Don we need gifted students in all classes so they can help others learn through cooperative learning, peer tutoring and other collaborative models?
When gifted students are placed in mixed-ability groups for cooperative learning, they frequently become tutors. Other students in these groups may rely on the gifted to do most of the work and may actually learn less than when the gifted students are not in their groups. Research indicates that a particular structure of cluster grouping raises everyone’s achievement level (Gentry, 1999; Brulles, 2005). Cluster grouping creates a more narrow range of student achievement levels, allowing the teacher to focus instructional activities.
