grouping by ability in middle schools?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I've scanned my class lists (which were printed at 7 this morning). I think that many of my more gifted students are clustered in 2 class periods because they take a specific math course. It affects their entire schedule.

This. Math is slotted first and that drives the scheduling. And thus kids get sorted into quasi tracks.

[Anonymous]

Thanks everyone. At DC's middle school, there are no honors classes (at least not for sixth graders). Everyone in the sixth grade takes advanced english and advanced world studies, and regular science, as those are the only options. For math, the kids who took compacted math take IM and the rest take Math 6. The only classes with any choice are the arts/band/chorus elective, and whether you take a foreign language or a class called digital literacy. So any tracking would be unofficial, but based on the responses here, sounds like that is not the case at at least some of the middle schools in mcps. I don't have a large data point for inquiring about this, was mainly curious based on the experience with DD's small group of friends. Tx for responses.

[Anonymous]

Follow up by op, DD is in IM but still seems to be in a different group of classes than her elementary school friends who were also on that track, but as I said above probably is just by chance.

[Anonymous]

Apparently the numbers that are used that designate that certain classes are GT even if it doesn't say "adv" or GT.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Apparently the numbers that are used that designate that certain classes are GT even if it doesn't say "adv" or GT.

Translation?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Apparently the numbers that are used that designate that certain classes are GT even if it doesn't say "adv" or GT.

Translation?

The course number for the GT sections is different.

[Anonymous]

According to an MCPS meeting last year, Principals are authorized to group by ability, but doing so is an individual decision.

If you ask the Principal if the school is grouping by ability, for which classes, and on the basis of what criteria (i.e. what criteria are they using to determine the groups), they are supposed to tell you. You can also ask if the different groups are getting different material (e.g. everyone is reading a biography from the civil rights era, but all at different reading levels). They should say yes or no.

If you are having trouble getting this response, you should contact MCPS/AEI and get them to help you get the answers.

Supposedly a memo went out on this last year to Principals.

[Anonymous]

Bizarre. Why the desire to hide achievement and make GT sections secret?

I've heard some school administrators complain that if parents know too much about groupings that they'll push their kids to get harder work. Well so what? Why is it the school's place to decide that kids should or shouldn't be pushed. If some parents want to push their kids, then that's a parental choice just as it is for parents who want to push their kids to achieve in sports.

We plaster sports achievement everywhere. Cheer, put the trophy on the wall but for academics were supposed to slow our kids down and embrace them working below their potential. Even though almost none of our kids will ever be professional athletes somehow achievement in athletics is completely celebrated and OK but while many of our kids will enter the professional workplace where academic achievements apply we shun performance.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Bizarre. Why the desire to hide achievement and make GT sections secret?

I've heard some school administrators complain that if parents know too much about groupings that they'll push their kids to get harder work. Well so what? Why is it the school's place to decide that kids should or shouldn't be pushed. If some parents want to push their kids, then that's a parental choice just as it is for parents who want to push their kids to achieve in sports.

We plaster sports achievement everywhere. Cheer, put the trophy on the wall but for academics were supposed to slow our kids down and embrace them working below their potential. Even though almost none of our kids will ever be professional athletes somehow achievement in athletics is completely celebrated and OK but while many of our kids will enter the professional workplace where academic achievements apply we shun performance.

Oh.....could you imagine what would happen if soccer players signed up and were placed where they were placed with no regard to playing ability. Good players would be mixed with lackluster players. Good players would be expected to help the lackluster players with their drills. After all, they don't need additional practice. They're already good players.

[Anonymous]

Op here. Before this thread gets off track, I'm not advocating for or against ability groupings in middle school - I simply wanted to know if that is done. Our experience in our mcps elementary school was that the principal and mcps were always very evasive and non-specific in answering these sort of questions - for example, after second grade inview testing, we got a letter explaining that our child qualified for accelerated and enriched opportunities, but it was never clear thereafter what these opportunities were. But there's no saying that her middle school will be similar - I am just going to go straight to the source and ask the teachers about this once I get to know them. Thanks all.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My experience with MCPS is 20 years old. Back then in Jr High, we had Honors, Regular, and Remedial levels.

Are honors classes in middle school no longer offered? Now you have to wait until high school?

no such grouping anymore. Just math levels. Everything else is for all. Agree with a PP that choices in band/chorus/language/reading/arts may drive certain kids to have common schedules by default of schedule limitations.

[Anonymous]

Supposedly, it's all "honors" classes - at least in JW. But, they are "supposed" to differentiate in class. I have no idea if it works well or not. This is just what was explained to us at the parent orientation.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Supposedly, it's all "honors" classes - at least in JW. But, they are "supposed" to differentiate in class. I have no idea if it works well or not. This is just what was explained to us at the parent orientation.

Really? I don't remember that from the parent orientation at all.

[Anonymous]

Our MS does have ability grouping in the English classes only, I'd strongly suspect yours does, too, based on your observation. Email the counselor and ask if there's been a mistake, assuming you think the 5th grade teacher would have recommended the higher grouping or cite test scores if necessary. This is clearly, the down side of not clueing the parents in or advertising the grouping in any way. Scheduling errors do happen, my DC new of cases each year of MS that weren't just over zealous parents.

[Anonymous]

The advanced courses aren't meant to be only for GT students. They teach additional skills and teachers in a mixed class may choose to teach all to all students, some to all students, or all to some students as the department feels appropriate. These skills are a small part of the course and are tested separately from 90% of other material each unit. That is different from consistent GT/Honors instruction and assessment.