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Yes, I completely agree with you. We should always think of the benefits for both weak and strong students to keep them all engaged and challenged. So, pairing should differ all the time.

I agree with both of you, although you have to be a bit careful with always pairing faster students with weaker ones. Faster students can feel that they are being held back, so I probably think there is an argument for varying the groups. Weak and strong together some of the time, but also allow the strong ones to work together some of the time, so they are challenged and can push themselves a bit. Don't you think?
Pieter

"I think sometimes mixed ability can be useful in the classroom and we should take advantage of it. Let's try not to regard it just as a problem"

I agree with you, because it's something we can use to verify our teaching methodologies in order for us to cover all of the students and motivate them during the classes

1) Important factors that may cause mixed-ability:

aptitude
attitude
personality
motivation
learning style
previous exposure

4)
In my opinion mixed ability could help teachers and other students to share their knowledge and by doing so, they are learning something else, they are not only learning the foreign language. Students with a better aptitude can help other students ( even better than a teacher sometimes) to understand some grammar points. They feel like equals, so it is not a teacher who is telling me what to do.

I think sometimes mixed ability can be useful in the classroom and we should take advantage of it. Let's try not to regard it just as a problem.