I believe in a generalist model in elementary school and would not want to see it go to a middle or highschool model.
Why? What's better about it?
At least in MA, the generalist model in elementary school is usually accompanied by heterogenous grouping. There may be three teachers in each grade, and each teacher is supposed to get a similar mix of students. Based on our teacher's frequent communications, the idea is that each class is like a family or community, the class largely progresses together, and during the year she gets to know each student. Being cynical/realistic, this model is not a disaster because the affluent MA towns restrict land use, keep home prices high, and attract mostly affluent parents, most of whose kids have IQ >= 100. As I mentioned earlier, I support a specialist model with less emphasis on community and more emphasis on each student learning at his/her level in all subjects.
If there were ability grouping and teacher specialization in elementary school as in high school, the parents of the children in the bottom group might be unhappy. The heterogenous model is easier politically for principals and conforms to their philosophy, so it is entrenched.
