How do teachers teach in a standard classroom? According to the pace of the average children. There is really no other way to do it practically. But, this has its own problems. What about the intelligent children? In any school, the fast kids are not challenged adequately. Then, their intelligence is not properly nurtured and they start disconnecting too. But at Walnut, with our programs, things are very different.
We have a unique concept called differential learning. In differential learning, all three sections of a standard have the period of a certain subject at the same time. So, when it’s the Math class, 6A, 6B and 6C all have Math in their timetable. So, they mix up and form three groups (M-advanced, M-regular, M-support) according to their ability for that subject and go for different classes.
So, do we teach different things in different classes? No. The same concepts are taught in all three classrooms but the approach is different. Normally, a lesson plan is designed to go as per the average level of the class. When there is a large range between the fastest and the slowest, both these groups are far away from the mean and do not benefit much. With these newly formed groups, the range between the slowest and fastest in each group is very less and the lesson plan is more suited to their needs. So, the faster ones can be challenged, the average students continue to benefit and the slower ones get the right support in the class without feeling intimidated and can catch up!
Is this demotivating for the students in the extra support group? You might think so but actually the scene is very different. These kids actually open up much more, start competing with each other and they all show amazing improvement. They do not feel intimidated or embarrassed to ask questions in the class and start engaging more and more.
Do kids get a subject-wise label then? Oh no. These groups are not at all fixed or rigid. When the teachers see that a particular student would benefit more from being in a different group, they promptly execute the change. This gives an amazing personalised learning experience to the students. The groups also change from subject to subject. A child who is average in Marathi may be excellent in Math and may require additional support in English. With our differential learning program – we can provide that personalised learning here, no problem!
This is one of the many advantages of Walnut School.
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