Ability Grouping - Karilyn Parker

After reading through the chapter and article, I can definitely see the advantages and disadvantages of  ability grouping.

Ability grouping advantages for gifted and middle/low level students are that it allows for those higher level thinkers to be given learning situations to help each of them raise their learning potential at an accelerated pace. The low and middle level students have also been seen to still perform at the same level whether they are in a heterogeneous or homogeneous grouped classes. There is also the factor that gifted students would be in a class with highly motivated learners who are willing and interested in the learning. Low and middle level students feel that they can also begin to rise to the occasion, because they are not competing with gifted students.

The disadvantages of ability grouping are that gifted students are not getting any interaction with middle/lower level thinkers to be able to see other's view points. The group discussions with students of all different levels helps promote good questions and thinking skills. Also, teaching a room full of higher level thinkers can sometimes result in a lot of "leaders" in one room, which doesn't allow for a lot of good discussion but just a play for power.

Ability grouping-Rachel Johnson

Ability grouping gifted and non-gifted children has advantages and disadvantages. 

Kulik concludes that by grouping gifted children they can achieve high levels of academic success.  A classroom with all gifted children can accelerate learning and teacher to higher DOK levels than a heterogeneous classroom.  Whereas in a heterogeneous classroom a gifted child might be bored, in an ability grouped classroom a gifted child can rise to their reach his/her potential.  In the same aspect, if low and middle level ability students are grouped with like peers in classrooms they can have academics taught at their level.  A teacher would be able to move a slow pace for the lower level class allowing more student success. 

There are also some disadvantages to ability grouping children.  When grouped with others of liked giftedness, gifted children have little interaction working with peers who are not gifted.  In the “real world” people have to interact successfully with those from all ability backgrounds-not just those of backgrounds similar to them.  Also, Kulik (2003) pointed out that children of low and middle-abilities had higher self-esteem when grouped heterogeneously.  The ability to learn from one’s peer is greatly diminished when children are grouped by ability.  

In conclusion, ability grouping is not always adventitious for gifted or non-gifted children.  I have found in my class over the past years that I enjoy having a mixture of ability level.  This allows for peer learning, livelier class discussions, and a variety of view points.

Ability Grouping--Kelli Donald

After reading an article and the chapter about ability grouping pulling from my previous experience, I have to say I have mixed feelings about the topic.  As with just about all ideas in education, there seem to be definite advantages and disadvantages for gifted and talented students in reference to ability grouping.  Throughout my teaching career, I have heard the term cooperative learning/ability grouping frequently and have always assumed it is a great teaching practice for all students.  And it has worked very well for me many times.  But after just a few short weeks into my study of G/T students I see that grouping students to work based on academic ability isn't always such a good thing.


What I do like about ability grouping is being able to differentiate instruction with small groups.  By having the high, medium, and fragile students in their own groups, I am able to meet more individual needs with specific instruction.  The students are also more comfortable and less intimidated when working with students along their same ability level.  It also gives the G/T students opportunities to explore their creativity and bounce ideas off of others students who are more like them.  I also like ability grouping for G/T because they don't always get stuck doing all the work for the group.  The responsibilities are more balanced. 


Some disadvantages to ability grouping include for one assigning an ability level to students.  Sometimes I am guilty of considering a student in my "low" group a low student in all areas.  Which is unfair and not necessarily true.  And vice versa the students in my higher groups sometimes may get the short end of my instruction if I seem to be running low on time in groups.  I just assume they will be able to figure out how to do some of the things on their own.  Students also pick up on their ability groups and begin to self-identify as high or low.  This doesn't happen as often with heterogeneous groups.  Sometimes the lower/medium students are motivated to work harder if they are in groups with some of the top students. 


Overall, I am a huge fan of cooperative learning.  I am on the fence about ability grouping, however.  For me and my classroom there are times when ability grouping works well, such as math small groups.  It seems to be better for me to heterogeneously groups students in Social Studies and Science activities so my students are mixed together to learn how to work with all types of people.  The latter scenario is, in my opinion, more like what students will experience in the real world.  The workforce is a melting pot of people of all abilities so learning how to cooperatively work with everyone is very beneficial. 

Ability Grouping - Jennifer Ullery

Ability grouping is the term used when students are grouped homogeneously based on their learning abilities.  This can take different forms:  within-class grouping, cross-grade grouping, special classes/pullout groups.  I believe that when classes are formed with students that have similar abilities, it is beneficial for both the students and the teacher.  The teacher would be able to focus on certain skills that that particular group of students needs to focus on, whether it is a gifted and talented grouping or a lower level grouping.  In a classroom that has all different levels, it is hard to reach both the student that is reading a third grade level in middle school and the student who is reading on a collegiate level.  However, if there were a class for just gifted and talented students, the teacher would be able to allow them to follow certain paths of interest because they can pick up the basics more quickly.  Also, with a class that has lower level students, the teacher can focus on vocabulary and building that information up more slowly so the students are not so overwhelmed.

Some advantages to ability grouping is that gifted students would be in a classroom with other students that have similar interests.  The teacher can adapt activities and lessons to be more in-depth.  With heterogeneous grouping, the gifted student may feel bored because they understood the concepts more quickly than the rest of their classmates.  Rogers (1991) noticed that ability grouping "produces substantial gains in academic achievement, creativity, and other thinking skills."  When  gifted students are grouped in a class together, there is a higher achievement level.  Another advantage is when the gifted students are not in the classroom, it gives the other students an opportunity "to shine" (Fiedler, Lange, & Winebrenner, 1993).

