This case study compared preservice primary school teachers' and primary school teachers' experiences with multi-grade teaching in the 2018--2019 academic year. The sample consisted of 17 fourth-year students in the department of primary school teaching education of a public university and 14 multigrade teachers from 12 schools in Turkey. The…

This paper examines the mathematical experiences of students with additional and diverse needs in multi-year classes within the educational context of small regional South Australian (SA) schools. Qualitative research methods were used to collect data about how students communicate their mathematical thinking. Opportunities for students to…

On the basis of a comprehensive best-evidence synthesis of the literature on the effects of multigrade and multi-age classes, Veenman (1995) concluded that there were no significant differences between multigrade and single-grade classes in cognitive or achievement effects. Subsequently, Mason and Burns (1996) challenged Veenman's conclusion,…

The purpose of this study is to investigate elementary students' explanations of how physical features of the land influence the location of humanly defined structures including trade routes, such as the silk routes. The silk routes were a series of caravan trade routes that extended from Turkey to China and were located as far south as India and…

This paper reviews selected research studies of multigrade classrooms in Canada, Finland, eight developing nations (India, Korea, Maldives, Nepal, Thailand, Philippines, Sri Lanka, and Indonesia), and the United States. Based on information about the perceptions of multigrade instruction of principals and teachers, the following issues are…

A 15-year study of Amish schools in the United States and Canada found that the number of Amish schools has grown dramatically from 1940 through the present. The Amish provide formal schooling only up to the eighth grade, after which adolescents are engaged in mastering a trade before entering into adulthood. The Amish once supported public…

This paper describes the long-term effects of a staff-development program, "Dealing with Multi-Grade Classes," based on selected findings from teaching-effectiveness research in schools with multi-grade or mixed-age classes. The short-term effects were examined in two studies conducted in 1986-87 and 1989-90. In 1992 a follow-up study…

A quasi-experimental, treatment-control group investigation was designed to test the effects on Dutch primary school teachers of the staff development program "Dealing with Mixed-Age Classes." Research findings from mixed-age classes, effective teaching, and classroom management and organization were translated into teaching behaviors.…

This position paper focuses on issues related to equal education in small, rural schools in Sweden. Specifically, the report analyzes national statistics, reports from the National Agency for Education, and other research regarding the status of education in Sweden. Data indicate that for the 1994-95 school year, two-thirds of the schools in…

Before 1970, no mixed-age groups existed in Swedish nursery schools. By 1991, 43 percent of children enrolled in nursery school were in mixed-age groups of ages 1 to 6 years, and 37 percent were in groups of children ages 3 to 6 years. Mixed-age groups are assumed to have advantages, including positive influences on learning and social…

This paper presents the results of a school improvement study (main field test) directed at schools with mixed-age classes in the context of inservice teacher education. A quasi-experimental treatment control group investigation was designed to test the effects of the staff development program "Dealing with Mixed-age Classes," and the…

A school system in Cape Town, South Africa, developed a program called the "Combined Magnet Class" to serve gifted pupils from standards (grades) 3-5 in one classroom. Changes to the standard curriculum were made, and a pupil-determined pace was adopted. The pupils studied English, Afrikaans, and mathematics using a syllabus, for…

The TeleLearning and Rural Education Centre was established in January 1997 at Memorial University of Newfoundland, in one of the most sparsely populated and economically depressed areas of Canada. Of 462 schools in Newfoundland and Labrador, 66 percent are rural and over half have enrollments of under 200 students. The Centre was established to…

Over half of Finnish elementary schools are small schools employing 1-3 teachers. This paper examines the implementation of new national curriculum policies in two small elementary schools. The new policies, adopted in 1994, stress autonomous control of learning and encourage each individual school, in collaboration with the community, to draw up…

Based on research and discussions with rural educators in Australia and New Zealand, a new rural teacher preparation program at the University of Victoria (British Columbia) is intended to sensitize students to the professional life of teachers in small rural communities and to acquaint them with the demands of teaching multi-graded classes. The…