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The Influence Of Departmentalization On Elementary School Students

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Summary
A review of the research literature showed that confounding definitions related to elementary school instructional organization, limited research, and contradictory and inconclusive findings contribute to the difficulty of determining the impact of departmentalization on elementary school students. Also problematic are stakeholders’ influences on instructional organization decisions and how these decisions are viewed in terms of institutional factors such as rules, structures, and social and professional norms.
Confounding definitions and misrepresentations make choices difficult, and force many school districts to create their own definitions of terms. The failure to establish static definitions continues to complicate the debate. Those that support the benefits of the self- contained classroom site optimized individualization, time flexibility, and coordination across content areas. The advocates of departmentalization focus on the need for the teachers ' specialized knowledge for increased student engagement and content mastery. They claim it is unrealistic to expect elementary teachers to have the specialized knowledge that is required to facilitate instruction.
Research indicates that departmentalized instruction helps students transition to the middle-school format, and that grade-level instructional teams promote teacher retention. Teacher retention is associated with departmentalization was shown to have a positive impact on student achievement. The
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