Tracking Students

by KYW's Dr. Marciene Mattleman

For years many urban school districts tracked students on academic performance. Predictably classes broke down along socioeconomic and racial lines.
 
After educators followed research that showed slower students were more motivated, had fewer behavior problems and achieved better when in classes with their higher scoring peers, Stamford, Connecticut, still continued tracking, which seemed to dictate cliques and lunchroom groupings as well.

However, school superintendent Joshua Starr decided that the system harmed lower achieving kids and developed a two tiered model enrolling the top quarter of 6th graders in honors classes and the rest in college-prep.

But three hundred parents opposed the change arguing that frequent testing might move more of the lower achievers up, rather than have them mixed with higher achieving kids.

According to the New York Times, parents (from more affluent families) signed a petition with some threatening moving or switching their kids to private schools.
 
Starr has held his ground insisting that tracking is unfair, in that it is not preparing lower achieving kids for high school or college and does not further diversity. A democratic position.