Ability Grouping

Feldhusen, J.F. & Moon, S.D. (1992). Grouping Gifted Students: Issues and Concerns. Gifted Child Quarterly, 36(2), 63-67.

"Grouping gifted learners together for instruction can lead to substantial gains in academic performance."

According to Feldhusen and Moon (1992) the drive to eliminate homogeneous groupings in favor of heterogeneous groupings is driven by researchers such as Slavin and Oakes who hold that we must "equalize" the educational process for all socioeconomic and culturally diverse groups. This is a political agenda not a best practices agenda.

Research conducted by Gamoran (1990) concluded that the achievement of high-ability students declined when they were grouped heterogeneously.