Is individualised learning even possible at primary school?

The morning begins in a circle. The teacher gives a short input on the topic, then the children choose tasks according to different levels of difficulty. Some sit alone on a cushion to work, others sit at a group table. Those who need support or new tasks go to the teacher at the counselling table.

Many teachers in Switzerland are now using the teaching system known as the Chur model to provide individualised support in the classroom. And this is what many parents want: In a survey conducted by the Mercator Switzerland Foundation on the topic of «What kind of school does Switzerland want?», almost 80 per cent of respondents stated that they would like to see lessons in which every schoolchild can learn at their own pace and according to their own abilities.

The fact that you sometimes have to adapt and put your own needs on the back burner is difficult for many children today.

Arno Ulber, remedial teacher

«When we started with the Chur model in the first classes 14 years ago, we adopted many ideas from kindergarten,» says Arno Ulber, Head of the Special Needs Education programme at the University of Teacher Education Graubünden. Ulber was involved in the development of the Chur model as a specialist consultant and gives further training courses on the subject.

This is because we also work with children in kindergarten who, due to their different ages and backgrounds, have very different abilities and skills - and who are used to having a lot of time for their own interests and needs during free play, which they can then pursue alone or together with others.

Pioneer kindergarten

Kindergartens have therefore been moving in the same direction as society as a whole for some time now. «Individualisation and individuality have increased dramatically. Children today grow up from an early age with the idea that they can decide a lot for themselves and that they don't necessarily have to do things they don't want to do,» says Arno Ulber. If they then come into contact with traditional frontal teaching in a large class at school, it's a challenge.

«The fact that you sometimes have to adapt and put your own needs on the back burner is difficult for many children today,» says Ulber. Especially as many parents no longer expect them to adapt. It has actually been known for a very long time: People learn best when they are supported in developing their personal talents and abilities - and as individually as possible.

Schools have been given more freedom to move away from rigid curricula and offer broader learning paths.

Michael Kickmeier-Rust, psychologist

As early as the 1980s, the American psychologist Benjamin Bloom was able to show that students who were individually supervised by tutors in a one-to-one situation performed on average two standard deviations better in examinations than students in conventional classes with around 30 students per teacher. This means that, on average, individually tutored students performed as well as the top two per cent of students in conventional learning settings.

Digitalisation has created new opportunities for learning

«However, it was also clear to everyone that this individualised learning was not possible in a state school system with classes of a certain size and a limited budget for teachers,» says Michael Kickmeier-Rust, Team Leader for Individual Support and Differentiation at the Institute of Educational Psychology at the University of Teacher Education St. Gallen.

However, this has changed with the advent of digitalisation. «It's now possible to work individually with individual pupils, even in class, and offer them different learning methods and tasks. Parents also recognise this, which is why they also tailor their wishes accordingly,» says Michael Kickmeier-Rust.

Different routes to your destination

The fact that more and more schools are following this wish is also due to the changed framework conditions. «Curriculum 21 has given schools more freedom to move away from rigid curricula and offer broader learning paths,» says Kickmeier-Rust. This made it possible to introduce a culture of individualised learning in schools in the first place.

For example, it is now only specified that pupils learn linear functions in maths lessons - but no longer exactly at which grade level and using which method. «One child may be helped by a YouTube video, another by group work, another by a practical project on the subject,» says Kickmeier-Rust, giving an example.

Individualised teaching requires teachers to be very familiar with the opportunities and interests, prior knowledge and learning gaps of each pupil - and then accompany the children as a coach. «They explain why this or that topic is important in class, try to get the children excited about it, but then also hand over responsibility to the pupils until they need help again,» says Michael Kickmeier-Rust.