Mixed Ability Grouping and Its Effects on Teaching and Learning

Mixed ability grouping has been debated for many decades on its effects on teaching and
learning. Students’ graduation results at the end of ninth grade in 2018 were not satisfactory in
Azerbaijan and as one of the factors affecting teaching and learning, we decided to investigate
teachers’ and students’ experiences with mixed ability grouping in local public schools. This
study involved nine teachers and 16 students from three Baku public schools. Their responses
were obtained via focus group discussions which were held online. The questions asked during
these discussions mainly addressed to learn teachers’ and students’ challenges with mixed ability
grouping and how they dealt with such problems. The results indicated that both teachers and
students had experiences with students with diverse learning abilities and they both faced
challenges with mixed ability grouping. Teachers’ major challenges were lack of motivation,
shortage of time, and design of lesson plans, whereas students’ difficulties included conflicts
among students, lack of time, student interruptions, and feeling of shyness. Various teaching
strategies (e.g., group and pair work, use of a set of cards, role-plays, visuals, games) were
employed by teachers to mitigate the adverse effects of mixed ability grouping while students
mainly sought teachers’ and peers’ assistance in case of difficulties. Our policy suggestion is the
implementation of ability grouping as a pilot project in several public schools to reach better
student learning outcomes.