Experts say class size has little impact
Stuff reports:
Labour’s proposal to reduce class sizes at schools has failed to win a universal gold star, with experts saying the small cuts without improving teaching would do little to raise the bar of student achievement.
Associate Professor John O’Neill, of Massey University’s Institute of Education, said the Labour Party’s proposal to cut school class sizes if elected in September would not achieve much without changes to teaching itself.
At the Labour election-year congress yesterday, leader David Cunliffe announced the party would fund an extra 2000 teachers, which would see primary and secondary school classes shrink by an average of three students by 2018.
But O’Neill said recent research suggested making classes slightly larger or smaller did not greatly alter the achievement levels for average students.
Indeed. Here’s a list of the 105 things which have been found to have a larger impact on student achievement than class size.
- Self-reported grades
- Piagetian programs
- Providing formative evaluation
- Micro teaching
- Acceleration
- Classroom behavioral
- Comprehensive interventions for learning disabled students
- Teacher clarity
- Reciprocal teaching
- Feedback
- Teacher-Student relationships
- Spaced vs. Mass Practice
- Meta-cognitive strategies
- Prior achievement
- Vocabulary programs
- Repeated Reading programs
- Creativity Programs
- Self-verbalization & Self-questioning
- Professional development
- Problem solving teaching
- Not labeling students
- Teaching strategies
- Cooperative vs. individualistic learning
- Study skills
- Direct Instruction
- Tactile stimulation programs
- Phonics instruction
- Comprehension programs
- Mastery learning
- Worked examples
- Home environment
- Socioeconomic status
- Concept mapping
- Challenging Goals
- Visual-Perception programs
- Peer tutoring
- Cooperative vs. competitive learning
- Pre-term birth weight
- Classroom cohesion
- Keller’s PIS
- Peer influences
- Classroom management
- Outdoor/Adventure Programs
- Interactive video method
- Parental Involvement
- Play Programs
- Second/Third chance programs
- Small group learning
- Concentration/Persistence/Engagement
- missing
- Motivation
- Early Intervention
- Questioning
- Pre school programs
- Quality of Teaching
- Writing Programs
- Expectations
- School size
- Self-concept
- Mathematics programs
- Behavioral organizers/Adjunct questions
- missing
- Cooperative learning
- Science
- Social skills programs
- Reducing anxiety
- Integrated Curricula Programs
- Enrichment
- Career Interventions
- Time on Task
- Computer assisted instruction
- Adjunct aids
- Bilingual Programs
- Principals/School leaders
- Attitude to Mathematics/Science
- Exposure to Reading
- Drama/Arts Programs
- Creativity
- Frequent/Effects of testing
- Decreasing disruptive behavior
- Drugs
- Simulations
- Inductive teaching
- Ethnicity
- Teacher effects
- Inquiry based teaching
- Ability grouping for gifted students
- Homework
- Home visiting
- Exercise/Relaxation programs
- Desegregation
- Mainstreaming
- Teaching test taking & coaching
- Use of calculators
- Values/Moral Education Programs
- Competitive vs. individualistic learning
- Special College Programs
- Programmed instruction
- Summer school
- Finances
- Illness (Lack of)
- Religious Schools
- Individualised instruction
- Visual/Audio-visual methods
- Comprehensive Teaching Reforms
- Class size
Now remember this doesn’t come from one study. This is a from a meta-analysis of 50,000 different studies. There have been 96 studies just on class size, and they have found the impact on learning is quite minor.