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      Comment on the Post: One Size Does Not Fit ALL
      Submitted by naomishema on 9 February, 2012 - 19:36

      I quite identify with the situation described in Sirja Bessero's guest post "One size does not fit all"

      http://cerij.wordpress.com/2012/02/07/one-size-does-not-fit-all-a-guest-...

      Even though her teaching situation is entirely different from mine the main issue we both faced was exactly the same:

      It is entirely up to us to find a way to deal with significant gaps in level within the class. Nobody else is "invested" enough in the issue to solve the problem.

      I can't excuse students from any of my lessons (it is a high-school) but, like Sirja, expect different things from different students. In order to do this I stopped, almost completely, teaching frontally and have moved to the format of a learning center, with different work stations and activities.

      The school is unable to stop sending me students at wildly diferent levels. So the answer had to come from within the classroom.

      Inspiring post, Sirja!

       

       

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      nahla_shaw's picture
      nahla_shaw
      reply
      Submitted on 9 February, 2012 - 21:56

      Dear Naomi,

      Thank you for sharing. It is quite difficult to work with different levels, but what can you do? you must make sure that all students recieve materials according to their level of language. 

      naomishema's picture
      naomishema
      Yes, you are right, Nahla,it
      Submitted on 9 February, 2012 - 22:04

      Yes, you are right, Nahla,it isn't easy at all. But this is an issue that won't go away!

      Naomi

      lemanulas's picture
      lemanulas
      thanks for sharing
      Submitted on 9 February, 2012 - 23:00

      thanks for sharing naomishema..

      naomishema's picture
      naomishema
      And thank you for reading,
      Submitted on 9 February, 2012 - 23:09

      And thank you for reading, lemanulas!

      oztrkozge's picture
      oztrkozge
      Dear Naomi,That's a great
      Submitted on 9 February, 2012 - 23:43

      Dear Naomi,

      That's a great topic for me to discuss about the answers I am looking for. Many of the times, we have students from different backgrounds and that makes teaching really hard to cater all students' needs. I will suggest you differentiation in your teaching style. Maybe you can cover your subject of the day according to average level and then when it comes to tasks, you need to be really careful about delivering the right task to the desirable student. Of course, students shouldn't be aware of the fact that they are being treated in a different way. My advice is just for everyone in the classroom and for the better of their learning and motivation. what do you think about it as far as you experience this difficulty??

      naomishema's picture
      naomishema
      Oh, oztrkozge, my stuents are
      Submitted on 10 February, 2012 - 14:38

      Oh, oztrkozge, my stuents are at such wildly different levels that they certainly know they are getting different material. I have students who have difficulty with simple sentences sitting next to students writing 120 word essays on serious topics!

      oztrkozge's picture
      oztrkozge
      I know that it is so weird to
      Submitted on 10 February, 2012 - 14:42

      I know that it is so weird to have all different levels in one class. Actually, the worst part is the exams. It is hard to find fair questions for everyone :(

      naomishema's picture
      naomishema
      Exams are a lot of work, I do
      Submitted on 10 February, 2012 - 14:46

      Exams are a lot of work, I do agree!

      Naomi