Class Size Reduction: Dueling Studies?

January 03, 2004

In the January 2004 issue of School Reform News, Lisa Snell writes about the mixed results from two studies on class-size reductions, concluding that it is "a very costly reform."

Student Achievement Guarantee in Education

In Wisconsin they tried a program called SAGE, which reduced class size, used a more rigorous curriculum, included before- and after-school activities, and gave teachers professional development.

Although initially SAGE students outperformed non-SAGE students, there was no further gain in later grades. But get this, the researchers "did not attempt to distinguish class-size effects from the effects of other SAGE program elements."

We are left shaking our heads at how anyone could even attempt to draw any conclusions about class-size based upon the SAGE study. It's like having one equation and four unknowns. (We have an inkling at which of the four program elements may have caused the positive results in the SAGE study, you'll never guess which.)

California SB 1777

Meanwhile, a RAND study finds that class-size reduction has had little or no effect on achievement in California. Thanks to a 1996 California law, billions were poured into the class size reduction program. After looking at five years of data, the RAND folks concluded that there were no significant gains.

But straight from the unintended consequences department, we have this: because of the huge shake-up in the job market due to the reduction in class size, there was a talent drain from the inner cities to the suburbs. For example, many inner-city teachers we know dream of being hired in the suburbs, but we don't know of any the other way around. If job openings were to bloom in both inner city and suburbs, the most experienced teachers would move in exactly one direction.

Ms. Snell writes, "Since student achievement tends to be more strongly correlated with teacher quality than with small class size, many urban students were actually worse off after the class-size reduction program took effect."

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Online:
"Class Size Reduction in Wisconsin: A Fresh Look at the Data" PDF file
"The Relationship between Exposure to Class Size Reduction and Student Achievement in California" HTML