S U M M A R Y
O F R E S E A R C H
F I N D I N G S
Small Class Size in K-3
Tutoring
Professional Development
July 2006
Small Class Size in K-3
1. “PK-3 Education: Programs and Practices That Work in Children’s First Decade”
Foundation for Child Development Working Paper: Advancing PK-3 No. Six, January
2006
The major assumption of PK-3 programs is that better coordination and integration of
educational programs and practices between ages 3 and 9 will enhance learning above and
beyond the impact of typically organized school experiences. PK-3 programs and practices are
organized under four key principles that (a) support continuity, (b) enhance capacity for
organization of services, (c) promote instructional practices, and (d) encourage family support
services. Six areas have been identified as being components of PK-3 organization and include
(1) full day kindergarten, (2) reduced class size in the primary grades, (3) preschool, (4) reduced
school mobility, (5) parental involvement in school, and (6) teacher quality and classroom
contexts.
In this report, Arthur Reynolds, Katherine Magnuson, and Suh-Ruu Ou reviewed research
on the six areas associated with PK-3 organization and the impact on child development. The
authors concluded that children who do not experience the PK-3 program components are further
behind their peers on indicators of school success, such as math and reading skills, teacher
reports of proficiency and positive approach to learning, and grade retention and special
education. Children who experienced half of the PK-3 components performed better than those
who did not but less well than children who experienced all PK-3 components. In fact, children
who did not experience any of the PK-3 components were over three times more likely than
other children to have been held back. Looking at economic analysis studies of the six areas, the
authors identified that preschool was the most cost-effective intervention of all of the PK-3
elements.
Summary available: http://www.fcd-us.org/PK3Education.html
2. “The Effect of Class Size on Achievement: What the Research Says,” Educational Testing
Service (ETS) Policy Information Memorandum (1998)
This Educational Testing Service policy brief surveyed two of the largest class size
reduction studies and found that: “The empirical evidence is clear: smaller classes can mean
higher levels of student achievement, at least in the elementary school grades, and particularly
for disadvantaged students. The two major pieces of research on this issue – a recent national
study of 20,000 students in fourth and eighth grades around the country and a state study of
7,000 students in Tennessee – found that students in small classes performed substantially better
on tests in various subjects than their counterparts in large classes.”
Available: http://www.ets.org/research/researcher/PIC-MEMORANDUM.html
3. “When Money Matters,” Educational Testing Service (ETS) (1997)
This research examines the links between targeted school spending and increased math
achievement on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). The author
concludes that: “In sum, it seems that there is a substantial flow of dollars to achievement.
Dollars spent on instruction and central office administration do not disappear but, in fact,
substantially raise teacher-student ratios. These larger teacher-student ratios, in turn, result in
achievement gains in mathematics….”
Available: http://www.ets.org/research/researcher/PIC-WMM.html
4. Project STAR (Tennessee)
a.
“Final Summary Report,” Tennessee State Department of Education
Tennessee’s Project STAR (short for “Student/Teacher Achievement Ratio”) is
one of the most respected education studies because of its rigorous scientific design.
Project STAR measured the impact of small class size in kindergarten through 3rd grade
and found that the children in small classes outperformed other students in every grade.
The Tennessee Department of Education concluded that: “By grade three the pattern of
results established in kindergarten had become firmly fixed. A strong class-size effect is
evident in all school locations (urban, rural, inner-city, and suburban) and for all students
on standardized and criterion-referenced achievement measures.”
Available: http://www.heros-inc.org/star.htm
b. “The Story of the Tennessee Class-Size Study,” American Educator
c. “The Effects of Class Size Reduction in the Early Grades (K-3) on High School
Performance,” Health and Education Research Operative Services (HEROS)
The gains from small class size in K-3 were both immediate and long-lasting.
Follow-up studies found that by the end of 8th grade, students who had been in small
classes in their early elementary years were still more than a year ahead of their peers in
reading, math and science. Benefits persisted into high school. A 1999 study found that:
“Small-class students have completed more advanced courses (mathematics, honors
English, etc.) than regular or regular/aide-class students. They are also more likely to
graduate on schedule with higher rankings (top 10% of their class) than their counterparts
2
who attended larger size classes. The students who were in small classes in K-3 were
less likely to be retained than those who attended regular or regular/aide classes.”
