Question

What are the risks to the student of categorizing students by intellectual ability? To the teacher? To the social climate of the school

​Educational Psychology: theory Practice by Robert Slavin

Answer 1

• It can be helpful to the teacher as they can give extra support to the students who are low on intellectual abilities. Educators can develop an individualized education plan and offer extra learning support and specialized education to help the student succeed in school.
• Categorising also qualifies students to receive services from teachers that they may not have otherwise been able to receive, such as instruction in a learning support room. In this setting the instruction they receive is at a pace much more conducive to their learning.
• On the flip side,if a child is categorized having low intellectual abilities the teachers sometimes will have low expectations from them and stop believing in their abilities and only focus on highly intelligent students. Teachers need to be aware about learning difficulties and also take necessary steps minimize the problems.