"Dear Dr. Mulcahy, ... you should have asked for this questionnaire to have been completed in the early fall.  At this time in the school year after teaching three grades and living in an isolated community I am a little crazier than when I started out in September."

 The purpose of the current series of articles, which began in the Fall 1991, edition of the Morning Watch, is to explore the kinds of charges in thinking that must take place in this province that would lay the foundation for the development of a distinctive curriculum model for multi-grade classrooms.  The desirability and necessity for such a curriculum model is a firmly held belief with many rural educators in this province.  It is a perspective that finds support in the research literature on small schools and multi-grade learning and teaching. (Riggs, 1987; Gajadharsingh, 1982; CEA, 1991; Miller, 1989).  This collective belief is based on the understanding that the dynamics and characteristics of multi-grade/multi-age classrooms are unique enough to warrant special curricular provision and teacher education.

 In the preceding article "Do We Still Have Multi-grade Classrooms?" the apparent failure of various educational agencies to acknowledge the existence of multi-grade classrooms was indicated.  A number of reasons for this neglect were offered.  The focus of this paper is an exploration of one of these reasons, the belief that multi-grade classrooms are not different from single grade ones and that there is consequently no need for special curriculum guidelines or materials or special teacher education or professional development.

 A similar kind of belief has generally limited the amount of educational research and development activity being focused on rural education and small schools in general.  Stigsworth and Bell (1987) in The Small Rural Primary School point out that the official view in the past has often been that such schools "are merely dwarf varieties of larger primary schools... (and need not be considered as)... institutions with distinctive features of their own, still less that they need to be taken seriously" (p. 33, 36).

 The purpose of this article is to describe some of the ways in which learning and teaching in a multi-grade classrooms are different from in single grades and to indicate how those differences impact on teachers and students.  The views presented are those of multi-grade classroom teachers from Newfoundland and Labrador who have participated in the SMALL SCHOOLS CURRICULUM PROJECT.  It is their voices that will be heard in this paper as they speak to us and to each other.

Multi-Grade - Single Grade:  The Nature of the Difference

 Teachers participating in the SMALL SCHOOLS CURRICULUM PROJECT were asked to complete a rather extensive questionnaire dealing with all aspects of multi-grade learning and teaching.  One of the items they were asked to respond to focused on the issue of the differences between single grade and multi-grade situations.  The item read as follows:
 

 SOME PEOPLE ARGUE THAT A MULTI-GRADE CLASSROOM IS NO DIFFERENT THAN A SINGLE GRADE ONE GIVEN THAT EVERY CLASS WILL HAVE STUDENTS WHO WILL VARY IN ABILITY AND ACHIEVEMENT AS MUCH AS TWO TO FIVE YEARS.  HOW WOULD YOU, AS A MULTI-GRADE TEACHER RESPOND TO THIS ASSERTION THAT THERE IS NO DIFFERENCE?

 A qualitative analysis of their responses to this survey item has revealed that teachers who work on a daily basis in small schools and multigrade classrooms take quite an exception to this notion of no difference.  In the following presentation of the teachers' responses to this item, all comments are direct quotations from the survey questionnaires.  No individual teachers are identified in keeping with the conditions under which the survey was completed.
 

A Lack of Understanding

 Some teachers, clearly exasperated by the question, answered curtly, demonstratively: "BULL!"; "NONSENSE!" (original emphasis).  Such a claim ("no difference") could only be made by people who "obviously have never taught in a multi-grade classroom":
 

 That person doesn't know what they are talking about.  If we had specifically designed curriculum that dealt with multigrades it might be similar.  But teaching 4 or 5 lessons of math at one time is nothing like dealing with differences in learning.

 The people who say that, are not aware of the reality of trying to follow a prescribed curriculum for two or more grades, working with up to 30 different individuals, trying to adapt new approaches to teaching and learning, and all the while trying to work with parents who don't understand why things are being done in a particular way.

Legal And Moral Responsibility

 One of the major themes that have emerged from an analysis of the responses to the question of differences focuses on the legal and ethical responsibility multi-grade teachers feel in relation to the "official", "mandated", or "prescribed" curriculum:
 

 There is a difference in responsibility (original emphasis) - what the teacher is supposed to be officially doing.

 The amount of prescribed curriculum is so much greater in a multi-grade classroom.

 The frame of reference is a teacher in a single grade classroom.  She or he is legally responsible for only the mandated curriculum for that particular grade.  A grade four teacher is responsible for the grade four curriculum and so on.  Whatever measure of that teacher's effectiveness is used, its reference point will be that established for that grade.  No matter what the range of the children's abilities in the class the teacher's official responsibility is grade specific.  She or he is accountable for covering the curriculum for a particular grade.

 The teacher's curricular responsibility in a multi-grade classroom is radically different.  In this educational context she or he is legally and morally accountable for the prescribed curriculum for not one grade but two and in many cases three and in some exceptional cases four or more:
 

 My argument is that in single grades you have only one set of courses to be concerned with whereas in multi-grades you have 2 and possibly 3. Its easier to modify 10 courses as opposed to 20 or 30.

