Tips for managing a large mixed-level class
Does
this ring a bell?
Imagine you are meeting a new class for the first
time. You walk into the classroom. The chatter of young voices begins to
subside as you take your place in the front of the room, and more than forty
young faces turn eagerly to look you over, trying to gauge how cool, hip, old,
young, strict or stuffy you are. At the same time, you are surveying the sea of
young faces, already knowing beyond a shadow of a doubt that, in a perfect
world, not all of these forty-two young people would be in the same class, and
that getting them to operate as a single, cohesive group is going to be a
challenge that you might not always be up to.
You introduce yourself to the group, then ask them to
tell the class their names and a little about themselves. If you are observant,
you are already learning something about the students as individuals, something
beyond just names and interests. Some of them are eager to answer; they want to
show off their skills and are more than ready to add to the skills their
already have. Others hesitate, their
brains obviously working to come up with an appropriate response; they know
they can say something, but don't feel sure about how accurate or
comprehensible it will be. Still others look puzzled, distracted or just plain
disaffected. They may not understand what's going on, or simply feel too
insecure to even attempt to answer your question. They are the ones who have
been left behind in other classes and feel that they will never be given a
chance to catch up now.
The teacher's job, your job, is to bring the class
together into a single unit – not at some later date when you've had time to
think and prepare, but right from the beginning of the class. The tone you set
in the first few minutes of meeting a class will stay with the students for the
rest of your time together. Make it positive, and make it clear: everyone in
the class is equal, capable, and a full member of a winning team.
Do you want some tips for managing the class described above? Click here to read the whole article.
We hope you find it useful.