Ability Grouping

Grouping students in a classroom by ability is the most efficient use of resources and teacher's time. It's unfair to expect a teacher to meet all the needs of the special ed, average, disruptive, and gifted student in the same classroom. Each student has the right to learn. It's unfair for a gifted student to have the attention of the teacher taken up by the disruptive, special ed, and average student, and not have the instruction to challenge and learn at the level of their ability.

Often the urgent needs in the classroom have to be met by the teacher. Sometimes precious time needed for teaching important new concepts is taken up by the disruptive student, which is unfair to the teacher and other students. If a student is not able to control their behavior, they should not be allowed in the classroom.

Special ed students sometimes have major needs requiring special care. Mainstreaming these students is unfair to the teacher and to the other students who are there to learn. Closing Fairview Home and Training Center in Oregon brought special ed students into public school classrooms and I question this decision. Sure it's nice for these students to have contact with regular kids. The kindness lessons are important but the quality of our education in this country is at a crisis level. These kinds of decisions are part of the problem. Maybe there should be schools set up just to deal with the needs of the special education student. Maybe these schools should take a look at the work done in Philadelphia at the The Institute for the Achievement of Human Potential which looks at the full range of human potential from the gifted child to the brain damaged child.

Students in elementary school are smart. They can move from class to class. They can move to the classroom where they will learn math and then on to the classroom where they will learn English at their level of ability. Maybe this move will encourage a little parent and child time on homework after school, if the parent is embarrassed by their child's placement. Afterall, the parent is the first and most important teacher. Most parents want to shove all teaching off onto the teacher. A teacher can't do everything and work miracles. Some kids come from backgrounds that are difficult and see too much. These kids have a difficult time coping and learning in the classroom. Maybe their special needs should be handled in a different way too.

Our future needs each gifted child to bloom so they can go forth to find answers to all the questions in the world and solve problems. They need the BEST instruction, teachers, learning environment possible. They need to be challenged. They need to be encouraged, inspired, and motivated to be excited about learning. They need to be given the tools to find answers.

Our country needs all students to win and learn at their level of ability. We can't afford loss of time and resources any longer with poor decisions that waste both.

The ultimate goal of a school should be to maximize resources so that the teacher can teach and the student can learn. This can best be done in the most efficient way by ability grouping.