Prepared for diversity? Teacher education for lower primary classes in Malawi

Multigrade teaching poses a challenge to learning. Millions of learners worldwide are taught by teachers who, at any one time, are responsible for two or more school grades/years. These are the invisible multigrade teachers who struggle to provide learning opportunities for all within curriculum and teacher education systems designed for monograded classes. In many countries multigraded classes arise out of necessity and are regarded as second class education. Yet in some parts of the world learning and teaching in multigraded settings is embraced as the pedagogy of choice, offering equivalent, and sometime superior, learning opportunities. Multigrade teaching provides an opportunity for improved learning.

The purpose of this book is to raise awareness among educational policymakers and practitioners worldwide of the realities of multigrade classes in the context of Education for All, and to explore the implications for teachers, teacher educators, curriculum developers and educational planners.

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