Class Size and Students at Risk: What is Known? What is Next?

• NCJ Number: 195370
• Author(s): Jeremy D. Finn
• Date Published: 1998
• Length: 32 pages
• Sale Source: NCJRS Photocopy Services; US Dept of Education
• Publication Format: Document (Online)
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: Downloaded on June 21, 2002.

Annotation

This report provides an overview of recent research on the effects of class size on the academic performance and behavior of students at risk, emphasizing the research investigation undertaken by Tennessee’s Project STAR (Student-Teacher Achievement Ratio).

Abstract

This report was commissioned to review the recent research on the effects of class size, specifically on the academic performance and behavior of students at risk. The report is divided into four chapters. The first chapter reviews the status of research on the academic effects of small class size with particular focus on the statewide class size studies of Indiana’s PRIME TIME and Tennessee’s STAR (Student-Teacher Achievement Ratio). Project PRIME TIME demonstrated the feasibility of a statewide class-size initiative and the need to conduct an intervention of this type over a period of time. Project STAR was a controlled study of the effects of reduced class size and was conducted in 79 elementary schools in the State from 1985 to 1989. In the second chapter, approaches were discussed that had been taken to assess the costs and benefits of reducing class size and proposed additional dimensions that need to be considered. The third chapter explores the implications of small class size for classroom management and instructional strategies. Project STAR demonstrated that small classes benefited student in grades kindergarten through third academically. The project clearly showed the pupil behaviors were affected in fourth grade. Ratings of specific engagement dimensions revealed improvements in the expenditures of effort, initiative taking, and reduced disruptive and inattentive behavior in comparison to students in regular classes. In the fourth and final chapter, issues requiring further research are summarized as a research agenda and include: (1) short-term and long-range effects of small classes for students at risk; (2) teaching practices to maximize the effectiveness of small classes; (3) school and classroom conditions that interact with class size; (4) small classes and positive “long-term trajectories” for students at risk; and (5) assessing the costs of a small-class initiative. References