Student grouping on the elementary and secondary level is discussed. The three sections include: (1) historical perspective of grouping patterns, (2) grouping objectives and purposes, and (3) grouping criteria and practices. Emerging patterns of horizontal and vertical school organization represent a conscious attempt at flexibility. Also included is a description of grouping as a guidance technique. Pros and cons of homogeneous grouping are discussed, along with limitations and evaluation of...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Ability Grouping, Classification, Grouping (Instructional Purposes), Students, Cohen,...
This CRitical Issue Bibliography (CRIB) Sheet focuses on learning communities, an exciting innovation in teaching and learning. The term learning communities is being used to refer to new processes for linking learners, especially a curricular restructuring approach that links or clusters classes around an interdisciplinary theme and that enrolls a common cohort of students. Resources in this annotated bibliography are grouped into three sections: (1) curricular learning communities; (2)...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Annotated Bibliographies, Curriculum Development, Grouping (Instructional Purposes),...
There is considerable debate in the educational literature about whether students of similar ability should be grouped together for instruction. Those who advocate keeping students uniform in academic achievement cite advantages to heterogeneous grouping and suggest it is the best way to bring all students to grade-level standards. Democracy as a way of life, however, should emphasize each person's achieving as much as possible, rather than being held to the standards of unifying a group...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Ability, Democracy, Elementary Education, Group Instruction, Grouping (Instructional...
The study was concerned with the formation of grouPs of students and specifically addressed the problem: Can a computerized Procedure be developed which assigns students to instructional groups, which maximizes the homogeneity of these groups when this homogeneity is based on relevent student learning characteristics, and which takes account of realistic administrative constraints? The mathematical procedure developed involved utilizing computer technology in its implementation. It aimed to...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Algorithms, Computer Programs, Evaluation, Grouping (Instructional Purposes),...
THE USE OF THE MULTITRACK, ACCELERATED, AND ENRICHMENT PROGRAMS CURRENTLY EMPLOYED IN HIGH SCHOOLS REQUIRES A CHANGE IN THE LETTER-GRADE GRADING SYSTEM. THE AUTHOR SUGGESTS ASSIGNING ROMAN NUMERALS TO THE TITLE OF THE COURSE TO DESIGNATE COURSE CONTENT DIFFICULTY OR REQUIRED STUDENT LEVEL OF PERFORMANCE. GRADE-POINT AVERAGE WOULD BE COMPUTED BY ADDING THE NUMERICAL EQUIVALENTS OF LETTER GRADES AND THE ROMAN NUMERAL AND DIVIDING THIS TOTAL BY THE SUM OF THE ROMAN NUMERALS. THIS PROCEDURE...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Grade Point Average, Grading, Grouping (Instructional Purposes), Student Evaluation,...
This packet is a collection of 14 leaflets on topics dealing with education in the middle school. The middle school may be otherwise termed junior high school or intermediate school and may encompass various combinations of grades ranging from the fifth to the ninth grade. Leaflets 1 and 2 deal with understanding the special problems of the preadolescent student. Leaflets 3 and 4 deal with the grouping of students and the organization patterns of teachers to increase learning. Leaflet 5...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Creativity, Curriculum, Educational Theories, Evaluation, Grouping (Instructional...
DEPARTMENTALIZATION IS A FORM OF GROUPING FOR INSTRUCTION, AN ADMINISTRATIVE METHOD FOR ASSIGNING PUPILS TO TEACHERS IN SOME PLANNED MANNER. SOME PRECEDENTS FOR THE RECENT REVIVAL OF DEPARTMENTALIZATION IN THE ELEMENTARY GRADES ARE CITED. THE FOLLOWING EXAMPLES OF DEPARTMENTALIZATION ORGANIZATION ARE DISCUSSED IN DETAIL--A PROGRAM INVOLVING PRESCHOOL CHILDREN FROM CULTURALLY DEPRIVED AREAS BEING CONDUCTED BY CARL BEREITER AND SIEGFRIED ENGELMANN IN ILLINOIS, TWO SEVENTH AND EIGHTH GRADE SCHOOLS...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Grouping (Instructional Purposes), Preschool Education, Reading Research, Secondary...
