Abstract
Smaller classes have
several immediate contextual benefits for teachers, but do they
result in changes to instructional practices? Results from a study
of 17 small grade 1 classes indicate that teachers used these
contextual benefits to support a variety of grouping practices;
individualization; active learning; integration of reading, writing,
and speaking; and students' personal skill development in a creative
and integrated curriculum. Some used an overall program format
and adapted instruction for individuals and groups, whereas others
designed for children's individual and social development and
integrated this in their daily plans. Instructional practices
were best described as fluid and holistic, complex, and multitask,
and aimed at literacy achievement.
Copyright © AJER, the Faculty of Education, and the University
of Alberta, 2003.
Last revised: August 11, 2003.
Designed by G.H. Buck