ABSTRACT
It was the teachers who suffered the initial shock, the more severely because the rate of change was, in many places, too rapid and the preparation and support too inadequate. Few teachers experienced anything but the flimsiest in-service training. Many had only the sustenance of a few cheering words of encouragement. Thus the new organisation and the methods advocated by the experts were tried out too often in an atmosphere of insecurity. The methods adopted by the pioneers of mixed ability teaching were not in themselves new, although they were uncommon. Most teachers found the heavier burden of preparation daunting. The early practitioners in mixed ability had been enthusiasts whose boundless dedication was matched by their skill in the new methods of enquiry and resource-based learning. Some teachers of course tried to use the old formal methods. Others, after a terrifying encounter with resource-based learning, reverted to more familiar techniques.
