Imagine you have two students in your tutorial who tell you the following:

Student One: I only understand about half of what the professor says in class and I can read the assigned chapter three times and still not understand it

Student Two: To tell you the truth, I'm quite bored in this class because I find it so easy. I really don't try very hard on my assignments at all and I'm still doing well.

Student One is an 18 year–old woman who had just arrived from China as an international student. She is not only struggling with the traditional first year challenges, such as being away from home for the first time, dealing with large class sizes and coping with feelings of alienation and isolation, but she also has to face massive culture shock and the difficulties of doing post secondary education in her second language. Student Two is a 27 year–old Canadian born white male, with a some knowledge and experience in the course content, having worked as a television producer for CTV and who already has a college diploma but wanted to upgrade to a university degree. How on earth are you supposed to teach in a class like this with such disparity in starting points for learning? This is the exact position I found myself in during my first year as a TA for an introduction to communications full year course.

So how does one handle a situation like this? The first task is to identify how much disparity in starting points exists in your classroom. At first I did not realize how far apart some of my students were. Student One sat quietly with her other ESL friends and rarely participated in class discussions. Her assignments, while not great, were at least passable so I figured she must have been getting the gist of the course material. Student Two participated in class and seemed engaged in conversations. He was doing well on assignments so I assumed he was enjoying the course. I was wrong on both assumptions and I found out due to the planning of a very proactive and seasoned course director.

The first tutorial back after the Christmas break our course director insisted that we hold individual meetings with each student to hand back their exams and papers from the previous term and answer any questions they may have. It was during these meetings that my students explained their true feelings about the course. I highly recommend holding individual meetings with your students at least once during the course to find out how each person is doing, where they could use some extra help and how you can assist them in learning.

The second task is to balance the need to keep afloat the students with little experience in the course content, while at the same time challenging those who bring to the course previous educational and life experience. One technique is to use visuals as much as possible. I write key concepts and phrases on the board and use diagrams to explain them. This assists my ESL learners who may not pick up everything I say but can at least scribble down the words they see and refer to them later. It also gives them a second reference point as, rather than just relying on hearing, they can also collect information visually. I also draft up key points on handouts that the students can refer to them later. Visuals also help my advanced learners. I showed videos (recent CBC documentaries and National Film Board shorts) demonstrating how the topics we study in class play out in the real world. Discussions after the videos allow advanced learners to use theory covered in the course and make practical applications of it.

Another technique is to use active teaching methods. I do not lecture at students but instead provide opportunities for them to engage and physically participate in activities. This involves getting students up and out of their chairs. In one tutorial I designed a role–playing exercise setting students up on a "stage" at the front of the room where they had to act out how the major players in the Canadian film industry interact with one another. In another tutorial, each student was given a piece of paper with a either a fact or a date on it. They had to move around the room until they found the person whose date matched with their fact or vise versa. Then the pairs had to explain why this particular event was significant in broadcasting history. This, again, helps my ESL students in that they don't have to rely solely on one method of learning (reading, listening, writing, watching, etc.) and gives them two or more avenues for comprehension. It also engages my advanced learners who frequently are the first to volunteer and often take on the role of helping other students by sharing their knowledge and expertise.

The third task to find ways to utilize the resources students naturally possess. Students have a depth and breadth of experience that can be drawn on in the classroom. You do not always have to be the one "teaching". Often I asked students to share their own background knowledge as it relates to course material. For example, we studied the role of both privately and publicly owned media in Canada. I asked students to share their experiences living in countries with only state owned media or other combinations of media ownership. The results were amazing. Students felt that they were the experts and could relate the course material back to their own cultural and personal perspective. This served to instill confidence in my ESL students and taught my advance learners to respect the knowledge imbedded in every student. Advanced learners were also able to demonstrate their expertise on specific subject materials.

Teaching students with widely varying starting points for learning can present significant challenges. But do not fear! These challenges can be overcome by recognizing that disparity exists, balancing the needs of new and advanced learners and using the resources each student already naturally possesses. With creative teaching approaches and a willingness to try new things that nightmare tutorial can turn into a dream class.