TWENTY-SEVEN STUDIES ON INTERCLASS GROUPING AT THE ELEMENTARY LEVEL ARE SUMMARIZED. IT IS POINTED OUT THAT THE SUMMARY IS NEITHER EXHAUSTIVE NOR DELIBERATELY SLANTED. STUDIES POORLY DONE IN TERMS OF SAMPLE OR TREATMENT WERE NOT INCLUDED. THE STUDIES ARE GROUPED ACCORDING TO TWO QUESTIONS--(1) IS ACHIEVEMENT INCREASED BY GROUPING AND (2) ARE STUDENTS' ATTITUDES AFFECTED BY GROUPING. A SERIES OF QUOTATIONS FROM THE RESEARCH STUDIES IS GIVEN TO PROVIDE A BRIEF SURVEY OF THE LITERATURE. A...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Class Organization, Classification, Elementary Education, Grouping (Instructional...
This Go8 Backgrounder compares the academic performance of three cohorts of students in Group of Eight (Go8) universities: Australian students, international students on campus in Australia (onshore) and international students overseas (offshore). Analysis of data supplied by Go8 universities shows that in 2007 students passed 91.8% of the courses they attempted. In Go8 universities: (1) international students succeed at the same high rate as domestic students; (2) women have slightly higher...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Foreign Countries, Foreign Students, Academic Achievement, Campuses, Universities,...
In the elementary and secondary school mathematics curriculum in the United States, there is a growing argument for and trend towards the incorporation of cooperative learning as the principal method of instruction. Research on the use of cooperative learning with adult mathematics students is less extensive but does exist. This paper incorporates existing research and some experiences with cooperative learning in workplace and collegiate settings. The paper answers the questions: What is...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Adult Education, Cooperative Learning, Grouping (Instructional Purposes), Mathematics...
A VARIETY OF ARRANGEMENTS, ACTIVITIES, AND GROUPING POSSIBILITIES WITHIN THE CLASSROOM USING THE INDIVIDUALIZED READING PROGRAM (IRP) ARE PRESENTED. SEVERAL MISCONCEPTIONS ABOUT THE INDIVIDUALIZED READING PROGRAM ARE MENTIONED, ESPECIALLY THE NOTION THAT CLASS SUBGROUPS ARE NOT PERMISSIBLE WITHIN THE IRP STRUCTURE AND THAT THE TEACHER-PUPIL CONFERENCE IS THE ONLY KIND OF INTERACTION BETWEEN TEACHER AND PUPIL IN THIS METHOD OF INSTRUCTION. IT IS STRESSED THAT CLASSROOM ORGANIZATION MUST...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Grade 1, Grouping (Instructional Purposes), Independent Reading, Individualized...
THIS PAPER ON THE JOPLIN PLAN INCLUDES AN OUTLINE OF HISTORICAL MOVEMENTS LEADING TO THE JOPLIN PLAN AS IT IS KNOWN TODAY, A DESCRIPTION OF THE PLAN AS IT IS USED IN JOPLIN, A SURVEY OF VARIOUS STUDIES WHICH HAVE EMPLOYED THE PLAN, AND A DISCUSSION OF ITS ADVANTAGES AND LIMITATIONS. TYPICALLY, THE JOPLIN PLAN GROUPS MIDDLE-GRADE CHILDREN FOR READING INSTRUCTION ON THE BASIS OF SCORES MADE ON READING ACHIEVEMENT TESTS AND TEACHER OBSERVATIONS, REGARDLESS OF GRADE PLACEMENT. THE GROUPS ARE NOT...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Ability Grouping, Grouping (Instructional Purposes), Intermediate Grades, Reading...
Information and suggestions are provided on the use of team learning in large college classes. Introductory material discusses the negative cycle of student-teacher interaction that may be provoked by large classes, and the use of permanent, heterogeneous, six- or seven-member student learning groups as the central focus of class activity as a method of breaking this cycle. The next sections briefly examine the formation of groups; the sequence of instructional activities (i.e., individual...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Group Activities, Group Discussion, Grouping (Instructional Purposes), Large Group...
