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opportunities

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We like to imagine that education is the “great equalizer” (Horace Mann, 1848), but with ability grouping, tracking, and unequal resources for different schools, it often turns out that schools are great unequalizers.

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When you label some kids as “high” and others as “low” you end up creating a self-fulfilling prophecy.

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... focus on identifying all individual children’s strengths

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The fundamental problem is thinking of children in terms of “high” and “low”.

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self-fulfilling

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"...one of the primary dangers of standards..."

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“This post is about why it’s problematic and educationally damaging to

label kids as “high” and “low.”

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You also need to explicitly support children in learning how to work effectively in groups and whole-class settings so that they value each other’s thinking

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You also need to explicitly support children in learning how to work effectively in groups and whole-class settings so that they value each other’s thinking

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Getting students to value each other's thinking is a persistent challenge in math talks.

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Managing academic social interactions is a large part of shaping a math learner and a math classroom

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As a teacher the fundamental work is support, support, support

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You also need to explicitly support children in learning how to work effectively in groups and whole-class settings so that they value each other’s thinking

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You also need to explicitly support children in learning how to work effectively in groups and whole-class settings so that they value each other’s thinking

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"valuing each other's thinking" is a nice goal

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Children know which group they are in...

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Children know which group they are in...

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Labels and their implications are difficult to overcome. Let's attempt to avoid them during formative years.

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Sad, when we are so focused on equity.

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"Ability grouping consistently causes the gaps between the groups to get bigger."  This caught my attention because don't we all ability-group?  Also, it later said mixed groups can be problematic too.  I'm not sure I saw a solution...

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"Ability grouping consistently causes the gaps between the groups to get bigger."  This caught my attention because don't we all ability-group?  Also, it later said mixed groups can be problematic too.  I'm not sure I saw a solution...

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labels

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Ability grouping consistently causes the gaps between the groups to get bigger.

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While it seems reasonable to start with the basics first, evidence about how children learn math shows that they thrive in richer, more problem-solving based environments and they can learn the basics as they engage in higher order thinking.

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You give low kids less challenging mathematics to do and they fall further behind, while the high kids are pushed further ahead.

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You give low kids less challenging mathematics to do and they fall further behind, while the high kids are pushed further ahead.

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You need rich tasks that take a variety of math smarts. 

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You need rich tasks that take a variety of math smarts. 

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...focus on identifying all individual children’s strengths and on how to incorporate and build on those in math lessons.

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...focus on identifying all individual children’s strengths and on how to incorporate and build on those in math lessons.

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We see over and over again that when kids are given boring, repetitive, narrow versions of mathematics, they disengage.

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We see over and over again that when kids are given boring, repetitive, narrow versions of mathematics, they disengage.

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focus on identifying all individual children’s strengths

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focus on identifying all individual children’s strengths

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basics as they engage in higher order thinking

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basics as they engage in higher order thinking

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These [other potential difficulties] are not related to math ability, but we often use them to limit children’s opportunities in math. 

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These [other potential difficulties] are not related to math ability, but we often use them to limit children’s opportunities in math. 

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Children will know what group they are in.

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Children will know what group they are in.

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If math is mostly about computing answers quickly, then some kids will be faster or slower at that.

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If math is mostly about computing answers quickly, then some kids will be faster or slower at that.

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rich tasks that take a variety of math smarts

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rich tasks that take a variety of math smarts

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The research is clear: Ability groups consistently causes the gaps between the groups to get bigger. 

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The research is clear: Ability groups consistently causes the gaps between the groups to get bigger. 

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Ifyour classroom focuses on limited aspects of math, never draws in authentic real-worldknowledge, doesn’t engage kids in explanation, and doesn’t tackle problems that can beinterpreted in multiple ways, then it’s nearly impossible to see these other kinds of strengths.

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Ifyour classroom focuses on limited aspects of math, never draws in authentic real-worldknowledge, doesn’t engage kids in explanation, and doesn’t tackle problems that can beinterpreted in multiple ways, then it’s nearly impossible to see these other kinds of strengths.

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It's simply not accurate that some kids are consistently high or low

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It's simply not accurate that some kids are consistently high or low

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...you end up creating a self-fulling prophecy.

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Disengage
We see over and over again that when kids are given boring, repetitive, narrow versions of mathematics, they disengage...evidence about how children learn math shows that they thrive in richer, more problem-solving based environments and they can learn the basics as they engage in higher order thinking.

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Ability grouping causes the gaps between the groups to get bigger.

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When you label some kids as "high" and others as "low" you end up creating a self-fulfilling prophecy.

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evidence about howchildren learn math shows that they thrive in richer, more problem-solving basedenvironments and they can learn the basics as they engage in higher order thinking.

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evidence about howchildren learn math shows that they thrive in richer, more problem-solving basedenvironments and they can learn the basics as they engage in higher order thinking.

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When you label some kids as “high” and others as “low” you end up creating a self-fulfillingprophecy.

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When you label some kids as “high” and others as “low” you end up creating a self-fulfillingprophecy.

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"very difficult to see with traditional math teaching and curricula"

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"very difficult to see with traditional math teaching and curricula"

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If your classroom focuses on limited aspects of math, never draws in authentic real-world knowledge, doesn’t engage kids in explanation, and doesn’t tackle problems that can be interpreted in multiple ways, then it’s nearly impossible to see these other kinds of strengths.

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... or at least it’s not all math should be

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... or at least it’s not all math should be

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Kids are high and low when the teaching and curriculum are narrow. If math is mostly about computing answers quickly, then some kids will be faster or slower at that. But that’s not all math is (or at least it’s not all math should be).

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The fundamental problem is thinking of children in terms of "high" and "low".

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The fundamental problem is thinking of children in terms of "high" and "low".

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It's rare that someone will be consistently better at every aspect of math.

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It's rare that someone will be consistently better at every aspect of math.

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You will subconsciously end up responding to and positioning students differently based on how you have labeled them, only exacerbating the problem.

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You will subconsciously end up responding to and positioning students differently based on how you have labeled them, only exacerbating the problem.

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I know that's a whole sentence, not a phrase, but...

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If you call them the "robins" and the "blue-jays" they all know which is the "smart group" or the "good group".

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If you call them the "robins" and the "blue-jays" they all know which is the "smart group" or the "good group".

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...focus on identifying all individual children's strengths....

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...focus on identifying all individual children's strengths....

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Ability grouping consistently causes the gaps between the groups to get bigger.

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Ability grouping consistently causes the gaps between the groups to get bigger.

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imagine that education is the "great equalizer"

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imagine that education is the "great equalizer"

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It's very rare that someone will be consistently better at every aspect of mathematics 

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It's very rare that someone will be consistently better at every aspect of mathematics 

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...you end up creating a self-fulfilling prophecy

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self-fullfilling prophecy

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...can learn basics as they engage in higher order thinking

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Kids are high and low when the teaching and curriculum are narrow.