Multigrade teaching in primary schools in rural and remote areas of Assin Central District of the Central Region of Ghana: Teachers’ perspectives
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.51867/AQSSR.3.1.40Keywords:
Collaboration, Differentiation, Integration, Monitoring, Monograde, Multigrade, Peer Teaching, SupervisionAbstract
The study explored teachers’ perspectives on teaching multigrade classes in rural and remote areas. It was a phenomenological study that was guided by the constructivist theory. Teachers who are involved in multigrade teaching in primary schools in the Assin Central District of the Central Region of Ghana constituted the population of the study. All 12 multigrade primary teachers were included (census) in the study and were interviewed. Data were recorded and transcribed and analyzed through the thematic and narrative approaches. The study revealed that multigrade teaching has become an unavoidable option for providing instructions to rural and remote learners. It requires teachers who are well-trained, resourced, innovative, and committed to embracing this practice. However, the majority of the multigrade teachers lacked the requisite knowledge to teach multigrade classes as a result of a lack of training in multigrade pedagogy. Although teachers have not received any formal training on multigrade teaching, they were able to adopt strategies such as collaboration, peer tutoring, and differentiation to effectively meet the diverse needs of pupils. As a recommendation, multigrade teaching calls for much broader regulation and policy measures to address the problems, especially in remote and rural education systems. The implication is that teacher training institutions across the country should officially recognize and accept multigrade teaching as a key pedagogical option and design courses that will help teachers cope with multigrade classes, especially in rural and remote places where teachers are in short supply. Another implication for practice is that teacher training institutions should include in their curriculum the knowledge, skills, and experiences teacher-trainees require to teach multigrade classes. Professional development programs and in-service programs in multigrade teaching should also be developed for all practicing teachers.
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