…

CHALLENGING MORE ABLE

LEARNERS IN ENGLISH CLASSES

by

ADEBESIN IBRAHEEM
© 2017
Cambridge Primary …
Cambridge Primary is an education programme for young learners. It combines a
world-class curriculum, high-quality support for teachers and integrated assessment.
The programme has been developed by University of Cambridge International
Examinations and is used in primary schools around the world.

Cambridge Primary helps schools develop learners who are confident, responsible,
innovative and engaged.

Cambridge Primary covers

• English
• English as a Second Language
• Mathematics
• Science

for learners aged 5–11. It provides curriculum frameworks with integrated assessment
for each subject.
 …

Cambridge Primary
It starts learners on an educational journey, focusing on what they should be able to do
at each stage of primary education. It develops skills, knowledge and understanding
that will prepare them for a smooth transition to Cambridge Secondary 1 and beyond.
 …

Every classroom you enter, across the world, you are bound to come
across learners with diverse abilities; the lower ability learners, the
middle ability learners and then, the high fliers or more/most able
learners. It is common to see in every classroom, one or a few pupils
who are capable of high achievement in one or more areas.

Identifying these pupils and fully meeting their needs can prove
complex and challenging for parents, teachers and support staff.

This seminar is aimed at discussing with us some basic things to do to

challenge the more able learners in our English classes.
 …
So, who is a more able learner?

Able learners More able learners are those

More able learners
The very able
The exceptionally able
The Gifted
The Talented
The Gifted & Talented
Those with exceptional talents
Pupils with marked aptitude
learners who are working or who
have the potential to work ahead of
their age peers.
While some learners are more able
in every aspect of the subjects they
take (such are described as having
multiple intelligences), there are
some whose high ability is just in
one or a few areas
 …
Many high flying learners are born with that innate
ability, though school and conscious learning can
immensely help to polish that ability. Environment,
generally, also plays a huge factor.

In what areas can learners be more able

than other learners?
 …

How can we the

more able learners be
challenged in English
classes?
 …
Number one

ALLOW
C-H-O-I-C-E
 … to show what they know and understand,
Try to offer more than one way for your learners
as they will immensely benefit from having more choices in what materials they use and
what assignments and projects they will complete. For high ability learners, such
opportunities allow them to delve deeper into a subject. Here are some suggestions:

Offer a Range of Texts: Advanced students could report on a more difficult book than
their peers for a research project

Ask Deeper Questions: Encourage your students to move from the factual to the
conceptual. Instead of just asking for facts, push students to make connections.

Do the Research: Push students, particularly strong learners, to use a variety of texts,

websites, blogs, and so forth.

Get Creative: Instead of mandating a product, encourage divergent thinking. In addition

to essays, students can express their learning through other forms—poems, collages,
podcasts, and so on.
 Number TWO …

INTEGRATE
TECHNOLOGY
 …
The modern generation of
children are called
‘The Digital Natives’.
Why?

The Cambridge Dictionary defines a

digital native as “a person who is very
familiar with digital technology,
computers, etc. because they have grown
up with them.” They grow in the age of
internet, TikTok, Snapchat, Facebook,
Twitter, social media, etc.
The older generation started …
with only a few TV stations
(NTA, BCOS, LTV, OGTV, etc.), all
of which had their programmes
broadcast through black and
white television.
The modern generation have … access to over 250 T.V
channels, transmitted through DSTV and several other
satellite platforms; hence, the kind of information they are
getting is different from what the older generation got.
 …
The modern generation of
learners are so crazy about
technology and many of
them walk & work with
multiple screens - phone,
iPad, tablets, desktop,
laptop, T.V, etc., doing many .
different things at the same
time. Any information that
doesn’t come to them
through any of these
mediums may reach them
but never REACH them.
Including technology in the classroom
… creates a powerful bridge
connecting the classroom to the real world. SMART Boards, blogs, e-mails,
iPods, software programs, and Internet searches are among the many
means to enhance learning experiences. Technology gives students access
to an extraordinary range of sources and learning opportunities that they
might never discover otherwise.
More able learners can be challenged with more technology-
related tasks, which are capable of stretching their intelligence.
They may be assigned some special tasks on the computer, they
may be allowed to explore more brain-racking computer games
suitable for English classes, etc.
Click on this link for more info about computer games:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L2gXP122pLE
 …
Number Constantly
THREE
let-the-kids-work-together
Collaboration is one of the 21st century… core skills. For advanced learners,
working with peers is critical. Social and emotional difficulties diminish when
they have opportunities to learn with intellectual peers.

