Variation

Definition : "Literacy teaching is structured around groups or individuals."

Individualisation and inclusion were maintained by the more effective and effective teachers through their use of variation, the fourth teaching practice within the differentiation dimension. All teachers in this study used some form of group work as part of their everyday classroom management strategies.

Teachers used individual instruction, pair work, and small group work in order to structure literacy teaching for individuals and groups. The group allocations were made by individual choice, pre-designated groups and by seemingly random selection by the teacher. Some groups were static and others dynamic.

However, it was not the act of grouping itself that made a difference to outcomes, but rather what actually happened in the groups and the ways in which the teacher responded.

The effective and more effective teachers were observed using groups as a means of focusing on individual needs through scaffolding learning and giving effective and timely feedback. In these teachers' classrooms grouping was dynamic and responsive, demonstrated by the ways in which children were allocated to different groups for different tasks. Grouping was determined by the nature of the task and individual needs rather than by the need for management or control.