A teacher developed a program to help primary students who were easily frustrated and acted out in a disruptive fashion. She established a six-week program to help them learn anger management skills. Students were guided by the teacher and peer facilitators who were capable of demonstrating peaceful solutions to problems. (Author/SM)

This article sets out to compare and contrast two different projects, aimed to get primary teachers collaborating online, with respect to advice from research on how to engage participants. The first project tried to encourage teachers in small rural schools to share ideas for the implementation of the National Numeracy Strategy. The second was…

This study compared the social interaction and types of symbolic play found in mixed-age and same-age preschool groups. The sample included 8 groups of 14 to 20 children, which were naturally formed and had been operating since the beginning of the school year. The four same-age groups included a group of 3- to 4-year-olds, a group of 4- to…

Multiage grouping and related instructional practices are being implemented with increasing frequency in classrooms across the nation. If implementation is carefully and knowledgeably planned, these innovations offer promising alternatives to traditional graded educational practices. This digest briefly describes issues to be considered before…

This study evaluated the Primary Learning Communities (PLC) program, a non-graded kindergarten through second-grade alternative curriculum piloted in three Houston, Texas, elementary schools. The curriculum allows a multi-age mixing of students with ages between five and seven years in the same classroom. Approximately 600 students and 27 teachers…

Moore's Creek Open Elementary school, located in a quiet African-American neighborhood in a sun-belt city, has operated as a progressive school of choice since 1973, despite the low survival rate of public alternative schools. This study identifies forces that have affected curriculum and instruction at Moore's Creek over the past quarter century.…

The effects of a learner-centered approach on self-regulated learning were studied, and a cluster analysis was used to categorize students based on their goal orientation and to relate goal orientation to the self-regulated learning strategies used by the learner. Participants were 114 sixth and seventh graders from 2 multiage classrooms in an…

Examined age and gender mixing among students, ages 4-19, at an ungraded, self-directed, democratically structured school. Found that age mixing was more frequent for 12- to 15-year-olds than for younger or older students, and that gender mixing was less frequent for 8- to 11-year-olds than for any other age group. (MDM)

Examines the efforts of an elementary school in Iowa to combine Basic School and multi-age instruction. Quotes from teachers to describe how (trying not just to educate children but to teach them how to manage their own education) the school's curriculum is structured around big ideas and broad concepts that provide multiple entry points for the…

Surveys how British primary schools group their students for different school subjects, such as according to class ability or mixed ability grouping. Finds that most schools used the class ability groupings, either in mixed or ability groupings. Includes references. (CMK)

Although multiage grouping is part of a greater approach to change in education, classroom problems can result when the approach's rationale is not understood. Three precepts of vertical grouping concern heterogeneity of student groups, individualized materials and activities, and a caring learning community. Factors influencing successful…

Project STRIDE (Services for Transition to Independence through Education) included development of individualized transition plans for adults with learning disabilities; a year of full-time training; and a second year of training with transition to job placement and follow up. Interviews with 19 completers and 10 teachers found that most students…

The revived interest in multiage and looping (multiyear) classrooms addresses today's children's needs for a long-term, caring, learning environment. Although these practices are not panaceas, they are time-effective and instructionally efficient, allowing for continuous learning and less repetition, when teachers have adequate support, training,…

Describes research comparing faculty and student attitudes toward the mixed-age classroom. Indicates that while most faculty and students agree that professors do not favor older students over younger students, they also agree that professors tend to have friendlier relations with older students. Suggests that instructors be more sensitive to…

Parents and community members must be educated to understand nongraded primary education and how primary age children need to be schooled in order to provide the best education. The larger school community should play a significant role in developing and implementing nongraded plans. Schools must encourage parents and community volunteers to…