Streaming students by ability is a commonly understood teaching practice in Australia, but little is known on how widespread this practice is. The GENERATION survey asked over 250 schools across Australia if they stream by student ability into or within classes and why. In this data story, we report on the percentage of schools who stream students in Year 10 and highlight reasons for its practice.
57% of schools reported a school policy for streaming students by ability in Year 10
77% of schools with a streaming policy group students by ability into different classes
88% of schools grouping students by ability apply this policy for some subjects
‘Excellence’ or ‘Collaboration’?
Some schools referred to a learning culture as the reason for grouping students by ability. However, that learning culture is different depending on the way streaming is applied
Of the schools represented in GENERATION, 57% reported a school policy for streaming students by ability in Year 10. This includes streaming within classes or into different classes.
Regardless of school location, the reported use of school streaming policies was similar, with 58% of schools in major cities compared to 52% in inner regional Australia. There was no notable difference between government and non-government schools use of streaming by ability.
Grouping by ability into different classes was the most frequently reported streaming method.
While most schools (77%) streamed students into different class groups, 14% of schools applied this within classes and 9% reported they used both methods.
Most schools that stream (88%) reported this is only applied to some subjects. Open text responses by schools most often described that students are grouped by ability and planned academic pathways for Maths and English, and to a lesser extent for core subjects such as Science. Differentiation and targeted teaching are inferred or explicit as reasons for ability grouping.
One respondent said: “Our students are streamed only for English and Maths - to cater for different abilities, so teachers can either provide extra support or extend students."
Schools who stream had different reasons for streaming. Some schools described a learning culture as a reason for grouping students by ability into different classes or within classes. However, this learning culture differed depending on the school’s approach to streaming. Those with a policy for grouping into different classes tended to attribute a high-performance standard for higher-ability students. In contrast, schools grouping students within classes were more likely to describe this by highlighting peer collaboration and diversity as key to their approach to streaming and their desired learning culture.