How large is a class to be considered a large one?
Definition: A large class is one with more students than the teacher prefers to manage and available resources can support. Thus large classes usually are considered as a problem for some teachers and would be challenging for some others.
Problems of teaching in large classes:
Anxiety: some teachers feel anxious being so outnumbered by students. In addition some studenst are afraid to ask questions or participate in large classes.
Noise level: large classes can become out of hand when students are working in pairs or groups. At times you may feel more like a disciplinarian than a teacher.
Students needs: Meeting individual needs can be difficult when class size is very large.
Principles of Teaching in Large classes:
Many useful suggestion have been proposed to overcome different problems facing the teacher in large classes such as:
1. Use a lot of organized cooperative group work to hold students attention.
2. Use simple games to encourage studnets to speak up in class and introduce themselves such as role play.
3.Encourage competetion: establish a fun and competitive atmosphere within the class by dividing students into teams.
4. Manage the noise: establish a signal that you want your class to stop what they are doing and listen. Teachers must be care not to use gestures or sound that would offend anyone.
Advantages of large classes:
1. High Energy: Classes with many studenst may be noisy, but they are also fun and exciting.
2. Timing: Classes go quickly in large classes, students rarely catch theirself looking at the clock.
3. Fillers: Teacher have less need for fillers since core activities take longer to complete.
Large classes are one of the false phenomena that we see in our schools. It is really disaster for the teacher and for the students themselves. some teachers have to face even more than 40 (in some Moroccan schools a class may include 50 students). On the other hands, results of some researchers (see these links: Class size: What Research Says and What it Means for State Policy, How important is class size?) showed that benefits in achievement generally occur when class size is reduced to less than 20 students.Also the problems of acquisition and classroom management arise.
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