Two weeks ago, I outlined my objections to the NC Senate majority’s plan to reduce class sizes in grades K-3.  The following details why:

  • Recent studies of class sizes in North Carolina public schools (see below) suggest that there is a weak or no significant relationship between small class sizes and student achievement.  In addition, teachers’ perceptions about their class sizes were not found to have a significant relationship to teacher job retention.
    Author Year Sample Findings
    Adam Felix Nwankwo, “School-Based Accountability Indicators as Predictors of Academic Performance and Adequate Yearly Progress,” dissertation, George Washington University 2009 369 public schools in North Carolina Class size and classes taught by highly qualified teachers had a relatively low positive, albeit a statistically significant, relationship with academic performance in reading and mathematics.
    Jeffrey B. Maples, “An Analysis of the Effects of Class Size on Student Achievement in Selected Middle Schools in the Sandhills Region of North Carolina,” dissertation, Fayetteville State University 2009 1,329 sixth grade classes, 1,548 seventh grade classes, and 1,425 eighth grade classes in 33 middle schools in the Sandhills Region of North Carolina Students that were enrolled in the large class size had a significant higher mean score in reading and mathematics than students enrolled in small size classes and a slightly higher mean score than students enrolled in medium size classes. The only exception was in 6th grade reading where there were no significant differences.
    Jenna-Marie Caron Nelson, “The Effect Of Class Size On A Teacher’s Job Satisfaction In A Southeastern Urban LEA,” master’s thesis, UNC-Chapel Hill 2008 96 elementary schools in a large North Carolina school district Overall, the effect of class size, school size, percentage of ELL students, percentage of ED students, percentage of minorities, and teachers’ perceptions about their class sizes were not found to have a significant relationship to teacher job retention.
    Metis Associates, “Third Annual Evaluation Report, High Priority Schools Initiative: 2004 – 2005” 2005 45 high priority schools in North Carolina From the first to the fourth year of the program, fewer schools met their ABC growth targets and even fewer made Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP). In addition, small class sizes failed to produce significant gains in reading performance.
  • Other recent studies of class size reductions in other states have encountered similar findings.  In 2002, Florida implemented a statewide policy to lower classroom size by setting a universal cap on classroom size.  A 2010 Harvard University study found that classroom size reductions had little, if any impact on student achievement.  (See “The Impact of a Universal Class-Size Reduction Policy: Evidence from Florida’s Statewide Mandate” by Matthew M. Chingos, John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, August 2010.)
  • The problem with class size mandates is not the number of students but how the dollars are designated.  These mandates create a structure that is inflexible and isolates teachers, inhibits collaboration, and makes it harder for students to receive individual attention.  (See “The Numbers Game: Why Class Size Mandates Miss the Point” by Stephen Frank, Education Next, August 2010.)
  • According to the New York Times, U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said he would prefer to put his own school-age children in a classroom with 28 students led by a “fantastic teacher” than in one with 23 and a “mediocre’” teacher.
  • North Carolina has lower class sizes than the national average for both self-contained and departmental classes.
  • Class sizes in the United States are higher than international averages but lower than the class sizes of top-performing nations.