In a mixed-ability classroom, ability groups allow the teacher to target review, direct instruction, and advanced work to the needs of a small group, rather than attempting to meet the divergent needs of the entire class simultaneously (Slavin 1987) . Assignment to an ability group is often short-term (never lasting longer than one school year), and varies by subject (Gamoran 1992) . Assignment to an ability group is made by (and can be changed at any time by) the individual teacher, and is usually not recorded in student records. For example, a teacher may divide a typical mixed-ability classroom into three groups for a mathematics lesson: those who need to review basic facts before proceeding with today's lesson, those who are ready to learn new material, and those who need a challenging assignment. For the next lesson, the teacher may revert to whole-class, mixed-ability instruction, or may assign students to different groups. Such grouping may be very fluid and temporary, such as when elementary reading teachers place children into small reading groups whose members may change several times throughout the school year. Contrasted with tracking Ability grouping is not synonymous with tracking (Slavin 1987) . Tracking differs from ability grouping by scale, permanence, and what students learn. Social effects Social stigma can be reduced by giving groups neutral names (e.g., colors, rather than "advanced group" or "remedial group"). Flexible group assignment and regular re-assignments reduces stigma (Aydin and Tugal 2005) . Application to high-ability students Rogers (2002) identifies the following as the most frequent forms of grouping for high-ability students:  Whole class strategies: Full-time ability classes or tracks. These include special schools for the gifted, full-time gifted programs or classes, and the school-within-a-school approach. Untracked whole class instruction, the most common whole-class approach when others on this list are not utilized. Small group strategies: Gifted pull-outs Cluster grouping Subject-based ability grouping Within-class ability grouping Like-ability cooperative grouping Cross-grade grouping by achievement level Peer-tutoring dyads Mixed-ability cooperative grouping, the most small common group approach when others on this list are not utilized References Rogers, Karen B, Ph.D., Re-forming Gifted Education (Great Potential Press, Scottsdale, AZ, 2002), pp. 209.
In a mixed-ability classroom, ability groups allow the teacher to target review, direct instruction, and advanced work to the needs of a small group, rather than attempting to meet the divergent needs of the entire class simultaneously . Assignment to an ability group is often short-term (never lasting longer than one school year), and varies by subject . Assignment to an ability group is made by (and can be changed at any time by) the individual teacher, and is usually not recorded in student records. For example, a teacher may divide a typical mixed-ability classroom into three groups for a mathematics lesson: those who need to review basic facts before proceeding with today's lesson, those who are ready to learn new material, and those who need a challenging assignment. For the next lesson, the teacher may revert to whole-class, mixed-ability instruction, or may assign students to different groups. Such grouping may be very fluid and temporary, such as when elementary reading teachers place children into small reading groups whose members may change several times throughout the school year. Contrasted with tracking Ability grouping is not synonymous with tracking . Tracking differs from ability grouping by scale, permanence, and what students learn. Social effects Social stigma can be reduced by giving groups neutral names (e.g., colors, rather than "advanced group" or "remedial group"). Flexible group assignment and regular re-assignments reduces stigma . Application to high-ability students Rogers (2002) identifies the following as the most frequent forms of grouping for high-ability students: Rogers, Karen B, Ph.D., Re-forming Gifted Education (Great Potential Press, Scottsdale, AZ, 2002), p. 209. Whole class strategies: Full-time ability classes or tracks. These include special schools for the gifted, full-time gifted programs or classes, and the school-within-a-school approach. Untracked whole class instruction, the most common whole-class approach when others on this list are not utilized. Small group strategies: Gifted pull-outs Cluster grouping Subject-based ability grouping Within-class ability grouping Like-ability cooperative grouping Cross-grade grouping by achievement level Peer-tutoring dyads Mixed-ability cooperative grouping, the most small common group approach when others on this list are not utilized References 
D
(Slavin 1987)
D
(Gamoran 1992)
D
(Slavin 1987)
D
(Aydin and Tugal 2005)
A
Rogers, Karen B, Ph.D., Re-forming Gifted Education (Great Potential Press, Scottsdale, AZ, 2002), p. 209.
D
Rogers, Karen B, Ph.D., Re-forming Gifted Education (Great Potential Press, Scottsdale, AZ, 2002), pp. 209.