Classroom composition can shortchange children with the greatest need

Grouping low-achieving preschool children with their higher achieving peers results in language gains for both groups. However, when low-achieving students are grouped together, they may actually lose ground in language development over the course of a year.

Laura Justice, professor at Ohio State University, found that high-ability preschoolers didn’t seem to be affected by the language ability of their peers: their language skills increased in blended classrooms or when placed in low- or average-ability classrooms.

The study suggests that classroom composition is important. Blending children of different abilities can provide the boost that poor students need to catch up. However, most publicly funded preschool programs target poor children, who may be lagging in language development, resulting in classrooms composed predominantly of children with poor language skills.

The reasons for these findings have not been identified. Possible explanations include direct interactions among peers, and teacher expectations. 

Justice, L. M., Petscher, Y., Schatschneider, C. and Mashburn, A. (2011), Peer Effects in Preschool Classrooms: Is Children’s Language Growth Associated With Their Classmates’ Skills? Child Development.