Dr. Allison Jonas

During the COVID-19 pandemic, numerous challenges specific to educational context resulted in disrupted teaching and learning for students across the U.S. Consequently, accelerating recovery of disrupted learning has become the primary concern of every school district in the nation. Prior to the pandemic, the use of data to guide instruction was considered an important means of developing individualized learning paths; however, the mere use of data traditionally failed to provide practical and actionable guidance for teachers.

This qualitative case study explored how teachers in a rural Nebraska school used flexible grouping as a strategy to support teachers in modifying their instruction when students did not know or already knew benchmark learning objectives. The teachers used flexible grouping to address the rapidly increasing skill gap between low- and high-performing students. This approach allowed students to move between groups to receive instruction tailored to their individual needs within a homogeneous classroom.