Drawing on interviews with parents of public-school students in who joined learning pods for the 2020-21 school year, this paper argues that the COVID-19 pandemic may have had a narrowing effect on the worlds of children in ways that increase their socio-spatial isolation along vectors of race and class. Interviews with parents who started…

Small-group, text-based discussions are a prominent and effective instructional practice, but the literature on the effects of different group composition methods (i.e., homogeneous vs. heterogeneous ability grouping) has been inconclusive with few direct comparisons of the two grouping methods. A yearlong classroom-based intervention was…

This case study examined the impact of a site-specific intervention for at-risk students in a small rural elementary school in the foothills of North Carolina. The research site uses a small homogenous class setting as a basis for accelerating academic growth for students who are considered at-risk in literacy based on the state-required literacy…

The purpose of this study is to investigate whether small group instruction in kindergarten widens or closes the achievement gap in mathematics between EL students and non-EL students. The first objective is to examine whether the impacts of small group instruction on math learning differ between EL kindergartners and their non-EL peers. For…

Suggests that small groups be established in the language arts classroom based on students' skill strengths and weaknesses and on students' preferred companions. (DD)

This fact sheet on cluster grouping of gifted students explains what cluster groups are, contrasts cluster grouping with tracking, offers a rationale for cluster grouping, outlines the special learning needs of gifted students, lists specific skills needed by cluster teachers, points out that cluster grouping should supplement rather than replace…

Discusses the use of small groups for instruction. Topics include the composition of groups, the role of the teacher, choice of topics, and evaluation of students. (PCB)

A study investigated whether semantic mapping is more effective for poor readers instructed in a small group of poor readers or in a class of students with mixed reading abilities. Students in five fourth-grade classes served as the control, receiving no semantic mapping instruction. Subjects, 39 fourth-grade poor readers, were presented semantic…

The purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of 22 principles of small-group instruction of young children. The principles dealt only with teacher behavior in managing instruction in the small-group setting and were organized in two major sections. Items described as organization and management concerned getting the children's…

Homogeneous grouping of mathematics students, the practice of grouping students of similar ability or achievement, is most prevalent at the high school level, often occurs at the middle and junior high school levels in schools that offer algebra, and occurs at the elementary school level as part of general groupings. This digest summarizes…

Discussion of the effects of group aptitudes on achievement during small group learning highlights two studies that examined the effects of group composition on high and low aptitude college students. Heterogeneous and homogeneous aptitude groups are described, and an individual mastery contingency in the second study is explained. (21 references)…

Most research on small group learning has focused on achievement, but few studies have systematically investigated the effects of group processes on achievement, or the influences of individual aptitudes and group composition on group processes. To investigate the relationship between student aptitudes, group process, and achievement in…

Recent work in small-group computer-based training (CBT) reveals that the approach does not necessarily lead to higher achievement. Many of the studies, however, have methodological weaknesses. If proper guidance and structure can be provided to group members, using small group CBT should lead to higher achievement than individual CBT. (Contains…

This action research project developed an intervention to determine and change the attitudes and beliefs about students and gender bias. Targeted population were freshmen through seniors in two high schools in a blue collar, middle class community in northeastern Illinois. The problems were identified by student surveys on attitudes and beliefs…