periods in the classroom fosters a sense of responsibility in pupils. It also helps to ensure that time spent on-task is as high as possible. Be clear about what portion of each lesson is for independent learning and what is for teacher-guided time, and nurture responsibility for time spent on self-directed tasks.
Group children along a variety of lines, such as age, ability, topic being studied, whole class, pairs, friendship, achievement and so on. Vary these groups and reinforce the skills needed for independent learning so that you can comfortably leave one group on task to spend time working with another.
Review past learning often, through each lesson or group of lessons, and certainly at the start and end.
Give pupils regular goals. Their objectives should be based on prior attainment rather than on their age.
By using simplifications and extensions in your explanations and questioning, it will be possible to encourage each child through a generic topic for the whole class.
Utilise any help you have from classroom assistants or volunteers. Spend some time planning with your assistant so that their role is well defined and classroom practice smooth.
Develop systems of shared problem solving and support among pupils.
Involve your school's senior-management team in long— and medium-term planning for the class. This involvement does not need to be extensive but does need to exist so that ideas can be shared and further developed.
Should a problem or issue arise, don't feel that you need to solve it alone. It takes the skills of many practitioners to make the mixed-age classroom work.
If your school has a librarian, enlist their help in supporting your mixed-age class.
Consider staggering the subjects you cover with different groups. Think, too, about how different subjects and topics lend themselves to various teaching and grouping styles.
Make sure you have been told precisely how you are expected to assess learning outcomes for the pupils in your mixed-age class.
If you know you will be teaching the same class for more than one year, consider planning on a two-year cycle.
When planning, look at the yearly, termly, and half-termly curriculum maps. A short-term plan might cover the learning objectives each child has, your input as their teacher, the input of any assistants you have, the resources you will require, specific differentiation for any children with special educational needs, the assessment you hope to achieve and the success criteria for the plan.
Capitalise on opportunities older or more competent children may have to nurture other pupils. For example, older children simply being tolerant of others less physically able can create a nurturing environment. This can then be emulated by younger children at the appropriate time.

Wider awareness
If you are asked to teach a mixed-age class, you might want to ask the following questions of your team leader or management team to ensure that you are fully equipped to make it work:

Why has this class been arranged as a mixed-age class? Is it to fulfil a wider educational and philosophical goal? Out of convenience? Because of budget decisions?
Does your school, and if not, your LA, have a policy on mixed-age teaching? Having experienced mixed-age teaching, would you change this policy in any way to make it more appropriate for the future?
What resources and materials will be made available to you?
Will any support be made available?
Will you receive any continuing professional development?
Does this grouping apply to all aspects of the curriculum, or just some?
Is there anyone within your school, or outside your school (perhaps in a nearby specialist or beacon school) that you can draw on for professional advice? Can you network with other mixed-age teachers in the area?
Are the parents generally supportive of the arrangement or suspicious of it? Does it need explaining and the benefits and possible drawbacks outlined?
Is the physical environment where you'll be teaching set up for mixed-age classes?

While sound organisation skills, effective training and plentiful resources are all essential in the mixed-age classroom, a positive attitude in all concerned will go a long way towards ensuring that the myriad benefits, and not the potential drawbacks, are realised.

Further information

The Model of Teacher Effectiveness Report by Hay McBer to the DfES (2000) was designed to provide a framework describing effective teaching.
Case studies on planning, differentiation and mixed-age teaching can be found on the DCSF Standards Site.
Mixed-age teaching plans are available on the Hamilton Trust's website.

This article was commissioned by TeacherNet's editorial team, independently of DCSF policy teams.