IN PAIRS: Students who need more challenges could work together to share

their ideas on an assignment that is more complex.
IN GROUPS: Let advanced students work together in larger groups in areas
where they need the stimulation of intellectual peers (e.g., in literature
circle, for science experiments, etc.)
Across Classes: Combine your advanced students across the grades, if
possible. Then, monitor them work together for wonderful outcomes.
ON PROJECTS: Advanced learners could work on an independent project that
is supervised by a parent volunteer or community member.
 …
Number
FOUR

Encourage

PACE
 … should think of accelerated
For high ability learners, teachers
learning. Gifted learners highly excelling in class may be bored
with the curriculum, if they are not presented with additional
academic challenges capable of accelerating and stimulating
their learning. Accelerated learning may be in the form of
assigning more difficult texts or giving research questions on
yet-to-be-taught topics.

While most learners in the class require more time to process

or synthesize new information, more able learners acquire
such new information, new concepts and knowledge faster.
So, such more able students should be provided with more
challenging and engaging activities, through strategies like
curriculum compacting, enrichment, independent study, etc.
Curriculum compacting is a kind… of differentiation technique; a
way of adjusting or modifying the curriculum such that
teachers differentiate instructions for students who have
already mastered the material to be learned, replacing
contents that those students already know with new contents
or enrichment options or other activities. Compacting the
curriculum helps high ability learners to skip learning exactly
the same contents with other students in the same class.

Enrichment provides extended learning opportunities and

challenges to students who have already mastered, or can
quickly master, the basic curriculum. It is also provides
opportunities for students to pursue learning in their own areas
of interest and strengths.
 …
Number FIVE

Determine
Prior Knowledge
It is important to ascertain how much …
leaners have known already about a
new topic before being taught the
topic. Many students, particularly high
flying students, come to class with
amazing abilities, experiences, and
skills—much of which they either hide
or lay aside. A good teacher should give .
these learners credit for the prior
knowledge and skills they already
possess, and then help them create
alternative goals. Their prior knowledge
could be gauged through a K-W-L chart,
or by engaging them in informal
discussions, etc.
After introducing a new topic to your learners,…
ask them to quickly state two or more facts
they already know about the topic. That
should be written in the 'K' column. This helps
you to ascertain how much they already know
and how much you still need to teach them.

Then, ask them to write very briefly in the

second column - ‘Want to Know’ – what more
they would like to learn about the topic. This
will help to engage them in a quick thinking
process trying to see what more could possibly
be learnt about the topic.

Then, at the end of the day’s lesson, ask them

to talk about what new information they have
learnt, as a form of assessment. That should be
written in the third column “Learned’
…
 …
Number SIX

Encourage
Goal setting
 …
All students need experience in
setting goals for themselves,
as setting goals is believed to
have a powerful effect on their
confidence and achievement.
However, because high ability
learners are commonly known
to come to school overflowing
with ideas and energy, they
need to be helped to set more
challenging learning goals that
are appropriate and realistic.
 Encourage
…
Number
SEVEN
CREATIVITIY
A…good teacher needs to help high ability
learners to sharpen their unique creativity
skills.
For instance, In a reading class, you could
make the advanced learners select a more
difficult short story and retell the story’s
events from the points of view of different
characters.
While other learners are still being helped
to develop their story writing skills, high
flying learners may be pushed to engage in
the creative task of converting stories
from one genre to another genre –
converting a poem to a playscript; a
playscript to a prose work; etc.
 RECAP
…
Every learner deserves equal opportunities to learn and thrive inside and outside the
classroom. However, because of the unique abilities possessed by the high flying students,
which make learning at the same pace as other learners somewhat difficult, certain
strategies need to be adopted by an English teacher (and other teachers fortunate to have
such learners in their class) to challenge those gifted learners. First, a good English teacher
should provide every student in the class with diverse opportunities to show what they
know – more able learners are believed to be most challenged and favoured by this.
Besides, integrating different kinds of technology during English lessons greatly inspire
learners, especially high fliers. Also, through collaboration, which allows constant exchange
of ideas among learners, more able learners are believed to gain so much, especially when
they are paired or grouped with learners with similar abilities or even higher ability learners.
Then, the English teacher should encourage pace, by compacting a curriculum for more
able learners. Through this, the more able learners’ learning is accelerated, through
enrichment and other strategies. Another way to challenge high flying learners in our
English lessons is to gauge their prior knowledge and then help them set challenging
learning goals. Finally, gifted learners should be challenged to push their creativity skills, to
prevent them from stagnating in their usual ability and capacity.