Research Findings: The classroom physical literacy environment is a malleable and domain-specific contributor to children's emergent literacy acquisition. However, what shapes the physical literacy environment remains unclear. In this study, we drew on a sample of 895 4-year-olds across 223 classrooms from the Professional Development Study and…

The strategies used in multiage classrooms have the capacity to shift instruction in all classrooms because the focus is on individual academic growth within an effective classroom community.

This study investigates primary teachers' and elementary principals' perspectives on alternatives to the traditional model of student progression in school and whether these options may improve the acquisition of skills needed for advancing into upper grades. Primary mastery of basic skills is essential to learning; however, with rigorous federal…

This practitioner study was undertaken by a teacher and an education director in response to observations that changes made to the structure of a Reform Congregation's education program resulted in substantial positive feedback from stakeholders. Through student interviews and subsequent data analysis, practitioners identified important elements…

Gifted students are multifaceted, and they come from all different racial, cultural, and ethnic backgrounds. They perform at a much higher level than their peers. As a result, it requires a specific type of teacher to instruct them in the classroom. The purpose of this qualitative narrative study was to explore how teaching a gifted self-contained…

The study presented in this article investigates how the curriculum is implemented and transformed by teachers in mixed-age and age-homogeneous groups, the most common age-constellations in the Swedish preschool. The data was collected through groups interviews with preschool teachers. The interviews were transcribed and analysed with the support…

This qualitative study was prompted by the need to establish the challenges and prospects of quality Multi-grade Teaching in satellite primary schools. Through in-depth interviews with the Teachers in Charge of the schools and Focus Group Interviews with teachers, data were generated and analysed thematically. The Three-level Typology created by…

Offering a heuristic to apprentice young children into the disciplines, we examine how one multiage classroom teacher leveraged the resources of personal digital inquiry to forward students' knowledge building.

Research Findings: This study compared the peer interaction patterns in mixed-age and same-age Chinese preschool classrooms using videotaped behavioral observations. A total of 179 children (ages 3-6) from three mixed-age classes and three same-age classes were involved in this study. A total of 170 valid videos were obtained, including 85 videos…

This study reports on the challenges facing multigrade principals. Principals are regarded as curriculum leaders and have critical roles to play in the success of the school. However, school principals experience a myriad of complex challenges in the execution of their roles and responsibilities. The purpose of this qualitative study was to…

Research Findings: Evidence suggests that teachers are effective at improving the social and emotional readiness of low-income children. However, few measures are available to assess teachers' use of specific social-emotional practices within their classrooms. This paper compares an observational measure of teachers' social-emotional practices,…

There is little evidence of how differentiated instruction is being implemented, if at all, in low- and middle-income contexts, which often have unique challenges such as availability of resources and large class sizes. In this paper, we present the results of a qualitative study in eight multigrade preprimary classrooms in Kenya. We used…

Grouping children of different ages in the same preschool classroom (i.e., mixed age) is widespread, but the evidence supporting this practice is mixed. A factor that may play a role in the relation between classroom age composition and child outcomes is peer skill. This study used a sample of 6,338 preschoolers (ages 3-5) to examine the influence…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to explain the influence of a school's operational structure on organisational learning capacity (OLC), and how this either supports or disables any aspiration as a learning organisation. Design/methodology/approach: Two organisational working models are described, one based on same-age structure and another…

The purpose of this study is to explore the relationship between the personality traits, learning environment and academic achievement of children in mixed-grade versus traditional classrooms. The conflicting existing research on the efficacy of mixed-grade classrooms suggests there may be characteristic differences between children that impact…