https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5464-6144
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ABSTRACT
Effective inclusion of pupils with special educational needs (SEN) in multi-grade classrooms is complex, depending on the ability of teachers to meet challenges posed in delivering a broad and balanced curriculum while simultaneously meeting the often quite specific needs of pupils with SEN. This paper details the findings of research which investigated perceptions of mainstream teachers in relation to how they meet the needs of pupils with SEN in multi-grade classrooms. It focuses on adaptations to the instructional practices used in multi-grade classrooms which facilitate the education of pupils with SEN with their peers. This research has highlighted great similarity between multi-grade classrooms and inclusive classroom practices reported in the literature. Flexibility of grouping and teaching practices, differentiation, and planning emerge as valuable in facilitating the effective inclusion of pupils with SEN in multi-grade settings.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.
Notes on contributors
Bairbre Tiernan is a lecturer in special educational needs (SEN) at the Centre for Special Educational Needs, Inclusion and Diversity in St. Angela’s College, Sligo, a College of NUI Galway. Research and lecturing interests focus on many areas of special education, with particular interest in inclusion in the multi-grade classrooms, literary, assessment, dyslexia and behaviour.
Ann Marie Casserly is a lecturer in SEN at the Centre for Special Educational Needs, Inclusion and Diversity in St. Angela’s College, Sligo, a College of NUI Galway. Her lecturing and research interests are diverse in the area of SEN but have focused extensively in the area of dyslexia and the socio-emotional aspects of dyslexia, literacy, behaviour, SEN in multi-grade classrooms.
Gabrielle Maguire is Senior Tutor in St Mary’s University College, Belfast. Lecturing and research interests focus on Irish-medium education, most recently analysing models of immersion settings in Ireland. Her main area of interest is literacy in the immersion context and she has developed an early literacy assessment tool and a whole class intervention programme to support literacy development.
ORCID
Bairbre Tiernan http://orcid.org/0000-0002-5464-6144
Notes
1 There are a number of terms used to describe classroom settings where a combination of a number of grade levels are taught together. These include multi-grade class, composite class, multi-level class, multiple class, combination class, split class and vertical grouped class. For the purpose of this paper, the term multi-grade is adopted.
2 The term ‘support teachers’ refers to special educators. For the purpose of this paper, the term support teacher refers to both the role of the SEN teacher in the ROI and the role of the SENCO in NI.
3 The term ‘mainstream teachers’ refers to general educators.
4 Depending on school size (2/3/4 teacher), junior classes generally refer to the first 2–4 years in the primary school, middle classes refer to the middle section of the school (years 3–6), while senior classes generally refer to the final years (years 4–8).
5 Co-teaching involves two or more teachers sharing instructional responsibility for a group of students in a single class, or workspace, for specific content and objectives (Friend and Cook Citation2007).
6 Station-teaching is a model of co-teaching. Here, teachers work on specific content at a number of workstations in a class and pupils move from station to station over a set time period.
7 The ‘pitch’ of lesson refers to the level of difficulty of the lesson.
8 The term ‘Individual Education Plan (IEP) targets’ describes what the student may reasonably be expected to do or achieve.