Abstract
Classroom placement of twins is an ongoing issue for educational policy. Many educational jurisdictions have standard policy most commonly founded in the belief that separation supports individual identity, personal development and academic opportunity. This study examined the effects of classroom placement in a sample of 560 twin pairs whose behaviors were assessed from ages 5 to 12 years. We found no detrimental effect of classroom sharing on twins’ social development. In contrast, this study provides evidence that educating twins together is associated with modest positive twins’ behaviors and social functioning at school. Implications for educational policies are further discussed.
Highlights
Classroom placement of twins is an ongoing issue for educational policy
Similar to the previous studies, we examined the association between classroom placement and several social behaviors, including prosocial behaviors, physical aggression, social withdrawal, and anxiety (DiLalla & Mullineaux, 2008; Tully et al, 2004; van Leeuwen et al, 2005)
About 58.0% of twins had the same classroom placement status throughout the elementary school years, while 29.5% had gone through one transition in classroom placement status
Summary
Classroom placement of twins is an ongoing issue for educational policy. Many educational jurisdictions have standard policy most commonly founded in the belief that separation supports individual identity, personal development and academic opportunity. One literature review revealed that many schools implement strict guidelines for classroom placement of twins, despite the fact that impacts of such policies on twins’ development and educational attainment are unknown (Beauchamp & Brooks, 2003). Multiple Birth Canada suggests that classroom placement for multiples be evaluated each year in order to ascertain which is the best situation for them (i.e., being together or separated) Despite these recommendations, separation of the co-twins is often encouraged by the School Commission Boards (Lalonde & Moisan, 2003), without considering the costs and benefits of separation, the twins’ own preference, or the individual variation in effects of classroom separation
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