This paper cites as selected taboos in teaching reading (identified by educators very frequently) the following: (1) homogeneous grouping; (2) round robin reading; (3) use of textbooks and workbooks in the curriculum; (4) individual endeavors in school work; (5) memorization of content; and (6) the controlled vocabulary in reading. The paper discusses each of these concepts in sequence and analyzes related implications. It concludes that reading teachers need to be on the lookout always for...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Classroom Techniques, Grouping (Instructional Purposes), Instructional Effectiveness,...
The purpose of this guide was to provide principals and teachers in San Diego, California with information and guidelines for implementing a 4-hour kindergarten program. Contained in the guide are suggestions for helping teachers (1) plan weekly time allotments in subject areas, (2) plan daily schedules, (3) group students for maximum learning, (4) use support personnel, and (5) implement curriculum content. (PCB)
Topics: ERIC Archive, Curriculum Development, Grouping (Instructional Purposes), Instructional Materials,...
A major task involved in teaching students is to group wisely for instruction. This paper discusses the use of grouping in the following contexts: the self contained classroom; departmentalism and the student; homogeneous versus heterogeneous grouping controversy; learning centers; the dual progress plan; team teaching and grouping students for instruction; interage or multiage grouping; and the mainstreaming of students. The paper suggests that the plan or plans of grouping students needs to...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Class Organization, Classroom Techniques, Elementary Education, Grouping...
Reading instruction and placing students into groups emphasizes a plethora of approaches. Each method of grouping for instructional purposes should stress providing for learners' individual purposes. Which plans are appropriate for grouping students for reading instruction? Team teaching has many advocates, but it has both advantages and disadvantages. Departmentalized teaching stresses a separate teacher for all or some of the grade levels in reading instruction. A teacher specializes in the...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Class Organization, Comparative Analysis, Elementary Education, Grouping...
The purpose of this paper is to summarize the issues and principal findings of research on homogeneous and heterogeneous ability grouping, and to consider the implications it may have for evaluating and improving the design of educational settings. To begin with, definitions of terms used in the discussion are given. The paper then proceeds to sketch research findings on academic achievement, affective development, and ethnic and socioeconomic consequences, and concludes by discussing the...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Ability Grouping, Academic Achievement, Grouping (Instructional Purposes),...
This report consists of a classification of elementary school age children and information concerning an Educational Grouping Questionnaire, which is designed to help the classroom teacher group her students. (See TM 001 368 for example of questionnaire; see TM 001 363 for summary of report; for other related documents, see TM 001 160, 364-366, 369-374.) (MS)
Topics: ERIC Archive, Classification, Computer Programs, Elementary School Students, Grouping...
A major task involved in teaching pupils is to group them wisely for instruction. Most elementary schools group learners in terms of a self-contained classroom. While it may seem extreme, all curriculum areas on each grade in the elementary school may be departmentalized. In some ways, departmentalization harmonizes more with a separate subjects curriculum as compared to the self-contained classroom approach in grouping pupils for instruction. The controversy continues over homogeneous versus...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Class Organization, Cross Age Teaching, Elementary Education, Grouping (Instructional...
A study was conducted to see whether peer effects could be observed among 102 undergraduates at Williams College, an elite four-year liberal arts school. The study explored whether students in the bottom third of their class, with average Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT) scores of about 1300, would perform better in writing about newspaper articles they read and discussed in groups of three if the two others in the group were academically superior, from the top third of their class, with SAT...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Academic Ability, Grouping (Instructional Purposes), Higher Education, Peer...
There always has been a problem with grouping practices in reading programs. The complexity of the interaction between readers, texts, and the contexts in which reading takes place often is ignored by educational decisions that suggest that one program, set of materials, instructional technique, or grouping arrangement can address the needs of all students in a classroom. Common sense and personal experiences suggests that one size rarely fits all. A single instructional response to a group of...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Grouping (Instructional Purposes), Group Instruction, Reading Instruction,...
