Enhancing Literacy and Numeracy Instruction in Multigrade Classrooms

This study investigates the teaching of reading and numeracy in multigrade classes within the context of Magallanes, Sorsogon. It addresses four primary questions: the levels of reading and numeracy among learners, strategies employed by teachers, encountered difficulties, and proposed interventions. Employing quantitative methods, the research utilized documentary analysis for assessment results and survey questionnaires with Likert scales for teaching strategies and challenges. Purposive sampling was conducted among 181 students across five elementary schools, with 11 multigrade teachers surveyed. Findings revealed the following: Literacy Assessment: A significant number of learners across all grade levels, particularly in Grade 1 and Grade 6 in English, require a full refresher course. The readiness for grade-level work is highest in Grades 4 and 5 for Filipino language. There is a noticeable challenge in English language proficiency, especially in Grades 5 and 6. Numeracy Proficiency: The average numeracy proficiency across all grade levels is 32.08, with Grade 4 having the highest average score and Grade 3 the lowest. The skill of ‘Visualizing and Modeling’ has the highest average score across all grades, while the skill of ‘Applying and Connecting’ appears to be the most challenging for learners. Teaching Strategies: Flexible Grouping, Integrative Learning, and Constructivism are the most utilized by multigrade teachers. Technology Integration is the least utilized strategy. Challenges: The most significant difficulty encountered by multigrade teachers is fitting comprehensive content into limited lesson hours. Limited resources and materials, and learners’ difficulties in understanding complex texts, decoding words, and grasping context, are also major challenges.
The Comprehensive Rapid Literacy Assessment and the Albay Numeracy Assessment Tool revealed significant challenges in both reading management and numeracy skills across all grade levels, indicating a major need for support and intervention. While multigrade teachers frequently utilize strategies such as Flexible Grouping, Integrative Learning, and Constructivism, there is a noticeable gap in the utilization of Technology Integration. The most pressing challenges for multigrade teachers are fitting comprehensive content into limited lesson hours and dealing with limited resources and materials.
This research contributes to the understanding of multigrade classroom dynamics and provides practical insights for enhancing literacy and numeracy instruction. Further studies are suggested to explore additional factors impacting learning outcomes and the efficacy of teaching strategies in multigrade settings.