Flexible Ability Grouping
At Ashfield Public School, flexible grouping is a school-wide strategy used to provision a differentiated curriculum that supports student success. Flexible grouping involves students learning in groups that may extend beyond their classroom. It is used by teachers to adjust instruction and content to the specific needs of students.
Flexible group can make it easier for teachers to increase the pace and level of instruction for high achievers, provide individual attention for students requiring social support, and offer targeted practice for students with additional learning needs.
Reliable assessment and wellbeing data is used to inform flexible grouping. Informed conversations between teachers, parents and members of the Learning Support Team (LST) decide when and how to allocate students into groups that will extend their critical thinking and problem-solving skills, support their personal and social capability, or provide remediation to understand and master expected skills.
Examples of flexible ability grouping at Ashfield Public School include:
EAL/D (English as an Additional Language or Dialect)
EAL/D students who are at a beginning or emerging level develop their English language proficiency by learning in a small group with a specialist teacher.
High performing
Students achieving a level of A or B on the common grade scale in English or Maths participate in classes that provide advanced content and skills.
Learning links
Students benefiting from extra-support in the personal and social domain participate in a social skills program led by a psychologist.
When using flexible ability grouping as a strategy, it is essential that mixed-ability classrooms remain the fundamental approach to creating an inclusive environment where students of all abilities learn alongside one another. Grouping students outside of the classroom must not result in a student losing motivation or feeling singled out and inadequate.
Flexible ability grouping is beneficial when teachers:
- hold the high expectation that every student, inclusive of their ability and achievement, can and should work towards achieving ambitious learning goals.
- maintain everyday teaching practices that incorporate differentiated strategies and meet the specific learning needs of all students across the full range of abilities,
At Ashfield Public School, flexible ability grouping is just one of the ways to that we respond to the diverse learning needs of all students and support their education success.
Setting and streaming. Teaching and learning toolkit. (Updated 4th February 2026) Centre for Education Statistics and Evaluation
Ellen M. Azinger (June 1998) Ability Grouping in the Elementary School A Journal Article Submitted to the Department of Curriculum and Instruction In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Arts in Education. University of Northern Iowa
CESE (Centre for Education Statistics and Evaluation) (2025) What Works Best 2025 – Evidence guide for excellent schools, NSW Department of Education.