When children are higher in the educational ladder (like university of higher education), the level and interests of the children is more similar than on a primary school. On a primary school the teachers works every day with 25/30 different children. Different in a way of level, interests, behavior, social background etc. In primary education in particular, flexibility seems very important and belongs to the competences of a teacher.
Of course there are several ways to be flexible in practice. In the next part you’ll read five possible ways of flexibility in primary education, which are extended with advantages and disadvantages.
Content flexibility
The content of different subjects and courses are stated in the method and are based on the national goals/curriculum. The national goals are important to know, but the method is just a method to realize these goals. A lot of teachers are becoming to be a ‘slave’ of the method and are following this as it is a bible. This is on the one hand a extreme. On the other hand is a less strict way of teaching, where children decide the content. You can depend the content on questions of the children. This can be on two different ways. The first is a question ‘out of the blue’, which can be answered on a planned of later moment in the day of week planning (when the time is limited). The second way is questions, which rise when you address the subject on a planned moment.
Another way of content flexibility is giving the children the opportunity to choose within a specific subject, course or day.
Advantages | Disadvantages |
- Connect to interests - Children are partly responsible - Giving the children the feeling, they have a voice in the school - Way of interaction | - Children don’t know the national goals/curriculum - Teachers don’t have the time to prepare the subject/question - Hard to release the method - Tight/loaded planning |
Didactic/ Pedagogical flexibility
As a teacher you have about 25/30 different children in your classroom. As a teacher it’s a real challenge to adjust your way of teaching to all the eight different intelligence (Multiple Intelligence, Gardner):
- Verbal/linguistic intelligence (words)
- Logical/mathematical intelligence (math)
- Visual/spatial intelligence (pictures)
- Musical/rhythmic intelligence (music)
- Physical/kinesthetic intelligence (physics)
- Interpersonal intelligence (human)
- Intrapersonal intelligence (self)
- Nature oriented intelligence (nature)
Advantages | Disadvantages |
- Children are approached on their level - Children learn more effectively - Professionalizing of the teachers | - Preparation time - Knowledge of MI and teaching methods - Professionalizing of the teachers* |
* Professionalizing can be seen as an advantage and disadvantage. This can be seen highly personal. Most teachers see professionalizing as an added value, but some see this as more work and more pressure.
Learning resources flexibility
With the upcoming of multimedia the opportunities of teaching became bigger. As a teacher you can teach yourself, but the instruction can also be given by an computer of simulator. The teacher can use a school board, books and texts, but can also use a computer (internet), digital school board and images. Of course these are the two extremes, several combination are also possible. The teacher has al lot of choices to make, but still during the day children or unexpected situations can ask for a different resource. For example when children ask how something works (movies) or how something looks (images)
Advantages | Disadvantages |
- Variety in teaching - Attractive teaching - More interaction | - Knowledge of multimedia - Need of materials - Costs |
Location flexibility
One of the competences of a teacher is keeping contact with and knowing the area. Part of the area are the companies, associations, sports and parents.
Teaching can be organized inside the classroom, but also outside the classroom, on the square, on location. It is not always possible to go out of the classroom, but organizing a visit to your classroom is also one of the possibilities.
Every subject/course can ask for a different approach and remember: What is the best location for nature of science education?
Advantages | Disadvantages |
- Better connection with a subject - Practice education - Better understanding of subject - Children get a broader image of the world around them | - Organization of a trip/visit - Help of parents - Costs - Having connections - A school on the countryside - The dare to let children free |
Test flexibility
Just like the learning resources, with the upcoming multimedia, has the teacher a lot of possibilities with ways of testing. The teacher can connect the test with the subject and think about how he or she wants to see the results. It can be a paper test, digital test, practical, project, presentation, construction etc.
The teacher can also give the responsibility to the children. They get the possibility to choose how they want to show or present the results. The teacher can always try to find the best possible connection to the goal of the subject (like making constructions (in buildings), showing knowledge of tree/plants and making a presentation).
And still in the form of a paper test, there are several possibilities, like closed and open questions.
Also if you look back at the introduction; every child is different. Within one test, you can also make differences. One makes it on paper, the other makes it on the computer and another makes is in cooperation with the teacher.
Advantages | Disadvantages |
- Possibility of practice tests - Better connection with the subjects and children - Addressing multiple intelligence | - Paper test: objective assessment - Paper test: easier to make and revise - Time (making and revising) - Organization (paper test costs less time) |
