Stratification, Segregation and Streaming within Schools

Abstract

Herein the culturally related human action of grouping people is examined as a phenomenon that has existing for many years in our global society. Today grouping people can be understood and labelled as stratification, segregation and streaming and can most readily be observed within schools and educational institutions. These grouping efforts and actions are addressed in related literature as sorting, tracking and categorization that may be at times tacit in classrooms and educational programs; nonetheless there are often life-long implications for streaming each student. Some education theorists may believe educators can sort students via assessment and evaluation of student academic ability however such attempts can be quite problematic, causing feelings of exclusion, marginalization and rejection. Academic ability is currently much more than a score on a summative assessment as academic ability has many social (home, community, engagement) and education elements (pre-school, instruction quality, class size, test bias). This iterative review illuminates issues, problems and concerns that may lead to possible resolutions for educators when grouping students.