Describes one high school's preparatory efforts to detrack the English program. Focuses on characteristics that are evident in the culture of successfully detracked schools. (SR)

Compares types of ability grouping (mixed, homogenous, acceleration/retention) used in educational systems in the United States, China, Japan, south Korea, France, Germany, and Quebec and how they reflect cultural patterns and shape educational outcomes. Discusses tensions between the competing demands of excellence and equity. (SK)

Reviews current arguments posed by supporters of educational tracking and those who oppose it. Research results support the view that tracking as practiced today is detrimental to the U.S. educational system, although the downfall of tracking is likely to result from legal reasons beyond its worst features. (SLD)

Describes a way to involve mixed-level, third-grade readers more effectively in literature or author studies without limiting their choice of texts. Offers several book options that met literature teaching goals. Describes how the "Tag Reading" techniques work and recommends Tag Reading as an ideal technique for stress-free reading from Grade 3 on…

Spearman's ''Law of Diminishing Returns'' with regard to ability is tested in a dataset from the National Longitudinal Study of Youth. The dataset consisted of a sample of 6980 children aged 12-16 from the 1997 cohort. The subjects were tested with a computer administrated adaptive format of the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery…

Background: The need for effective teachers to reflect on their students' thinking is now generally recognized. Moreover, the study of students' conceptions of learning and their impact on learning outcomes has become a popular area of research. But are teachers aware of their students' conceptions and do they reflect on them when planning their…

There has been little research on pupils' experiences of ability grouping. This study aimed to explore the perceptions of primary-aged pupils regarding the purpose and practice of within and between class ability grouping; their experiences of those practices; and how their attitudes to school, self-perceptions and behaviour were affected. The…

This paper examines how staff in schools formulate decisions about pupil organisation. A small sample of primary and secondary schools from across Scotland was involved in the study. In 1996 Her Majesty's Inspectors published a report entitled "Achievement for All" (SOEID, 1996) which, it was envisaged, would form the basis of school…

The Test for Creative Thinking-Drawing Production (TCT-DP), its design, concept and evaluation scheme as well as experiences and results of application are described. The test was designed to mirror a more holistic concept of creativity than the mere quantitatively oriented, traditional divergent thinking tests. The specific design using figural…

Despite the prevalence of multiple choice items in educational testing, there is a dearth of empirical evidence for multiple choice item writing rules. The purpose of this study was to expand the base of empirical evidence by examining the use of the "all-of-the-above" option in a multiple choice examination in order to assess how…

Effective teaching in mixed ability classes has dominated much of the Cyprus government's agenda for educational reform. However, there remains widespread dissatisfaction with Cyprus teachers' ability to teach in mixed ability classes. A factor behind the unsuccessful attempts of the Ministry of Education and Culture to improve teaching in mixed…

Background/Context: For the past century, mathematics education in the United States has been effective at producing outcomes mirroring society's historical inequities. The enactment of the No Child Left Behind Act in 2001 was intended to address these differential educational outcomes. Given the scope of this legislation's impact on the way in…

This study describes the creation of measures of teachers' use of ability grouping in instruction using Rasch analysis. The dimensionality of the proposed construct was also investigated. Results of the Rasch analysis are compared to the results using composites to illustrate how the description of a construct can vary depending on the method used…

This collection of articles is intended to demonstrate that there is solid research to justify both ability grouping and cooperative learning with gifted students and that each approach should be used judiciously to address particular student needs. Introductory material describes the philosophy and program policy of the Center for Talented Youth…

Dividing elementary classrooms into three reading groups has become a U.S. educational tradition. Reading groups seem to have been an experiment in meeting the needs of students of different abilities, but the original caveats about flexible groups seem to have been forgotten. With the popularization of leveled basal readers, where changing groups…