Does Class Size Matter

Freshman going into college have to make a bunch of decisions regarding their education. They have to pick a school, a major, and in recent years they now have to pick what type of classroom they want to attend. Choosing between an online classroom setting or a traditional brick and mortar setting can be intimidating at first; however, if they look at their expectations of school they can weigh out their options and pick what is best for them. Students will take the same classes, cover the same material, and ultimately graduate with a college degree no matter what classroom they pick but their experience will differ.

An education holds the key to your child’s future and it can help them reach their ultimate goals in life. The more education that a child gets the more opportunities and chances that they get to really figure out what they want to do for the rest of their life. The trick to this is that an education from the very start should be a least somewhat pleasant to participate in. When children are in school their education interest is not at an all time high. Big factors that determine why the childhood education interest is low are because of the environment of schools and the separation of people of social classes.

Reduced class sizes can show better behavior in students and earlier improvement of grades.In smaller classes, teachers have a better chance to get to know the student more, so there are less chances that the student will feel like need to act and lash out. Since the teacher and pupil will get to know each other better, the teacher can take the time to discover what areas the student needs help in and can make more of an effort to help the student fix those needs in a smaller, less crowded environment. (Rios, Robert J).According to a survey done by Mitchell and Mitchell in 1999, students in grades K-3 that were placed in smaller classes scored better on achievement tests in reading and mathematics than students in large classes did. Having smaller classes in kindergarten through third grade creates the most academic improvement in students. Reading and Mathematics are the subjects that the most information is retained in that sticks with students in older years. Also, students of minority

A large class of elementary school students can affect the learning outcome because it can be a hard task for the teacher to reach every student. Elementary students don’t know to ask questions when they do not understand something. The material may not be sinking in for the student and the teacher may

Although there are advantages and disadvantages in class size reduction to student achievement, there can be a compromise. Smaller class sizes do not have to be for everyone. It can be left to lower achieving schools. Beginning teachers can start in smaller classes, and leave the larger classes for the more experienced. Larger class schools can provide one on one or small group tutoring for those who need extra help. In kindergarten and first grade establish smaller classes but gradually grow. There is a solution to every problem, but it takes effort to find the most effective

It is pretty apparent that in America, and elsewhere, most parents and general adults want what is best for their children in terms of education. This mindset can be seen reflected in the legislative aspects of our education system; there are many incentives pushing through the school boards and legislatures of our nation in order to attempt to further refine the education system. This is important as it allows us to refine traditional American education in order to improve upon it, and one of these attempt refinements and improvements has to deal with the subject of class size. For many people, large classroom sizes are a spawning ground for many issues with the education system: high distraction in the classroom, teacher inefficiency, among a plethora of others. Although it may seem regressive to favor small classes over bigger, more potentially diverse classes, small class sizes are more beneficial for education in that it is less distracting for the students and raises the possibility of staying focused, it potentially raises teacher-student relationships, and it allows for better results and better statistics coming from these smaller classes.

Classroom structure is important because it creates an environment that makes the students feel safe, supportive, and inclusive. At the charter school, all of the students were grouped together so they could interact with each other except for Caden, who had his own desk in the back of the classroom where he could not “disturb” others. Another key component to classroom structure is the teacher, which has a natural impact on the students. During the six months that Caden

According to Malcolm Gladwell chapter two of “David and Goliaths” economist Caroline Hoxby found that there was not any significant data indicating smaller classroom sizes had a greater effect on a child’s academic achievement. However; Diana Whitmore Schanzenbach from National Education Policy Center (NEPC), Northwestern University has contradicted Gladwell’s assertion that smaller classroom sizes were not an academic advantage. Schanzenbach review research done by Tennessee’s Student Teacher Achievement Ratio (STAR) and found many flaws that had been considered in Hoxby research that conflicted with much of the research that has already been concluded. There has been a considerable amount of research and much of it has concluded with: the children who were placed in a classroom with less students from kindergarten to third grade, scored higher during academic testing, and were more likely to continue to achieve higher grades throughout their school years. Because education is an important stepping stone for children, it is crucial their educational needs are exceeded while they are young and still able to grasp.

There was a study done in Tennessee in the 1980s where students and teachers were randomly put into a small class, with a total of 15 students, or a normal class, with a total of 22 students. They found that the reduction of students in the class led to several students achieving more of their goals. Which is why it should be illegal for classrooms to have over 30 kids because 30 students is hard to keep under control, it is hard for everyone to get help when they need it and it is unsafe in case of an emergency.

Probably the biggest influence to children in a classroom is their teacher. A good teacher will know their pupils, their needs, what interests them and their aspirations. A successful classroom will have well planned lessons in an environment which encourages learning and does not disrupt pupils. A teacher needs to attract a lesson to pupils, making it age relevant and suited to any needs they might have, for example special educational needs. A teacher will also understand their pupils learn in different ways and this is very important to keep pupils interested in the lesson and wanting to learn. The teacher knowing their pupils different learning styles could be the success or failure to their education. A pupil who is loud will not best learn in a quiet classroom environment, they would want to be a bit more “hands on” in learning activities. The importance of these three things together; teacher, lesson plans, and learning styles will be the success or non-success of a classroom. They can together create a positive, motivated environment to influence and encourage children to

According to Malcolm Gladwell chapter two, economist Caroline Hoxby did some research and found there wasn’t any significant data indicating smaller classrooms had a greater effect on a child academic learning skills. Gladwell made it a point in his story to notion details contending smaller classroom sizes are not necessarily the best learning environment.

Researchers studies on the class size have differed. Some have found no significant impact; others have discovered that student achievement declines slightly as class size increases. More recently, others have found that students in a smaller class learn more because of the size and one-on-one time. Medium classes have

Class sizes do matter.The larger the number of kids in your class effects your learning, your test scores, and its hard to get around school.The lower the number of kids in your class won't effect your learning, your test scores would be higher, and its easy to get around school.

In “Connecting in Class? College Class Size and Inequality in Academic Social Capital”, a paper by Irenee R. Beattie Megan Thiele they study how students reacted in the larger class sizes compared to the smaller classrooms. They discuss how “A student enrolled in an average class size of 60 students had a 76% probability of discussing course-related ideas with other students, while one in an average class size of 150 students had only a 60% probability of doing so,” this shows how the larger class sizes can have a negative impact on a student. If students feel uncomfortable asking questions they are less likely to be able to fix errors before they are made, leading to lower test score. In Ryan Bosworth paper Class size, class composition, and the distribution of student achievement talks about how just one student less can have an impact on classroom scores. He discusses this saying “The largest estimated class size effect from Table 4 suggests that a one-student decrease in class size is associated with a 0.0052 standard deviation increase in tests scores,” showing that even if it’s a small impact every extra student added to a class can lower the overall test score of