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“How can I include all the pupils when their levels of English are so different?” This question was posed by a pre-service teacher following a workshop on English teaching methodology. Teachers face challenges in planning instruction that is not too demanding for pupils on a basic level, while still maintaining the interest of more advanced learners (Bell, 2012). In Sweden, this may be due to the degree of exposure to English outside of school, the extent and quality of English language instruction between schools and regions, or the pupils’ varied linguistic backgrounds. Many teachers are not equipped with skills and methods to manage mixed-ability classes (Gaitas & Martins, 2017) and may not consider pupils' different experiences, backgrounds, and interests in their instruction because they find it challenging, and thus treat pupils as a homogeneous group (Swedish Schools Inspectorate, 2011).

This ongoing research addresses the need to examine how we prepare in-service teachers to teach English in the increasingly linguistically and culturally diverse Swedish school through differentiation. Our focus is on the needs of pre-service teachers as well as the perspectives and practices of in-service teachers. In our presentation, we first briefly consider how pre-service teachers of Grades 4-6 (ages 10-12) have understood and applied the concept of differentiation, as seen in an analysis of their lesson planning portfolios (written during their second course addressing English language learning and teaching). We then present the preliminary results of our interview study with in-service English teachers of Grades 4-6 in three regions of Sweden. Our aim is to understand how teachers work with differentiation to manage the needs, expectations, and emotions of high- and low-proficiency English language learners. The expected outcome of the two sub-studies is new knowledge to support teacher educators and teachers in their work with creative solutions for challenging conditions. 

 Reference list

Bell, J. (2012). Teaching mixed level classes in The Cambridge Guide to Pedagogy and Practice in Second Language Teaching. Cambridge University Press.

Gaitas, S., & Martins, M. A. (2017). Teacher Perceived Difficulty in Implementing Differentiated Instructional Strategies in Primary School. International Journal of Inclusive Education, 21(5), 544-556. 

Swedish Schools Inspectorate. (2011). Engelska i grundskolans årskurser 6-9. [English in Years 6-9]. Retrieved from https://www.skolinspektionen.se, 5 October 2017.