Multi-Age Classrooms

Dear Parents & Carers,

Recently I published our grade structure for 2022, including our 4-6 structure, which as a structure has been operating since 2019.

There has been, as I understand some concerns by a few parents in the community who feel that this structure is detrimental to some students, and apparently is leading to some parents transferring out of the school. I also understand that a petition has been circulating requesting parents to support changes to our grade structures, which I presume aims to dissuade me, as principal from continuing with the current structure for 2022 and beyond.

Given this recent information I feel I must address these beliefs as a letter to the community, staff, and students, as a way of informing, not to convince, but provide objective reasons for the multi-age classroom environment. It is my intention to provide a context, so we, as a school community can work together to develop our students into truly multi-faceted individuals, who will participate, and actively engage as future citizens in work and play, in a multi-age world.

Newlands Primary School has grown over the years and provides, what I believe, to be more than a narrow platform to deliver educational outcomes. We have during my time in partnership with the community worked to enrich the culture of Newlands by embedding The Arts, IT, Inquiry, Spanish and in 2022 STEAM as part of the schools DNA. The curriculum and learning landscape for the students in the 4-6 area will be enriched through developing an inquiry approach to learning, allowing all students from Year 4 to Year 6 to showcase their collaborative learning to the community. The school believes this approach has provided all students the opportunity to participate in learning teams, working with older or younger students. 

To operate as a multi-age school, we do need to define the term. Schools currently operate three common types of models: straight age model, composite class model and the multi-age model. While our structure could be seen as a mixture of the composite and multi-age classes, that is strictly not true. 

The Newlands structure has not changed since we introduced the F/1, 2/3 and 4 to 6 back in 2019. This structure [multi-age] unlike the other two is not dependent on a constant enrolment of students to meet the financial concerns on a year-by-year basis. The model is not bound to a constant enrolment requirement. It also allows students to understand and be guided by older students and for teachers to know more about a child over a longer period. The Newlands model provides opportunities for students to be leaders or mentors in the classroom, even as young as the F/1 classrooms. 

We appreciate that, for some parents this structure or model is not the norm in this part of the world where schools tend to be either straight grades or composite according to need. For Newlands we are a school where in 2024 the structure and the pedagogical Inquiry approach to learning will be complemented by new outstanding buildings including outdoor environments which will fully support the inquiry approach to learning. 

This an exciting class structural vision for the school, no different l believe to those parents back in 2009 who wanted their local neighbourhood school to be there for their kids. They trusted the school leadership and teachers would bring their little neighbourhood school back from the brink; I believe we succeeded.

Our next piece of work is to continue evolving and improving. We know there is much to do, but we will continue to get better. We believe this model supports our instructional model and pedagogical approach for learning. The Newlands structure supports those other aspects of the child: the social wellbeing, supporting student agency and leadership opportunities. The model provides long term consistency for learning, rather than developing structures year to year.

The new FISO 2.0 sets out 5 core elements that together realise the goals of excellence and equity through developing the learning and wellbeing of every Victorian student. When integrated, these elements build a positive environment through strong relationships that enables all students to become:

• happy, healthy, and resilient
• successful lifelong learners
• active, informed members of just and sustainable communities

While these elements are a requirement for all schools, the concept of community is such a natural element for a multi-age environment. It is realistic, it’s not structured around pre-industrial concepts that students learn better in straight age groupings. The purpose of our multi-age classrooms at Newlands is to place and support the student at the centre of learning as opposed to the curriculum driving student outcomes. Not everything evolves around NAPLAN, there is more to learning. 

“The fact is that given the challenges we face, education doesn’t need to be reformed — it needs to be transformed. The key to this transformation is not to standardize education, but to personalize it, to build achievement on discovering the individual talents of each child, to put students in an environment where they want to learn and where they can naturally discover their true passions.” Sir Ken Robinson

Since the introduction of the Bilingual Spanish in 2015 and now at almost a 50/50 program, which is a fantastic outcome for the school. Our student’s Spanish language acquisition has thrived in the multi age environment. This environment allows our students to learn, reinforce and mentor, which is fundamental to learning and reinforces the notion of collaborative learning skills.

Our 2022 structure will be supported by providing Graeme Woodward and Jessica Dang as the Leading Teacher/Team Leaders to support teachers and students in all multi-age classrooms. We will also be providing additional support for students through the continuation of the Tutor program. In addition, there will be student support for those students in Year Four to transition into this learning structure confidently.

Newlands is a great school and deserves to thrive. As a whole school community as those back in 2009, they fully supported the ambitions that I and the teachers had to make Newlands a great educational option for families. Today we can see that the multi-age environment maybe a challenge for parents, but the data from the students and teachers does not support the current assumptions being peddle in the community. Our students are enjoying school and the teachers are working very hard to make that happen for all the kids.

Teacher feedback across the school has been very positive to our model and is supported through the data from DET Staff surveys as shown below.

The data tells us from the teachers’ perspective that school climate is positive. It also tells us more importantly that the multi-age structure is not having a negative impact in the classroom for students or teachers.

The data we have from the students through the 2021 ‘Attitudes to School Survey’[ATSS] supports this observation.

% of positive endorsement in Stimulated Learning (Years 4-6) 77.4% 

% of positive endorsement in Sense of Confidence (Years 5-6) 73.8% 

% of positive endorsement in Managing Bullying (Years 5-6) 83.3%

The results from 2019 to 2021 have shown consist improvement in the following areas

Data from the teachers and students is consistent and clearly demonstrates that the 4 to 6 model is working and is not having the negative impact on student learning . The research of J. Hattie does not rate multi or aged classrooms effect size particularly important to the learning of student. However, there are other traits his research does rate as important, and I believe can be found more readily in a multi-age classroom. 

Hattie Effect size data – several items from the list.

Again, there are several schools in and around Melbourne where multi-age classrooms have been operating for decades. Recently I observed that Carlton Gardens Primary School talks about flexible learning spaces where small group learning can be accommodated. Where students can be collaborative and develop into independent learners for secondary school. I would go further and believe these are more importantly life skills not just learning skills.   

‘At Carlton Gardens we use flexible learning spaces in Grades 4-6. These spaces allow us to extend and support students within the same lesson, something that you can't do in a regular classroom. At Carlton Gardens we use flexible learning spaces in Grades 4-6. Teachers find it easier to target student’s individual learning needs, the flexible learning space allows them to have more small group sessions that focus on those needs. Flexible Learning Spaces encourage our students to become independent and helps prepare them for secondary school.’ 

Source: Carlton Gardens school website

We are here for the students, we want them to succeed and develop into caring, creative, and curious individuals who will be responsible global citizens, now and into the future. We believe the multi age structure will provide greater student engagement, teacher capacity to realistically differentiate content, and maximise learning opportunities to ‘stretch’ or ‘scaffold’ learning.  What better way to live our motto – ‘Through relationships we build success’ than in a multi-age classroom. 

I hope this letter has provided some insights and understandings around why we believe the multi-age classroom especially the Year 4-6 structure is such a positive opportunity for learning. 

Regards

Ross Dudgeon