National Institute of Education

Mixed Ability Classes

Dealing with mixed ability classes
All of us have mixed ability classes. And every class is
a mixed ability class, as all classes consist of
individuals with different strengths and weaknesses.

However, some classes are more extreme than others.

And this is a commonly cited problem by teachers and
trainers in Cambodia.

There is no easy solution to this problem, but below

are a couple of tips.
Dealing with mixed ability classes
 First, try to identify your strongest and weakest students. If
you have a class of 50 or 60 it is difficult to rank each student
according to his/her proficiency level. But you can begin to
notice those students on the periphery.

 Put students in groups so that there is a balance of strong and

weak groups within each group. The advantage of this is that
the stronger students can support the weaker ones.

 Put students in groups of all strong students and all weak

students. The advantage of this is that students feel
comfortable working with students at the same level.
Dealing with mixed ability classes
Pay attention to fast finishers and try to occupy them. Some ideas for this
include:

 having them help other students in their area;

 having them write some of their answers on the board;

 having them do an additional task;

 having them do something for you, like erasing the board.

.
Dealing with mixed ability classes
Give students practice activities which have a range of
difficulty. You can put the easy ones in the beginning
and the difficult ones at the end.

This is a good technique because when you ask

students for the answers you know that you can call on
the weaker students for the first few answers and the
stronger students for the last few.
Dealing with mixed ability classes:
Friends, gender and personality

Although these are not directly related to mixed ability

classes, they affect how effectively students work
together. It may be a good or bad idea to group friends
together, or to group students of one gender or to mix
them. Also, be aware that students’ personalities
sometimes affect their performance.

Observe your students, try out different things and find

out what works in your classes.
Activities for large classes
Backs to the board- review vocabulary; paraphrasing
words

Jumbled words- spelling; review vocabulary

Ladder race- brainstorming vocabulary/ideas

Questions?