Class lists -- how do schools put them together?

[Anonymous]

Just curious if anyone knows how schools make these decisions. Gender? Personalities? Learning abilities?

[Anonymous]

Where I use to teach, the teachers would get together by grade level and sort the kids according to their academic ability--ie the highs , mediums, and lows. Each class would receive the equal amount of each level--for example, a class size of 24 would get 8 high kids, 8 mediums, and 8 lows.

Those lists would then to go the office for the secretaries and principal to review and finalize.

[Anonymous]

Or parents bully staff..hmm any NW schools come to mind?

[Anonymous]

They put an equal # of girls and boys from last year's class into each new class, and then move around a few as necessary if there are problems between kids. Or a monkey does it. Sometimes its hard to tell.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Where I use to teach, the teachers would get together by grade level and sort the kids according to their academic ability--ie the highs , mediums, and lows. Each class would receive the equal amount of each level--for example, a class size of 24 would get 8 high kids, 8 mediums, and 8 lows.

Those lists would then to go the office for the secretaries and principal to review and finalize.

I'll be honest - I hate this. WHY group high-performing and low-performing students together since it means at the outset that you've got a class with a wide range of abilities and therefore needs. To whom do you gear the curriculum? Why not assemble classes where skills and abilities are closer together?

Don't make the low-performing kids struggle to keep up with the high performing and therefore get frustrated and lead to more poor performance. Don't bore the high performing making them go too slowly through a curriculum that isn't challenging them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Where I use to teach, the teachers would get together by grade level and sort the kids according to their academic ability--ie the highs , mediums, and lows. Each class would receive the equal amount of each level--for example, a class size of 24 would get 8 high kids, 8 mediums, and 8 lows.

Those lists would then to go the office for the secretaries and principal to review and finalize.

I'll be honest - I hate this. WHY group high-performing and low-performing students together since it means at the outset that you've got a class with a wide range of abilities and therefore needs. To whom do you gear the curriculum? Why not assemble classes where skills and abilities are closer together?

Don't make the low-performing kids struggle to keep up with the high performing and therefore get frustrated and lead to more poor performance. Don't bore the high performing making them go too slowly through a curriculum that isn't challenging them.

The pros and cons of tracking by ability are well known. Do some reading.