Ability grouping refers to an educational approach that involves making groups of students based on their academic performance and aptitude. The grouping is usually homogeneous i.e., based on similar abilities. The primary objective of this grouping is to make personalized instructions possible from teachers to students specifically based on the individual needs of students. The two most common types of ability grouping are within-class and between-class ability grouping. Both types are part of common educational practice.
Ability grouping can be done on the basis of several factors such as those who are high academic achievers can be grouped together. Similarly, those who are good at creative writing such as cheap assignment writing service UK can form a group, visual learners can be grouped separately, and so on.
Types of Grouping:
The process of ability grouping falls into two types. One is the homogeneous grouping and the other is the heterogeneous grouping. Both types are discussed briefly.
Homogeneous grouping:
As the name refers to, homogeneous grouping refers to grouping students together based on similar abilities, age, race, culture, gender, academic performance, etc. Homogeneous grouping can be effective if done with proper planning and used intelligently in specific situations. Otherwise, the homogeneous grouping may create problems for students and harm their academic performance and classroom learning.
Heterogeneous grouping:
Heterogeneous grouping refers to the grouping of students based on different abilities. Different abilities here refer to students differing in abilities, academic performance, age, culture, race, etc. It is an effective type of grouping that can be used for activities and discussions that require a variety of abilities and opinions.
The question that is a part of discussions for the past few years is whether ability grouping worth practicing or not. To evaluate the effectiveness of ability grouping in the educational system, we must discuss its pros and cons to have a better picture in our minds.
Benefits of ability grouping:
Following are the benefits and positive aspects of the ability grouping of students.
Uniform learning pace:
When students with similar abilities are grouped together, they usually require the same period of time to perform different tasks, understand concepts or work at about the same pace. This is a great advantage on both ends. It helps teachers to maintain the pace of the course successfully as planned by them. Moreover, students are able to learn in a more systematic and organized way. They move forward towards the new lesson along with all members of their group. No one has to wait for others who are comparatively slow learners. Similarly, no one has to rush to reach the level of others. This is beneficial for the learning environment in the classroom.
More attention for those in need:
Ability grouping helps in the identification of students with different talents, abilities, skills, and educational needs. Such as those who perform well in school need comparatively fewer teachers’ attention than those who have a difficulty in learning. By this teachers can focus their efforts and design strategies especially for those students who need them. They do not have to wait long for their turn to come or tire them up for keeping up with the pace of the class. They get to learn in the way that suits them the best.
Independence:
The concept of ability grouping helps students feel comfortable with whatever they have and a sense of independence. They feel free to use the best of their talents and abilities. Moreover, they get to learn a lot of new things from their mates. Similarly, they also become a source of teaching others some new things. It fills them with a sense of achievement and accomplishment. When students are relaxed and happy, they can learn better and the things they learn last long in their memory. They can also manage the pace of their course after getting used to this system.
Disadvantages of ability grouping:
Along with advantages, there are also some cons of the ability grouping strategy that restrict the implementation of this strategy.
Additional load on teachers:
Teachers face an additional load of work because of having so many groups in the classroom. It is because they have to deal with each group differently and thus have to design their teaching strategy accordingly. It is therefore challenging to implement this strategy all the time in the classroom.
However, teachers can divide students into groups based on their abilities only in case of certain activities that require like-minded people to work in groups. Otherwise, it would become difficult for them to manage these groups in the class on a daily basis. Moreover, it requires proper and efficient planning before implementing an ability grouping strategy in the classroom. If done without planning, it becomes a burden with no benefits.
Restrict students’ abilities:
If ability grouping is used frequently in the classroom with the same groups every time, it may cause students to limit their abilities to that group only. They may show excessive dependence on their group for every task. It may also create a feeling of hostility against other groups which would promote bullying among students.
For example, if low achieving students are always grouped together, they may feel themselves being isolated from the other class and compare their abilities with others. By this, they may get discouraged to try hard. Moreover, other students would get a chance to mock them after class or in the absence of the teacher.
Conclusion:
The detailed information about ability grouping reveals that ability grouping is only effective when done after planning in an organized manner. Moreover, it is applicable in certain situations and should not be a part of the class more frequently. If there is a frequent need for ability grouping, then the heterogeneous grouping should be employed as the homogeneous grouping has its downsides in the long run.
On the other hand, heterogeneous grouping proves to be more effective than homogeneous grouping in most situations and yield comparatively fewer negative outcomes. Another thing to keep in mind while grouping students based on their abilities is that to make your strategy a success, you must re-evaluate and re-assess students after a specific period of time to measure the change in their performance and re-grouping should be done based on those results.