Disadvantages to ability grouping are more on the social and self-esteem level.  Gifted students tend to have difficulties with their social skills, and if they are in a classroom with a mix of levels, they can work more on those social skills they will need in life.  In a homogeneous classroom, gifted students are more likely not to gain those social skills.  When students are grouped based on ability, the lower level students may think of themselves as stupid or dumb.  However, this could also happen in a mixed class because lower level students will see high level students grasping concepts more quickly and getting better grades.

Ability Grouping - Robin Wright

Ability grouping has been argued over for many years. Is it beneficial or not? Does it cause a decrease in self esteem? Any type of grouping should be conducted in a way that would benefit all students involved. Furthermore, it should also motivate them to want to achieve more.

I believe that the advantages outweigh the disadvantages when it comes to ability grouping gifted students.  However, I don't think they should be completely separated all the time.  I also feel that the way our district pulls our gifted and talented students one day a week is the best solution.  One advantage is that they are with other interested, high ability learners that they can relate to.  Often times, gifted students view themselves as strange or different, and being grouped with other high level learners can actually increase their self esteem.  Research has shown that gifted students learn faster alone and being grouped in a Horizon classroom allows them to do individual projects due to smaller class sizes.  This advantage also decreases the lack of academic interest and motivation that some gifted students experience, because the gifted grouping allows for accelerated work more suited to their level of learning.

One disadvantage of ability grouping gifted students all the time would be that they are separated from students with varied ability levels.  In reality, these students are the ones they will be working with in the real world, and they need to know how to interact with them.  They need to develop the patience and cooperative learning skills to work with someone on a lower ability level.  One fact that can be considered both a disadvantage and an advantage, is that gifted students are often times the "teachers" in groups in the regular classroom.  However, the gifted child can learn a lot from teaching someone else a new concept or skill.

Grouping gifted students some of the time can be beneficial academically.  Socially however, it can cause a disconnection with the majority of the population.  Looking towards the future and the interactions they will experience, this may prove to be a challenge for them.  

Ability Grouping - Jonathan Terry

Ability grouping is an intense topic within gifted education.  Over the past few decades, various studies were conducted that promoted, and subsequently tore down, the notion of heterogeneous or homogeneous ability grouping.  No matter which side of the argument you align with, developing a gifted program should always seek to be beneficial to the students and push them to reach their full potential.

Speaking strictly from a middle school teacher's perspective, there is a lot of validity in both arguments.  The current model in District 6 middle school's is slightly split.  Students attend homogeneously grouped classrooms for their math and English courses, and attend heterogeneously grouped classrooms for science and social studies.  In this instance, homogeneously grouping students is an essential part of making sure each student is prepared for high school and, eventually, college.

Creating low, medium, and high level courses within the grade-level has made a huge difference at my school.  Not only can gifted students be challenged with more rigorous material, but lower ability students can receive the modified pace they need to succeed.  Teachers of our Read 180 program for ELA rave about the great strides their students have made, many of which will end on grade level by the end of the year.  In this case, homogeneous grouping is making a huge impact by placing students with peers of the same ability level so that the playing field is level for each student.

One of the biggest disadvantages researches use when attempting to invalidate homogeneous grouping is the issue of self-esteem.  With the 7th graders that I teach, self-esteem plays a huge role when placing them in ability-grouped classrooms.  I have heard students in the Read 180 program refer to it as the "dumb class".  At this point in their maturity, a student may believe that the opinion of his or her friends is more important than their reading ability.  As far as gifted grouping goes, we also have an influx of parents overriding their child into a Horizons level class at registration time.  While I do agree that some students need a little extra push to perform higher academically, the inclusion of regular-ability students in a gifted class can have negative repercussions.  The class is no longer a true gifted class and those students that are higher level will not get the enrichment they deserve.

Ability Grouping-Sara Margaret West

    

Gifted education has not always taken precedent in the world of education.  However, research involving gifted education began in the 1870s and continues today.  There is much discussion when it comes to grouping "gifted" students.  What is the best method?  Should they be grouped? Will it hurt their self-esteem? Everyone has an opinion, but we must look at what is best for the students.  We also need to prepare them for their future.  

            Some people have tried to abolish ability grouping altogether. Between class grouping, cross-grade grouping, and with-in class grouping are some of the different ways some classes are grouped.  Jeanie Oakes points out that these groupings do not benefit the students in any way.  She believes that it is unfair and discriminatory to group students based on ability.   

Kulik conducted research that shows everyone benefits from grouping, even the non-gifted students.  Rogers states that students who are pulled out have substantial gains in their learning and thinking.  He credits these gains to the willingness of gifted students, their higher ability, and the interest of teachers. 

After reviewing all the research, it is easy to see why classes would benefit from being grouped by ability.  Students would be able to work on their level and be challenged in ways that are appropriate for them.  The gifted students would not get bored, and the low level students would be challenged in a way that would benefit them.  We differentiate our instruction anyway, so why not have it differentiated for a smaller homogeneous group? 

Self-esteem was addressed as a possible concern. However, a valid point was made that self-esteem grows when you have successes.  When you place gifted students in an environment where they are challenged, their self-esteem may be challenged.  They no longer are the only ones who know how to do it nor are they the only ones who understand it right away. They are equally paired with others and challenged to grow in their abilities.  Their successes would be fewer; however, would mean more.  Lower and middle achieving students will have more opportunities to succeed and would not feel overshadowed.

Although we group heterogeneously in schools, there are still homogeneous grouping taking place in the classroom.  In my classroom students are grouped based on ability in guided reading groups and math groups.  I do not worry about their self-esteem.  Instead, I am focused on making sure they have the knowledge needed to succeed, which will build their self-esteem.  Students are ability grouped once they get to middle and high school.  The benefits are clear, so why not group them by ability in elementary school? 

Read the brief section in Chapter One on Ability Grouping.  What are your thoughts on ability grouping gifted students?  What are the advantages/disadvantages?