Should a child be put in a small class or a large class? Essay

Overcrowded schools are one of the many reasons why America is falling backwards. With high birth rates and continuous immigration flow the classroom has become overcrowded. The best way a student can learn is if the attention is not so divided. With large classrooms having over 30 students, it makes it almost impossible for a teacher to attend to each student equally. “Slavin (1989) reviewed those studies that lasted a minimum of 1 year and had 20 students or fewer. He concluded that substantial reductions in class size have a small positive effect on students” (Synopsis of Class Size Literature). Classrooms should be small enough for a teacher to perform well without divided attention. In smaller classrooms, students are recognized for their contribution and participation. Students can respect the work of their peers individually and learn from them and help maintain order. They have more time to be collaborative, work creatively, think critically and draw their own predictions. In “Every Classroom Teacher’s Dream”, Patricia Handley states that “Teachers have more opportunity for personalized assessment with students, such as individual conferencing. With a small class, teacher can maximize best teaching practices, heightening students’ academic achievement” (6). There is ample evidence on how a small classroom can improve so much.

hesis Statement: Research suggest that smaller class sizes are better because as the class size is reduced academic achievement increased, the academic achievement gap decreases, students receive higher wages later in life, and students receive more one-on-one time with the teacher. ____________________________________________________________________________ Naomi Dillon. Class size and student achievement: Research review. Center for Public Education.                         http://www.centerforpubliceducation.org/Main-Menu/Organizing-a-school/Class-size-and-student-achievement-At-a-glance/Class-size-and-student-achievement-Research-review.html     This article found 19 different studies to determine the outcome of reducing class sizes.

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.

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.

You have to look at how the teachers teach, how many students and what the students are like. Obviously if you are in a small class the teacher is able to get to each student if they are having trouble or need some extra help. It can also be that the kids are less distracted and if kids are fooling around the teacher can quickly address it and get back to teaching. In large classes none of this is really possible. In classes of thirty plus it’s impossible to meet everyone's needs ultimately leaving people out.

Legislators, teachers and parents produce many groups in America 's society that are most interested in improving primary education. These actors recognize the importance of improving primary education to create a more stable, knowledgeable and successful society for all of the country. One highly debated issue in education reform is the student to teacher ratio in classrooms. Many parents and teachers want to see a decrease in class sizes so that students receive more individualized education and become more socially developed. Conversely, a large sum of Americans, mainly government officials, are not convinced that reducing class sizes will lead to the outcome that activists and parents are imagining. Student education at a primary level affects all of society, either directly or indirectly. America is highly concerned with education reform, and decreasing the amount of students per class in grades K through three is a logical solution to better the education provided to American students. Class size reductions cause for many positive effects such as more individualized learning, better developed social skills and a more educated youth leading to a more successful society in the future. Education reform can best be achieved through decreasing the number of students in classes, especially at the primary level.

The evidence suggests that increasing class size will not only harm children’s test scores in the short-run, but also in their long-run human capital formation. Money is saved from increasing class size will be more substantial social and educational costs in the future. In addition to high costs, reducing class size have unintended consequences. When California lowered class sizes in 1996, they realized that they did not have enough teachers to meet the challenge. Schools were forced to hire new teachers and add portable classmates to accommodate the state

A small class is consider to be twenty students or less. In smaller schools there are not as many students so the teachers will be able to help the students more one on one. Students can have a better idea of the content that they are learning and even if they don’t understand then the could talk to the teacher to have a better understanding. In a recent study, students and teachers were randomly assigned to a small class, with an average of 15 students, or a regular class, with an average of 22 students. This large reduction in class size (7 students, or 32 percent) was found to increase student achievement by an amount equivalent to about 3 additional months of schooling four years later. Also, increasing the pupil/teacher ratio in the U.S. by one student would save at least $12 billion per year in teacher salary costs alone, which is roughly

This year, the united federation of teachers, New Yorks teachers union, did a annual survey and they found out that 7,000 classrooms exceeded the limits acceptable for proper learning. Students should get more individual attention for their learning process and to be able to perform better in grades. The size of a class is very important for many schools like this one because of educational

Class size has a significant effect on education and should be taken into consideration when adding students to a particular course. Schools seemingly do not care too much about class size, but it could also be their inability to do anything about it. The size of schools are quite big, so trying to make smaller class sizes means having more classes available, which means hiring more teachers, which means needing more space, all which require money that the school most likely does not have. Class size has been one of the main deciding factors when it comes to differentiating good and bad schools. When faced with the decision of attending a public or private school, class size inevitably comes up, and usually as a benefit; this misconception

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

With the lack of high-quality research related to the effects of class size on student achievement, there is not a valid argument for decreasing class size in our schools. Additionally, taking on the extra 1-2 students in each class will only help with master scheduling issues and course offerings. If we continue to reduce class size, our students are the ones who will be negatively impacted as we will be unable to provide certain courses for all students. There are instances when a teacher may have one to two sections of a given class, and if we are a few students over, those students cannot take the course they want, or possibly need. This is not an issue we want to face, nor do we want to deny our students a proper education that fits their own individual needs. The flexibility of being able to include up to 36 students in any one class ensures that there is enough space for more of our students. In an effort to convince the Teachers Association to concede to this change, it is appropriate to offer them something in return. In this instance, it may be fitting to offer to keep elementary class size pupil-teacher ratio to 1:28, making it clear that we will not ask to increase their class size if they agree to the 4-12 growth. Increasing class size is vital for the district as we are forging ahead into uncertain times with the closing of our primary source of revenue, Diablo Canyon. We have to be

The class sizes are getting bigger because of schools not wanting to haves as many teachers on staff which results to crowded classrooms and that can make children uncomfortable at times when trying to learn. According to the article Why Class Size Matters, it states that class sizes across America are increasing and an estimated 58,000 teachers were laid off in September, which was the same time of enrollment increasing in the country (Leonie Haimson). Also in the same article it talks about how children actually perform higher when they are in smaller class sizes. It says, “Studies from Tennessee, Wisconsin, and states throughout the country have demonstrated that students who are assigned to smaller classes in grades K-3 rd do better in every way that can be measure: they score higher on tests, receive better grades, and exhibit improved attendance,” (Leonie Haimson) and this could also be true because in smaller class sizes the children get more of a chance to connect with their peers and also can have more one on one time with their teacher if they are struggling with a topic or subject. “…There are numerous studies showing that smaller classes are correlated with achievement gains and/or lower dropout rates in the middle and upper grades as well” (Leonie Haimson). This previous quote from the article shows

While placed in a big classroom can be good or bad depending on how you look at it. According to the text, Does Class Size Matter? Teachers, parents of students, and the principal of New York’s Forest Hills High School, believes that big classrooms

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.