Blazing New Trails - Connexions

Principals and Teachers Stated Beliefs as Compared with Their Perceptions of Multiage Implementation 185
Research Question One: To what extent do teachers of multiage classrooms agree with
Pavan’s assumptions about multiage education?
Pavin’s Principles of Nongraded Education survey consists of 36 assumptions which
are organized into the six categories of Goals of Schooling, Organization, Curriculum,
Instruction, Materials, and Assessment. Each assumption has an individual score of 0-3, and
each category has a score range of 0-18 with total scores ranging from 0–108. Anderson and
Paven (1993) determined that a category score above 13 and a total score above 81 indicated a
high degree (75% or higher) of agreement with the principles of nongradedness.
The results of the 72 teachers’ item scores on Pavin’s Principles of Nongradedness
Education survey are listed in Tables 1 through 6. In the category of Goals of Schooling, the
assumptions Maximize Individual Potential, Development of the Child, and School
Atmosphere had some of the highest levels of agreement of all 36 assumptions on the survey.
The total score of 15.23 indicated that this category had one of the highest levels of agreement
of the six categories (see Table 1).
Table 1. Teachers’ Item Scores on Principles of Nongradedness: Goals of Schooling.
A. Goals for Schooling N Mean SD
1. Self directing individual 71 2.61 0.597
2. Maximize individual potential 71 2.72 0.484
3. Variability vs. conformity 70 2.50 0.584
4. Development of child 72 2.76 0.428
5. Group skills 71 2.61 0.547
6. School atmosphere 72 2.72 0.478
Total 15.23
The mean scores of the assumptions in the Organization category demonstrated a
small range of differences. The total score of 14.36 was above the 13.00 which indicated a
high degree of agreement with the Principles of Nongradedness (see Table 2).
Table 2. Teacher’s Item Scores on Principles of Nongradedness: Organization.
B. Organization N Mean SD
1. Individual placement 72 2.31 0.725
2. Change as needed 71 2.35 0.600
3. Co-learner teams 72 2.47 0.649
4. Flexible groups 72 2.46 0.649
5. Many Sizes 72 2.56 0.528
6. Task, materials, needs 71 2.28 0.590
Total 14.36
The Curriculum category had the lowest total score of the six on the survey and the
assumption Individual Sequence had the lowest mean score of all 36 assumptions (see Table
3).