UNDERSTANDING AND ENHANCING THE MIXED-ABILITY NATURE OF MARITIME ENGLISH DECK CADET CLASSES IN GREEK ACADEMIES

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The teaching of Maritime English constitutes an integral – vital component of Maritime Education. In countries with deep-rooted seafaring culture, such as Greece, maritime English is a compulsory, highly credited module taught in all six semesters at the Maritime Academies. In all the academies, Maritime English instructors frequently encounter difficulties due to the mixed-ability nature of the cadet classes. The notion of ‘mixed-ability’ in this context takes a distinct meaning: it goes beyond the heterogeneous proficiency levels of the students, often mentioned in literature; it also entails other layers of heterogeneity, those of varied maritime terminology backgrounds of the cadets, depending on whether they entered the academies via General High Schools or Technical Vocational High Schools. This second set of levels of mixed-ability has not been addressed yet by the scientific community and is the main rationale behind writing this paper. This study explores the challenges associated with teaching maritime English to mixed-ability deck cadet classes in Greek academies, with a focus on the aforementioned double-meaning of heterogeneity, which creates a complex four-layered diverse content. Throughout the paper, the terms “mixed–ability” and “diversity” are used interchangeably to refer to the aforementioned four levels. Also, this paper attempts to scrutinize all sorts of possible solutions arising from the double challenge of teaching English in mixed-ability academy classes. The article concludes with practical recommendations on how to improve cadets’ learning and teaching performance and with implications for curriculum design within Greek Maritime Academies.