Ability Grouping - Brittany Daly

Ability grouping has been and continues to be a frequently debated topic in regard to gifted education. While some have moved to abolish ability grouping altogether, others see the benefits that ability grouping can have. Ability grouping can take different forms. A grade level can be divided into classes based on student ability. This form of ability grouping is often referred to as tracking.  Another form of ability grouping can occur within the classroom for small-group instruction or cooperative learning activities. When making an argument for or against ability grouping, one must take into account which of these forms of ability grouping is being discussed.

When grade levels are grouped by ability, it is the gifted children who are most likely to benefit.  Often times, they will have the smaller class size and the more enthusiastic teacher. According to James Gallagher, they will most likely benefit from a richer curriculum and more individualization within their classroom. When gifted students are grouped homogeneously, teachers may be able to challenge students to reach a deeper level of understanding.  Students grouped into a gifted class will likely be further challenged by their peers.  Research has shown that gifted students in a homogeneously grouped class have scored higher than their peers in mixed-ability class.

Jeanie Oaks argues that tracking is discriminatory because many minority children are often grouped together in a slower track. She also argues that tracking is unfair to those in the slower tracks because they are less likely to get a rich education, and they may not have as many opportunities to delve deeper into academics. When students are grouped heterogeneously, all students are more likely to be presented with the same learning opportunities.  In a heterogeneously grouped class, students can interact with peers of all ability levels.  Higher achieving students may have the opportunity to teach or help another student.  A student who is struggling can turn to a peer for assistance.  In a heterogeneously grouped class, teachers can use cooperative learning activities to further group students.  Depending on the activity or assignment, the teacher may use heterogeneous grouping when grouping his/her students. However, the teacher has the option to group his/her students based on ability. This may allow gifted students to delve into a higher depth of knowledge, and it may allow the teacher to work more closely with a group that may need a little more assistance.

Both of these arguments have valid points.  It is important for gifted students to have the opportunity to work alongside other gifted students so they can challenge each other; however, shouldn’t we want this very same thing for all students?  Our district’s use of a weekly pull-out program for gifted students provides these students with a more challenging curriculum while still allowing them to interact with students of all ability levels.