The purpose of this researcher is to examine the correlations between different ability grouping or tracking systems within the English language arts curriculum and student achievement in secondary schools on Long Island, New York.

School systems are faced with many challenges in their quest to provide equal access to education for their students. Increased public scrutiny on expenditures, as well as intense state and federal standards of accountability for student achievement are some of the factors that compel educational leaders to design, implement, and assess curriculum and instructional systems that most efficiently and effectively promote high achievement for all students. One mechanism that, while controversial, is firmly embedded within school systems, is tracking, which is commonly called ability grouping. For the purpose of this researcher, tracking will be defined as any school or organizational plan that is intended to reduce the heterogeneity of instructional groups (Slavin, 1990).

Researchers provide strong evidence that the process of schooling is differently experienced by students in cognitive, social, and psychological effects (Ansalone, 2002). Curriculum is the primary source of this differentiation. The most problematic issues arise from the research on the effects of tracking commonly seen in English language arts where stratification is pervasive from first grade through twelfth, and in several major studies, researchers have documented that significant and consistent differences do exist among the levels into which English courses are typically organized. This investigator provides quantitative analysis of three categories of tracking systems and their respective student achievement data by school, over three years on the New York State Comprehensive English Regents Examination.