In a previous article Valorie explained the technique of looping in the classroom. As a reminder, looping is when one teacher teaches consecutive grades with the same group of children. This is typically carried out with first, second, and third grades.
As a student I never experienced looping. I did have the same teacher for both sixth and seventh grades. However it was simply the teacher was changing grade levels rather than looping.
As a teacher, I have also not experienced looping. However, the school that I carried out my kindergarten practicum with practiced looping in the first, second, and third grades. Therefore I did get some experience with looping while I was there.
Like most techniques, there are pros and cons of looping. When looping, a teacher can become very close to the students. At the beginning of the next year the teacher does not have to waste time getting to know the students’ strengths and weaknesses and skill levels. She or he is also already very familiar with behavior issues.
The teacher knows exactly where each child left off the previous year. She knows what knowledge they already possess and can pick up and carry on where she left off. The children are comfortable with the teacher and the environment. The teacher has background knowledge from the previous year to monitor the growth of the students.
While looping has benefits, there are also a few downsides. While looping, a teacher and student may be together for three consecutive years. If there is not a good working relationship between the student and teacher or the teacher and the parents, these can be three very long years.
One aspect that I like about teaching is the opportunity to “start over” each year. In some ways looping takes away that advantage. While the material would be new, the students would be the same.