Class-size reduction
As an educational reform goal, class size reduction aims to increase the number of individualized student-teacher interactions intended to improve student learning. A reform long holding theoretical attraction to many constituencies, some have claimed CSR as the most studied educational reform of the last century. Until recently, interpretations of these studies have often been contentious. Some educational groups, like the American Federation of Teachers and National Education Association are in favor of reducing class sizes. Others argue that class size reduction has little effect on student achievement. Many are concerned about the costs of reducing class sizes.
The two most prominent CSR studies are Project STAR, which was conducted in the mid- to late-80s in Tennessee and Project SAGE, conducted in the early 2000s in Wisconsin. Studies following the work of Project STAR and SAGE found that, even when reintroduced to larger class-sizes later in their educational career, the positive foundation for learning caused students to later in life to be more likely to take advanced classes, graduate from high school, attend college, and major in a STEM field.
Subsequent research on the effects of class size reduction has linked small class sizes with a variety of cognitive and non-cognitive benefits for students and teachers, both short and long-term, especially when class sizes are reduced in the early grades. Its benefits are particularly pronounced for lower-income students and children of color, who experience two to three times the gains from smaller classes, leading CSR to be one of only a few education reforms proven to reduce the achievement gap. Smaller classes have also been found to have a positive impact on school climate, student socio-emotional growth, safety and suspension rates, parent engagement, and teacher attrition, especially in schools with large numbers of disadvantaged children.
Definition of class size
An early complication in measuring the efficacy of class size reduction was the tendency for different ideological camps to use different definitions of class size in the literature. As a direct measure of the number of students in each class, group size is currently understood by the educational community to be the best measure of a teacher's "true opportunity to build direct relationships with each student." A more malleable definition and one now held in dubious regard, pupil to teacher ratio, would declare a situation in which one teacher leads a class while another does paperwork in the back but does not interact with students as being half as large as its group size.In the past, depending on which measure was used, researchers tended toward far different interpretations of the benefits of class size reduction leading to far different recommendations for implementation. In 2002, Margaret Spellings, secretary of education under President George W. Bush, pointed out the need for a standardized definition of what is meant by class size.
To differentiate student-teacher ratio and class size, it is important to know several key distinctions. Class size, generally speaking, refers to the average class size in a given grade level of a given school. Student-teacher ratios, normally, are calculated by taking the total number of teachers at a given school divided by the complete enrollment of that school. This distinction is significant, because the ratio will not always match up with the class size figure. For example, a student-teacher ratio may be small but a class size may be larger than what the student-teacher ratio leads one to believe.
Project STAR and Project SAGE
Project STAR
Aware of both the preliminary results of a CSR program in Indiana called Project Prime Time and the potential large scale costs of additional classrooms and teachers, in 1985, under then Governor Lamar Alexander, Tennessee began a three-phase project to determine the effects of reduced class sizes on short and long term pupil performance in the earliest grades.The first phase, termed Project STAR, randomly assigned teachers and students to three groups, “small”, “regular” classes with a paid aide, and “regular” classes with no aide. In total some 6,500 students in about 330 classrooms at approximately 80 schools participated.
Using both standardized and curriculum based testing, the initial study concluded that small classes produced “substantial improvement in early learning and cognitive studies” with the effect about double for minority students. As this is considered the seminal study there have been many attempts to reinterpret the data.
Dubbed the Lasting Benefits Study, the second phase began in 1989 and sought to determine whether the benefits of CSR persisted into upper grades when all students entered standard size classes. Observations confirmed that children originally enrolled in smaller classes continued to outperform their peers when they returned to regular-sized classrooms. These results were deemed true for all types of classes and all types of cities.
Under the third phase, Project Challenge, the 17 economically poorest school districts were adequately funded to provide smaller class sizes for their K–3 students. These districts improved their end-of-year- standing in mathematics and reading from below average to above average.
Dr. Eric Hanushek has called into question the validity of the study on Project STAR, arguing that the bulk of scientific research on small-class sizes shows no or statistically insignificant effects and that there must be another explanation, like flawed random assignment, that produced the result rather than small class size. However, subsequent research has questioned Hanushek's claim that "there is no strong or consistent relationship between school inputs and student performance". Dr. Alan Krueger reanalyzed the data on which Hanushek based this claim and found that Hanushek "places a disproportionate share of weight on a small number of studies that frequently used small samples and estimated misspecified models." When this is corrected, the literature actually reveals a strong correlation between reduced class size and academic performance and suggests that the internal rate of return from reducing class size from 22 to 15 students is around 6 percent. In more recent years, Hanushek has defended his work in his book "Money Might Matter Somewhere", in which he argues that the amount of money spent per pupil is not as important a factor towards student achievement inasmuch as how the money is spent. In other words, Hanushek argues that giving a student $10,000 worth of pens and pencils would not impact their overall student achievement as much as, say, a $10,000 investment into training and development for that student's teacher.
Project SAGE
In 2002 the state of Wisconsin began its own investigations into “the wisdom of class size reduction," by initiating Project SAGE. In all, nine low income schools were studied, their locations spanning urban, semi-urban, and rural geographies. Evaluation included site visits, standardized assessments, collection of curriculum, and interviews with teachers, principals, and students.The guiding assumptions of the study were:
Class size implementation alone is insufficient to promote student achievement. Changes in teaching methods that take full advantage of smaller class sizes will also be needed.
Class size reduction may have unintended consequences.
Generalization requires careful adaptation. Every classroom has a unique and specific context.
One primary difficulty encountered by the SAGE project was the availability of funds for teachers but not space. Each district was then left to this potential problem in their own unique way. In schools constrained by space this often involved tag-team teaching rather than increased individualized instruction.
Results from the study demonstrated increased teacher satisfaction with job, increased communication with parents, and long term increases in student graduation rates and admission into college. Although no significant differences were observed in the gains of both male and female students, improved outcomes were again larger amongst minority and disadvantaged students.
Other CSR studies
Project PRIME TIME
Project PRIME TIME was proposed in 1981 by former Indiana Governor Robert D. Orr. The intent was to upgrade the quality of early school experiences by reducing class sizes. The Indiana General Assembly appropriated $300,000 for the 1981–82 and 1982–82 school years to pilot PRIME TIME in nine schools, grades K–3, across Indiana. In 1983, the General Assembly increased PRIME TIME's funding for 1983–84 and 1984–85 to $2 million. This increased funding allowed for PRIME TIME's expansion in first grade. The program was expanded to second grade in 1985 and by the fall of 1987, it covered kindergarten through third grade.Results from the study showed:
- PRIME TIME students made improvements in reading and math standardized tests in kindergarten, first and second grades.
- Students in PRIME TIME classes had fewer behavioral issues, better self-esteem and responsibility, greater time on task, and were less likely to be held back a grade.
- Teachers of smaller class sizes reported themselves as more productive and efficient, had improved morale and better communication with parents, and were able to increase individualized attention to students.
Benefits in the UK
Contrary to some class-size studies conducted in the United States, the British researchers found no “threshold effect” in their study. In other words, classes did not have to be reduced to 15 or 20 students before the behavioral benefits started to kick in. Reducing class size at any end of the class-size spectrum seemed to help.