 It is quite different considering you have 3 or 4 different curriculums to complete.

 ... you must address 3 or 4 'curriculums", juggle your time and divide your attention between 3 or 4 times as many programs and guide books.

 The point these teachers are making is that there is a definite and significant difference in terms of responsibility and expectation.  Teachers are placed in an impossible situation with totally unrealistic demands.  The school day/week/year has a finite amount of time; the teacher has a finite amount of energy.  Yet the provincial Program of Studies (199192) informs multi-grade teachers that "time allotments for multi-grades are the same as those for single grades" (p. 43).

 Because there is not enough time to do everything that is prescribed or required multi-grade teachers are constantly having to make curriculum decisions as to what to include and what to exclude:
 

 There is a difference in that you, the teacher, have to decide the curriculum you are going to teach.  In a regular grade 2 class you teach the grade 2 science concepts, health concepts, etc.  In a multi-grade (of 2 and 3) do you teach 2 or 3 or bits of both?

 Multi-grade teachers have to make such curricular decisions without guidelines, advice or training.  Moreover, it is they who are held accountable for such decisions if they adversely affect student achievement and progress:
 

 You are left on your own to make decisions as to what to leave out because you cannot do it all; yet you are held accountable for it all.

 A second major theme that has emerged from the qualitative analysis of multi-grade teachers' responses to the question of the differences between single grade and multi-grade classrooms is the issue of the degree and range of individual differences and needs that can characterize the multi-grade situation.

 It is certainly true that in any given classroom children will exhibit a range of difference in ages, interests, abilities, and achievement.  Reading levels may vary by as much as three to five years.  Chronological ages can differ by a year or more.  A policy of automatic promotion can mean that the grade children are officially in, in any given year, is in no way indicative of their mastery of the material and skills prescribed for a previous grade.  Add to this the mainstreaming or integrating of children with special needs into the regular classroom and one can have a very heterogeneous community of children along many dimensions.

 Often it is these kinds of observations that lead to the conclusion that all classrooms are multi-graded.  In this sense, this is a valid point to make.  Furthermore, many single grade teachers find it extremely frustrating to meet these individual needs and cover the prescribed curriculum for their single grade.  The tension and stress that are generated by this pedagogical conflict of interest is an aspect of teaching that makes kindred spirits of both multi-grade and single grade teachers.  The children with their needs are in front of you everyday; yet hanging over your head is the official curriculum which seems to have been designed quite oblivious to classroom realities.

 The observation that multi-grade teachers make is that in a multi-grade classroom, with two or three grade levels combined, the potential differences along all of these dimensions is possibly doubled and trebled:
 

 There is a difference because not only do you have different grade levels but you have different levels in each grade.  Therefore your problem is compounded.

 Students in the same grade vary 3-5 levels.  Multiply this by 4 grades and you find yourself working with 12-20 levels.  Every students is working at a different rate.

 To meet the individual needs o each and every child in a single grade classroom is very difficult; in a multi-grade classroom (given the curricular problems outlined above) this task is next to impossible:
 

 Depending on the size and number of grades you will probably have a greater variation in ability.  It would be also more difficult to adequately deal with the variation because the teacher's workload is greater in a multi-grade situation.

 But if a classroom has one Grade, they may only have two or three levels of ability but if a classroom has two or three grades the teacher could end up with nine levels of ability.

 I have to meet the needs of these children while meeting the needs of all grades.  It could be said that I have I1 different grades within 4 grades.

 Ultimately, this combination of grades, subjects, and varying abilities and needs leads to the problem of "attention deficiency".  Students lack the special attention given by the teacher:
 

 I would say that it is, for you are limited many times to the amount of help and attention you pay to all students while you are introducing new tasks in different areas.

 But what about the low achievers who are going to suffer even more because the teacher cannot get the time to spend with them.

 In a multi-grade children get neglected because of the pressure to complete more work.

 Where there are three or more combined grades the varying age groups may pose great difficulties.  This social grouping of children with quite different maturation levels certainly creates its own dynamics and set of challenges for the multi-grade teacher.  While it is true that most multi-grade situations are made up of two grades, there are still significant numbers of three and four grade combinations.
 

 There are always different levels, however, the biggest gap is in maturity level.  This can create the biggest problem.

 The age difference is a greater problem.  The children in my class range from 5 years to 12 years.

 There is a big difference socially depending on grades combined.

 Combining even two grades when those grades are kindergarten and grade one creates the kind of challenging situation being referred to here.  Part of the difficulty lies with the curriculum itself which often lacks continuity and coherence between program levels such as kindergarten and grade one and primary and elementary.  This lack of continuity and coherence makes children's progress problematic in a single grade set up and makes integration more difficult in a multi-grade situation.  When the curriculum problem is added to the maturation problem the difficulties just get compounded:
 

 I do not agree (that there is no difference) because in K/1 area, the K program is a world apart from the Grade 1 program.  The one year in school makes a big difference for the Grade 1 students.

