A Multiage Classroom: Choice and Possiblity by Maureen McCann Miletta (Hofstra University, New York, USA)
Schools have always compartmentalized learning into subject areas, but when they prescribe what exactly should be taught within each area, they further restrict learning. So Maureen Miletta and three other teachers of grades four, five, and six decided to relax those limitations, shuffle subject matter into new patterns, and offer students a voice in their education. In this text, she describes how they created a multiage classroom - a place where learning is valued, where students can choose what they want and need to study, and where teachers are at liberty to develop imaginative programmes. The text is both theoretical and practical. It discusses ways teachers can plan and develop a multiage programme, refine and expand the choices offered to children, integrate and infuse the arts into the curriculum, and effect change in their schools. The book also includes specific strategies to help children teach their peers, assess their own work, develop their own goals, and evaluate their own progress in parent conferences. Teachers interested in creating similar learning environments or experimenting with new ideas and challenges will find encouragement in this text.