This paper reviews the literature on various types of grouping strategies in order to determine which is the most effective in influencing mathematics achievement. After discussing teachers' reasons for grouping and popular grouping strategies, specific research findings on these strategies are reported. Highlights of each grouping strategy are reviewed with recommendations for practice and further research. Grouping strategies discussed include: (1) long-term static groupings, such as...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Cooperative Learning, Elementary Education, Elementary School Mathematics, Grouping...
This book is an outgrowth of a conference funded by the National Institute of Education and held at the Wisconsin Center for Education Research in May 1982. A major theme of this volume of collected papers is how and in what ways grouping of students can be used effectively. Papers included are: (1) "Instructional Groups in the Classroom: Organization and Processes" (P.L. Peterson and L.C. Wilkinson); (2) "Do Students Learn More in Heterogeneous or Homogeneous Groups?" (T.L....
Topics: ERIC Archive, Ability Grouping, Elementary Secondary Education, Group Dynamics, Group Instruction,...
The content and methods of nurseries and kindergartens in Hong Kong were compared in this paper. Particular attention was given to: (1) the kinds of activities provided for children; (2) the use of grouping, textbooks, tests and examinations; (3) the allocation of homework; and (4) the role of the teacher. Data were gathered by means of interviews of principals of 69 preschools, 59 kindergartens, and 10 nurseries. Findings indicated that the program of Hong Kong preschools included both...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Early Childhood Education, Foreign Countries, Grouping (Instructional Purposes),...
This workbook takes the theories and research from many disciplines and experts and combines them into short, easy-to-assimilate units that facilitate group participation at the high school and college level. Group skills are presented as 26 distinctive lessons. Each lesson begins with an explanation page, then an activity page gives the group an opportunity to work together and put the ideas into practice. The presentation combines linear sections with visual materials. Cooperative learning...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Cooperative Learning, Group Experience, Grouping (Instructional Purposes), Higher...
Personalized System of Instruction (PSI) is an instructional plan which uses units of material and divides classes of students into small groups, each with a "manager" in charge. The manager is one who has taken the course previously; he acts as a chief proctor who gives oral examinations to the first four students who are ready to pass a unit and who then become student proctors for the rest of the course for that unit. All other students pass that unit by taking an oral examination...
Topics: ERIC Archive, College Students, Grouping (Instructional Purposes), Individualized Instruction,...
The mini school program is designed to provide a smooth transition from the elementary school to the independent discipline approach of high school. Under the program, a student spends two-thirds of each school day in a mini school where he is taught language arts, math, health science, and social studies. Each mini school has a teacher for each of the four subject areas. During the four class periods that students are in the mini school, teachers work with them in any way teachers choose. This...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Educational Innovation, Flexible Schedules, Grade 7, Grouping (Instructional...
Functions of group time in early childhood programs are discussed and steps to leading a successful group time are described. Group time gathers children at transition time, stimulates thinking and introduces concepts, develops listening skills, fosters social development, nurtures emotional growth, and develops a sense of community and a joy of living. Steps to leading group time successfully include: (1) achieve children's attention; (2) define spaces within the group; (3) vary the pace and...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Early Childhood Education, Elementary School Students, Grouping (Instructional...
AN INVESTIGATION WAS CONDUCTED TO DETERMINE IF GROUPS OF HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS NUMERICALLY IN EXCESS OF 50 COULD BE AS EFFECTIVELY INSTRUCTED IN TYPEWRITING SKILLS AS GROUPS OF LESS THAN 30. STUDENTS ENROLLED IN 1ST-YEAR TYPEWRITING WERE RANDOMLY ASSIGNED TO TWO LARGE GROUPS AND THREE SMALL GROUPS TAUGHT BY THE SAME INSTRUCTOR. TEACHER-MADE, 3-MINUTE TIMED WRITING TESTS WERE ADMINISTERED IN SEPTEMBER AND IN MAY. THE RESULTS INDICATED THAT THE SMALL GROUPS DID NOT ACHIEVE SIGNIFICANTLY GREATER IN...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Group Instruction, Group Testing, Grouping (Instructional Purposes), High Schools,...