 Trying to balance and juggle all the curriculum requirements and meet and respond to all the differences that can characterize a multi-grade classroom creates a very stressful and frustrating teaching context:
 

 Students do vary in ability and achievement, but it becomes quite frustrating when you don't have the instructional time to give these students when you are teaching all subjects from K-3 because you are not working with one grade.

Preparation and Planning

 Two other themes that emerge from the data analysis are the greater preparation time required in a multi-grade situations and the greater complexity involved in planning learning activities.  Both of these points are clearly related to and a consequence of the two issues discussed above.  There is an interconnectedness here.  To really understand the complexities and dynamics of a multi-grade teaching situation it is necessary to grasp all these issues concurrently:  the whole is much more than the sum of the individual parts.

 Given the nature of their situations it is not surprising that multi-grade teachers make the point that the preparation time and planning difficulties are greater:
 

 Definitely there is a big difference, namely teacher preparation - combining more than one set of objectives and meeting the needs of a wider range of abilities takes double the preparation time.

 It takes a great deal of preparation for 3 or more grades.

 The most difficult aspect is preparation; you have to prepare in a way that makes good use of time while trying to equalize your time among all grades and at the same time have students working and progressing.

 In order to deal effectively with the demands and challenges of a multigrade classroom a teacher must be a very dedicated, hard working, caring individual whose approach to teaching must be flexible, innovative and creative.  Teachers participating in the Project identified the following necessary qualities and attitudes among others:
 

 Extremely dedicated; able to work long hard hours after the official school day has ended.

 One who cares a great deal for the welfare of the students.

 Willingness to give more power and choices to the students.

 Willingness to experiment, try new ideas, take risks.

Walk a Mile in My Shoes

 Participants in this study have a very clear idea of how to change the minds of those who would suggest that there is no difference between a multi-grade and a single grade classroom situation.

 Appreciative of the limitations of discourse as a way of knowing, they suggest a little experiential learning.  For those who lack the imagination that would enable them to dramatically identify with teachers in multi-grade situations, they recommend spending some time in such classrooms:
 

 Put them in a multi-grade classroom!  I would ask these people to teach in a multi-grade situation and then compare.

 I would say let these people teach in a multi-grade classroom for a while and their opinion would soon change.

 Better still, send these people into a multi-grade classroom for a year and they will think differently.

 Ask them to trade jobs with me!

 This paper has presented the views of multi-grade teachers concerning the differences between multi-grade and single grade classrooms.  Their views on this issue are part of an overall argument being developed in a series of articles attempting to establish a foundation for creating a distinctive curriculum model for small schools and multi-grade situations.  The uniqueness of a multi-grade context is one necessary part of that foundation.

 The expressed views of multi-grade teachers in Newfoundland and Labrador are supported by the research literature on small schools and multi-grade/multi-age teaching.  Miller (1991) conducted a review of the qualitative research on multi-grade instruction and concluded:
 

 In the multi-grade classroom, more time must be spent in organizing and planning for instruction.  This is required if the teacher wants to meet the individual needs of students and successfully monitor student progress (p. 11).
 

 The overarching task which concerned them was that of developing and maintaining a curriculum comparable in breath and quality of that of schools three and four times their size. ... the teachers saw the task of curriculum generation as their foremost concern. ... It must be remembered that rural teachers, because their classes contain two or more age ranges must, over much of their curriculum, plan a longer cycle of activities than that required by a class teacher in a larger school, where responsibility is limited to a singe age span.  (Bell and Sigsworth, 1987, p. 141)

The curriculum challenge is exacerbated by the degree of prescription and grade specificity of the "official" and "mandated" curriculum.

 Given the uniqueness of the situation, it is commonplace in the literature on small schools and multi-grade classrooms to point out that "there are unique competencies necessary for successful teaching" (Jones, 1987) in such a context. (See also CEA, 1991; Miller, 1989; 1991.) Miller (1991), after comparing the unique problems associated with rural education and in particular multi-grade classrooms in North America and third world countries, observed:
 

 Ironically, the concerns and depictions of problems in these developing countries echo many of the concerns voiced in the United States and Canada by multi-grade classroom teachers and rural educators.  The most prominent similarity is the need for curriculum and program modification that reflect ... the needs of students within the demands created by multi-grade organization (p. 6)

 In future issues of the Morning Watch two other issues will be explored that are fundamental to laying the foundation for the construction of a curriculum model for multi-grade classrooms.  The first of these will focus on student achievement in multigrade classrooms.  The question that will be addressed is: Are multi-grade classrooms viable sites for quality education and high student performance?  A second article will focus on the distinct advantages that small schools and multi-grade classroom have as educational milieux.  Too often in this province and elsewhere a "deficit model" image dominates thinking about small schools and multi-grading.  One of the ways forward is the identification of the very real strengths and advantages that such contexts have for both students and teachers.  A curriculum model for multi-grades must build on and incorporate in its overall design such positive attributes.

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