ability grouping

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ability grouping
By Joan

Another teacher in my Masters program just completed her thesis on ability grouping. It was interesting to find that, in general, the research shows little reward to the average and lower ability groups. It did show an
advantage, however, for the high group. We do so much homogenous grouping these days, that our strugglers seem not to have the benefit of exposure to their brighter peers. Also, in a subject like math, it has been my experience that students' abilities change in different areas. Some kids are incredible with geometry, but struggle with division, for example. For me (and many others),

differentiated instruction has been the way to go. It is definitely more work for me than ability grouping was. But, my students' needs are met and everyone is challenged. There are MANY books out there, but differentiation is basically this: The students work on the same curriculum, but at different levels. While some students may be still working out simple computation, others may be using this computation to solve extensive problems requiring higher order thinking. I am sure your child's teacher will be using some form of differentiation. If not, discuss your concerns with the teacher. You may need to hit the teacher supply store for some advanced math workbooks.