Using a question-and-answer format, this research digest discusses using cluster grouping in regular classes to teach gifted students. The learning needs of gifted students, benefits of cluster grouping, the effects on peers, identification of students for the cluster group, and specific skills that are needed by cluster teachers are addressed.…

This article makes a case for special classes for gifted students and answers objections to special classes raised by the middle school movement and the cooperative learning movement. A sample "Celebration of Me" unit taught to gifted seventh graders which involved poetry, literature, personal development, art, music, and physical fitness is…

Two studies explored the experience and performance of students at Williams College in three-person groups that were homogeneous or heterogeneous in rated academic ability. In accord with hypotheses from Festinger's (1954) social comparison theory, students in academically homogeneous groups had more positive experiences and performed better on…

Meta-analytic reviews have shown that the effects of grouping programs depend on their features. Programs that entail only minor adjustment of course content for ability groups usually have little or no effect on student achievement. In some grouping programs, for example, school administrators group students by test scores and school records and…

Rarely when single-sex Catholic secondary schools convert to coed school organization is the potential loss of gender-specific benefits addressed. Since the movement to coeducation is seldom accompanied by the return of a "converted" school to single-sex status, the incalculable loss to the traditional gender diversity of school organization is…

Tracking--the system of grouping students for instruction on the basis of ability--reflects the class and racial inequalities of American society and helps to perpetuate them. In the junior and senior high schools studied, there were clear differences between upper and lower tracks in: (1) content and quality of instruction, (2) teacher-student…

An exploratory, comparative study of the achievement of 186 homogeneously and heterogeneously grouped second graders found no significant differences in overall achievement in reading and mathematics. However, a significant difference in reading comprehension scores of children in the two groups was found. At low, medium, and high academic…

THIS RESEARCH REPORT PRESENTS THE FINDINGS OF A SURVEY OF TRENDS IN EDUCATIONAL CHANGE OVER A 5-YEAR PERIOD IN MICHIGAN. THE REPORT SUMMARIZES THE RESPONSES TO A QUESTIONNAIRE SENT TO SCHOOL DISTRICTS THROUGHOUT THE STATE. IN BRIEF STATEMENTS AND CHARTS IT DESCRIBES THE SCHOOL DISTRICTS' USE OF EDUCATIONAL TELEVISION, PROGRAMED INSTRUCTION, TEAM…

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…

Noting that lack of student motivation is one of the primary reasons students drop out of school and that lack of student motivation is particularly evident at the onset of adolescence, this study compared multidimensional motivation gains of middle school students who were heterogeneously grouped according to motivational level to gains of those…

In order that we may know where we stand in secondary education, the membership of the North Central Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools four years ago took the lead in urging a study. It seemed to them that it was wise for such a study to be made by the Government of the United States rather than by a private foundation; for if such an…

Found that mildly learning disabled elementary school students obtained significantly higher reading achievement in a self-contained special learning disabilities classroom than did students in a regular classroom with outside support from a learning specialist and students in a learning center setting. (FL)

Interviews Alvin Poussaint, noted educator and consultant to children's television programming, about the constructive use of television to educate children, parent participation in education, and the problems of providing equal education for all children. The role of single-sex education for African American males is discussed. (SLD)

Examines three hypotheses regarding the relationship between nativity, language affiliation, and interurban mobility in Canada during the intercensal period 1976-81. A series of crosstabular and logistic regression analyses provide support for all three hypotheses. Theoretical and policy implications are discussed in the context of ethnic…

This article argues that the literature offers inconclusive evidence to support Ontario initiatives mandating destreaming of students by ability level. Issues discussed include academic performance, segregation on the basis of academic ability, opportunity for equality of academic outcomes, drop-out rates, attitudes, and sociological constructs.…