This paper describes a successful learning community and curricular experiments with basic writing implemented on a college campus as an example of curricular structures that enable faculty and staff to work together to address students' individual needs. The paper begins by discussing learning communities as effective and flexible institutional restructuring models for working particularly with first-year students, and it provides an example of one community, the Learning Alliance at Cal State...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Basic Writing, College Curriculum, Grouping (Instructional Purposes), Higher...
Compiled for teachers and administrators who wish to visit schools with nongraded programs, the directory lists the schools alphabetically by city within each of the 50 states and Canada. Schools in 321 cities are listed.
Topics: ERIC Archive, Classes (Groups of Students), Directories, Exceptional Child Education, Grouping...
Approaches to individualizing physical education for disabled and nondisabled students are considered. Organizational alternatives are explored, including use of corners and square patterns (which allow for visual cues for students as well as for flexibility in activities) and learning activity packets and centers (which provides opportunities for individualized work on written tasks or task centers). Sample activities in each type of organizational pattern are described. (CL)
Topics: ERIC Archive, Adapted Physical Education, Class Organization, Disabilities, Elementary Secondary...
The negative effects of long-term ability grouping has been discussed often in educational literature, and recent research has identified several areas of concern, including a need for more variety in intra-class instructional grouping. Whole language educators are apparently so dissatisfied with the traditional, rigid three-group plan that they may be avoiding most small group patterns. The challenge to whole language teachers is to organize a variety of groups, including Shared Reading,...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Class Organization, Elementary Education, Grouping (Instructional Purposes), Reading...
The Arizona English-Language Learner Assessment (AZELLA) is the backbone of Arizona's new English-language learner (ELL) policy in that it is used to assess students' English-language proficiency in order to place them into groups for English-language instruction and to determine when they have become proficient in English. This paper evaluates a central claim for this assessment--namely, that it is unidimensional--and the implications of the dimensionality of an assessment for practice....
Topics: ERIC Archive, English Language Learners, Item Response Theory, Language Proficiency, Scaling,...
One in a series of over 50 similar listings related to exceptional children, both handicapped and gifted, the bibliography contains 56 references dealing with the issue of regular or special class placement for exceptional children. Entries, which include texts, journal articles, conference papers, research reports, and other literature, were selected from Exceptional Child Education Abstracts. Given are bibliographic data, availability information, indexing and retrieval descriptors, and an...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Ability Grouping, Annotated Bibliographies, Bibliographies, Exceptional Child...
The effectiveness of two variations of elaborative interrogation for group settings was investigated in an experiment in which 88 college students, aged 18 to 50 years, learned factual sentence information and responded, orally or in writing, to questions about the information. Subjects met in groups of eight to 12 members that were randomly assigned to one of two elaborative interrogation conditions, oral or written, or to a control condition. Stimulus materials were identical for all subjects...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Group Dynamics, Grouping (Instructional Purposes), Higher Education, Learning...
An important priority of educators is to modify the school structure so that "at-risk" learners can be treated as all other students are treated. One way of sending a positive message to all students is to organize classrooms heterogeneously. Intra-class grouping is a source of help when it emphasizes cooperation among learners and highlights the importance of each person's contributions. An effective way of facilitating students' learning is to focus on important concepts. This...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Critical Reading, Elementary Secondary Education, Equal Education, Grouping...
This chapter is divided into four sections: What cooperative learning is; research; models of cooperative learning; and conclusion. Cooperative learning is defined as a group learning activity organized so that learning is dependent on the socially structured exchange of information between learners in groups, in which each learner is held accountable for his or her own learning, and is motivated to increase the learning of others. Each of the several key elements of cooperative education is...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Classroom Techniques, Cooperative Learning, Elementary Secondary Education, Foreign...
The product of two summer institutes to prepare teachers and administrators for school integration, this report contains a resource manual on "Grouping Children in Integrated Schools." For the full abstract of the institute proceedings, see UD 010 390. For other resource manuals, see ED 036 568-ED 036 573, and UD 010 390. (RJ)
Topics: ERIC Archive, Classification, Desegregation Effects, Elementary School Students, Grouping...
