Masaryk University Faculty of Arts Department of English and American Studies

1.2.Mixed ability classroom

The children’s needs are not only determined by their different age, but also by their different abilities. As has been mentioned, each of the children in the examined group had come into contact with English before. All the girls came into contact with English in kindergarten; the younger boy has been learning English for a year, the older one for two years. The difference between the girls and the oldest boy is therefore the most noticeable. Observation 8: It has proven effective to let the others learn from the oldest boy. E.g.: Let him recite the alphabet or the numbers first so that the others can mimic him. With most of the children in the group less advanced than him there is a threat of him being bored. To allow him help the teacher stimulates a sense of importance in him and at the same time, by acknowledging his advancement as a positive feature for the group, it does not diminish self-confidence of the others. It is nevertheless important to make sure that the tasks given to the group are challenging enough even for him or to invent a more challenging task to suit his needs. He is also allowed to approach the tasks in a way he chooses.

1.3.Learners’ differences

This subchapter is concerned with the way in which people differ in relation to learning. First, the learner styles are discussed, then there are other differences presented and finally there is Tomlinson’s approach to differentiation.

1.3.1.Learners’ styles

There are many possibilities to distinguish learners according to different criteria. The pupils can be distinguished according to whether they use the left part or the right part of the brain more (where the left part is considered to be the logical part of brain and the right part the creative part of brain), whether they are convergent or divergent thinkers (divergent being analytical, convergent imaginative), according to Neil Flemings’s VAK/VARK model they can be visual, aural, reading/writing or kinaesthetic/tactile (experiencing the world through touch, taste, smell and feelings) learners (VARK Learn Limited n.p.). Harmer in his The Practice of English Language chapter on learner styles mentions learner styles according to Tony Wright who distinguishes enthusiasts, oraculars, participators and rebels and learner styles according to Keith Willing who distinguishes convergers, conformists, concrete and communicative learners. There is also the theory of Multiple Intelligences which distinguishes seven types of learners: verbal/linguistic, mathematical/logical, visual/spatial, bodily/kinaesthetic, musical, interpersonal and intrapersonal, with naturalistic added later and emotional added by Daniel Goleman. (Harmer 42-43, 46-47) And, those are still not all the possible ways of distinguishing learner styles.

Learners can be distinguished also according to their personality. However, the study of personality is also still developing. There is the typology of four temperaments by Galen, who distinguishes sanguine, melancholic, choleric and phlegmatic. Jung distinguishes four psychological functions according to which people perceive the world: sensation, intuition, feeling and thinking. These functions are expressed in introverted or extraverted form. On this concept Myers and Briggs founded their own theory². With addition of perceiving and judgement and unique combination of these functions in an individual there are 16 possible psychological types. Keirsey³ then comes with another study of four temperaments which he divides into two categories, each with two types resulting into 16 types that correlate with the 16 types of Briggs and Myers. His four temperaments are called: artisans, guardians, idealists and rationalists. As Donna Dunnig claims: “Temperament will influence how and what individuals prefer to learn” (Dunning 5). However, there are still more ways to describe human personality e.g. Enneagram⁴ that distinguishes nine personality types: reformer, helper, achiever, individualist, investigator, loyalist, enthusiast, challenger and peacemaker and names their various strengths and weaknesses. It is evident that there are many ways in which to categorize people. However, human psyche is too complex to be put into a category. When people are put into categories their individuality is somehow diminished, because even though two people fall into the same category they are not necessarily the same. Therefore, the teacher can either choose one or more ways of categorization to make the assessment of the students easier or he/she refuses to put the pupils into categories and reacts to their immediate manifestation, because people change, people grow, their needs can change, their opinions can change and even though at the start of the semester they would fall into one category, they can fall into different one at the end of it.

1.3.2.Other learners’ differences that can influence the teaching

Other characteristics of the learner that require different approach and should be taken into consideration are:

• 
  their age (see Characteristics of children from ages 6 to 8)
  
• 
  their gender
  
• 
  their advancement (see Mixed ability classroom)
  
• 
  their aptitude
  
• 
  whether or not they have some learning disabilities or other disorders affecting their learning
  
• 
  the environment they come from (this includes upbringing, beliefs and traditions, culture and religion)
  

It is obvious that boys will have different needs than girls and for example a situation where a teacher would discuss fashion in a girl-free group is highly improbable (however, to refuse to discuss fashion with boys if they ask to would oppose individualisation). Teachers striving for individualisation also have to keep in mind that it is possible that there are children in their classroom of different religion or culture than the majority and do not impose their beliefs on them.

1.3.3.Learners’ differences according to Tomlinson

According to Tomlinson “teachers can differentiate content, process and product [of the lessons] by attending to student’s readiness, interests and learning profile through a range of instructional and management strategies (...)“ (Tomlinson How to Differentiate 15), where readiness is “a student’s entry point relative to a particular interest or skill” (Tomlinson The Differentiated Classroom 11), interest is a student’s “affinity, curiosity or passion for a particular topic or skill” (Tomlinson The Differentiated Classroom 11) and a learning profile indicates how a student learns (Tomlinson The Differentiated Classroom 11). For Tomlinson (Fulfilling the Promise 3) learning profile encompasses learning style, intelligence preference (referring to the theory of Multiple Intelligences), gender and culture.