The current challenges of school education and school reforms faced by Finland and Austria are comparable, involving the
need for improvement in dealing with students’ heterogeneity, more personal support for students, and more inclusive
education. These reforms also require diversified teaching methods and specific teacher competences. Thus, our study of
teaching practices in heterogeneous groups of multi-grade classes is a topical issue from the perspective of ongoing school
106 E.K. Hyry-Beihammer, T. Hascher/International Journal of Educational Research 74 (2015) 104–113
reforms; we seek to contribute to the understanding of the qualities and prerequisites for good teaching in heterogeneous
student groups and the related requirements for professional teacher education