Available: http://www.heros-inc.org/star-hs-p.pdf
5. “2000-01 Evaluation Results of the Student Achievement Guarantee in Education
(SAGE) Program,” University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee
Wisconsin’s Student Achievement Guarantee in Education (SAGE) program is a classsize reduction initiative that caps K-3 classes at 15 students per teacher. The study began in
1996 and has found consistent advantages to small class size in the early grades. In 2000-01,
researchers concluded that: “The SAGE achievement advantage persists. When scores are
adjusted for pre-existing differences in socioeconomic status, ethnicity, attendance, and prior
knowledge, a SAGE advantage from the beginning of first grade to the end of third grade is
shown on all subtests.” Students outperformed their peers whether they were in a class with 15
students and one teacher or 30 students and two teachers.
Available: http://www.asu.edu/educ/epsl/SAGE/annual_reports/20002001%20Evaluation/epru-0201-104.htm
Tutoring
1. Massachusetts
a. “Extra Instruction Helps Boston Students Make the Grade,” Education Week
To help the most at-risk students pass the state test, Boston set up intensive
tutoring and summer school program that lasted up to 15 months. Education Week
reported on the intervention’s impact on achievement: “The program, started in the
summer of 1999, showed results for the first students to have participated, an analysis
released last month by the 64,000-student district shows. Students in the program often
passed benchmark reading and arithmetic tests at nearly the same rate as their peers who
were not in the transition program. For example, 72 percent of the 6,854 students in
grades 3, 6, and 9 who were in the program passed the English/language arts exams
needed to move on to the next grade – exactly the same rate as that of their higherachieving peers who were not identified for the special help.”
Available: Will need to sign in as a guest to view the article.
http://www.edweek.org/rc/search.html?qs1=Extra+Instruction+Helps+Boston+Students+
Make+the+Grade+&qs2=&qs3=&qs4=&src=all&prd=a&sprdMonth=02&sprdYear=200
6&eprdMonth=05&eprdYear=2006&occ=p&prx=p&srt=r&go=+++Go+++
b. “For the First Time Ever: The Extraordinary Efforts in Massachusetts to Get
Help to the Students Who Need It Most,” MassInsight Education
The business-sponsored MassInsight Education group conducted a more in-depth
study of the Boston tutoring program and other similar efforts in several Massachusetts
school districts. The group concluded that, “There is ample evidence from these five
3
programs of their worthiness as strategies to lift student achievement.” MassInsight also
noted that: “Extended-time programs – whether they take place after school or during the
summer – offer districts an opportunity to create new dynamics between teachers and
students and among teaching colleagues.”
Available:
http://www.massinsight.org/docs/For%20the%20First%20Time%20Ever/Cover.pdf
Professional Development
1. “Language and Literacy Promotion in Early Childhood Settings: A Survey of CenterBased Practices” (Spring 2006)
Increasingly, society is realizing the significant role that early care and education
program experiences play in helping promote school readiness. Many experts have identified
significant teaching strategies and program practices that can support the development of
emergent literacy skills in young children. In this study of child care practitioners,
availability of print materials, number of children cared for in a program, and the
practitioner’s confidence in the training received in basic literacy skills instruction predicted
center-based practices that support emergent literacy skills. The researchers surmised that
early childhood practitioners need more in-depth training that provides them with the latest,
research-based information on how to teach children fundamental literacy skills. Armed with
a strong literacy background, practitioners can then implement the practices known to impact
young children’s early reading skills.
Green, S.D., Peterson, R. & Lewis, J. R. (2006) Language and literacy promotion in early
childhood settings: A survey of center-based practices. Early Childhood Research & Practice,
8(1) http://ecrp.uiuc.edu/v8n1/green.html.
2. “How Teaching Matters,” Milken Family Foundation and the Educational Testing
Service (ETS) (2000)
Researchers examined the link between teacher quality and math and science student
achievement on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). They concluded that:
“…teachers who receive rich and sustained professional development generally, and professional
development geared toward higher-order thinking skills and concrete activities such as
laboratories particularly, are more likely to engage in effective classroom practices.
Policymakers could thus improve teacher quality by providing more opportunities for teachers to
receive professional development. That professional development should occur over an
extended period of time rather than being limited to a weekend seminar, and it should cover
topics closely tied to classroom practices.”
Available: http://www.ets.org/research/researcher/PIC-TEAMAT.html
3. “Policy Perspective: Evidence of Significantly Positive Effects of the RCSD Mentor
Program (Career in Teaching, CIT),” Rochester City School District
4
The Rochester School District introduced a teacher mentor program as part of its
professional development strategy. New teachers received help throughout the school year from
experienced peers. This preliminary study by the school district found that: “…the [4th grade
English language tests] offered tantalizing evidence that the Mentor Program is an effective
intervention in improving student performance.”
Not Available on-line.
For more information, contact:
Wendy Etheridge Smith, Ph.D.
Director of Policy and Planning
Office of Child Development
Department of Public Welfare
Phone: (717)-346-1116
Email: wensmith@state.pa.us
5