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Secondary education

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Original poster

Teachers. Come and talk to me about streaming, please.

31 replies

Bubble99 · 10/07/2008 20:15

We've been looking at secondary schools for DS1.

Classes in our local schools are only streamed (is that still the correct term?) for maths and science and I wonder why this is.

Can a teacher really teach a mixed ability English class? Does it work? I'm wondering how, in a school where a high percentage of children have ESL, this can possibly work.

Any thoughts/experience would be appreciated.

OP posts:
FluffyMummy123 · 10/07/2008 21:01

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Blandmum · 10/07/2008 21:00

Mixed ability often = critical mass of norty boys and girls competing to be the nortiest in the class with enough middling kids who are easily swayed by the diverting fracas to egg them along

someone will pop up soon and tell me that if my lesson plans were good enough this wouldn't be a problem

FluffyMummy123 · 10/07/2008 20:52

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Blandmum · 10/07/2008 20:50

Streaming is when you go, 'Bright kid, top set for everythting'

setting is when you go, 'Kid is good at maths, top set, not so hot at science, bottom set' or whatever.

I've never taight mixed ability, and inless you have quite small groups, with TA help it is, as cod sez a real PITA.

Popular with educational theorists that havemn't been in a classroom since the days of Adam

We set after the first half term in year 7 when we get our own test data in

FluffyMummy123 · 10/07/2008 20:46

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AMumInScotland · 10/07/2008 20:46

They tend to use the term "setting" rather than "streaming" when it's for specific subjects.

Are you sure they mean they are never put into ability sets for other subjects? It might just be that they will start off their first year there in mixed classes for most things, and in sets for maths and science, but that setting will start up for the other subjects later on.

In my high school, we were in mixed ability classes for everything at the start, put into sets for maths after the October break I think, and setted for a few subjects from the second year onwards. Then from S3 (Year 10 equivalent) we were in ability groups depending on what exams we would be going towards.

The children will all have been in a mixed ability class up till now, so maybe they don't want to rush into the setting?

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