This paper discusses research findings applicable to the nongraded plan of school organization (also referred to as ungraded, continuous progress, multigraded, multiaged, and ungraded primary unit). The introduction notes a rapidly increasing movement toward nongrading and defines the concept. Part 1, presents the case for and against nongrading and includes a list of the researchers' concluding observations and questions suggested for group discussion. Part 2, the research review, reports...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Grouping (Instructional Purposes), Nongraded Instructional Grouping, School...
This booklet helps physical educators and administrators organize physical education time allotment, personnel, and student grouping structures under various organizational patterns. Specific articles dealing with ways in which schools have accommodated innovative patterns were included. Some of the programs dealt with organizational patterns in elementary schools, implementation of student needs in junior high school, nongraded curriculum and modular scheduling, coeducational physical...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Class Organization, Educational Innovation, Elective Courses, Flexible Scheduling,...
Most gifted children in the United States spend the majority of their school time in regular classroom settings, grouped with age peers who have a wide range of academic achievement and potential. This expansive range of needs in every classroom underscores the importance of assessing all students appropriately and providing differentiated curriculum and instruction that will promote their learning. Differentiation includes: (1) the design and/or selection of curriculum; (2) the selection and...
Topics: ERIC Archive, ERIC, Individualized Instruction, Academically Gifted, Curriculum Design, Educational...
Focused on the topic of ability grouping in reading instruction, particularly at the elementary level, this annotated bibliography contains 31 references to articles and papers entered in the ERIC database between 1983 and 1989. The citations include articles discussing recent research on ability grouping, and possible alternatives to ability grouping, such as cooperative learning and whole language techniques. (MM)
Topics: ERIC Archive, Ability Grouping, Annotated Bibliographies, Elementary Education, Grouping...
Nine abstracts provide information on grouping for instruction including research reports, acceleration, special classes, and the gifted. Information is provided on using the bibliography and on purchasing the single documents or the bibliography. (JM)
Topics: ERIC Archive, Abstracts, Acceleration, Bibliographies, Exceptional Child Education, Gifted,...
Trained and untrained teachers (N=37) of gifted students (grades 2 through 6) were observed and compared in the areas of individualization, cognitive quality of interaction, response patterns, and overall differentiation. Teachers were trained in applying B. Bloom's taxonomy to questioning techniques and in using management strategies for individualized instruction. As hypothesized, trained teachers used a greater variety of instructional patterns, asked more higher cognitive level questions...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Elementary Education, Gifted, Grouping (Instructional Purposes), Questioning...
Learning communities bring together small groups of college students who take two or more linked courses together--typically as a cohort. During the last few decades, many colleges and universities have started or expanded learning communities as a method to deliver curricula to students and forge closer bonds between students, among students and faculty, and between students and the institution. The learning community "movement" has grown in large part because of the leadership and...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Undergraduate Study, Postsecondary Education, College Students, Grouping...
This report examines the staffing, scheduling, and grouping practices of schools with a seventh grade, and investigates how those practices affect the academic and social development of students. Discussion focuses particularly on theories and previous research on middle grade school organization, national statistics on school organization in the middle grades, progress in improving school organization and instructional practice, and future issues. The data are derived from the principal and...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Educational Practices, Elementary Education, Grouping (Instructional Purposes),...
Major objectives of Project PACE have been to foster the integration of special education students back into regular vocational programs and to deal directly with job simulation development. The student population used in this study consisted of sixty culturally deprived special education students (control/experimental groups) from two Portland, Maine inner-city junior high schools. Specific goals of this project were to initiate a sequential, pre-vocational course for slow learners covering...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Disadvantaged, Employment, Grouping (Instructional Purposes), Mild Mental...
Due process of law has never been defined by the Supreme Court in so many words, the Court choosing to define that term on an inclusion/exclusion basis as it goes along. The author traces the historical development of the due process concept, and discusses cases where due process has affected the rights of those involved in the educational process. The author notes that the most pressing problems coming up which involve due process of law are of two varieties: (1) those in which students claim...
Topics: ERIC Archive, Court Litigation, Discipline, Due Process, Equal Protection, Grouping (Instructional...
