History, Context and Future Directions of Multigrade Education

This chapter contains a discussion of the history and context of multigrade schooling in selected countries around the world. The first forms of schooling throughout the world were commonly multigrade, where students of different ages and/or in different grades were taught together in the same classroom by the same teacher. The adoption of a lock-step, single-grade structure of schooling dates from the middle of the nineteenth century. Today, this structure is seen as the norm but multigrade classes and schools have never disappeared and probably will never disappear. The most recent expansion of multigrade schooling resulted from the stimulus of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) for 2015. Many countries attempted to achieve the second goal of universal primary education through establishing multigrade schools, primarily in rural and remote areas. The current Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) emphasise providing an inclusive and equitable quality education. To provide a quality education, teachers need to implement quality learning principles. One framework for examining quality principles is presented. Most multigrade teachers are not specifically trained for the different demands of a multigrade class. An examination of relevant and effective quality learning principles and some strategies for implementing them is therefore important.