PBA, don’t listen to the guys who can’t understand what you’re suggesting and instead ridicule. Dont give up so easily! They themselves probably could have benefitted from exactly what you are suggesting. What you’re saying makes a lot of sense when you consider child development. And many parents today see this too but since they can’t change the system they opt to leave their kids back. Many october kids are now being left back to give them an advantage. Personally I dont think it’s fair to the younger kids in the grade because now the age span is even greater than a year! If schools had the courage to do what you are suggesting, kids would be grouped with kids at their developmental level — it has nothing to do with intellegence! The younger kids are not academically weaker because they are less capable, but because they are being forced to perform at the same level as kids a year ahead of them.
And to those who claim that a good teacher can teach to all levels at the same time, it’s very rare. Usually someone is losing out. Either it’s too slow for the kids who grasp things faster (because they are developmentally ready to grasp it!) or it’s too fast for the younger kids.
My daughter’s school already does this and it’s wildly successful. All the parent support it. Unfortunately in my sons’ yeshiva they group by location instead of age. Why children need to be in class with 25 close neighbors is beyond me. The principal admitted liking the idea of grouping by age but he said the parent body wouldn’t support it because they like the convenience and the predictability of grouping by location. I wish he had the courage to divide the classes by age. I believe it would lead to fewer behavior problems both in the kids who are acting out because they’re bored and for the kids who are acting out because the lesson is over their head.