Comments on: Focus on class size in Wichita leads to misspent resources

By: Bob Weeks

Bob Weeks — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 03:52:10 +0000

The Tennessee STAR program had many flaws, as described above.

And what about Caroline Hoxby’s findings?

And what about that with smaller classes, more students are taught by less-qualified teachers?

The people in favor of smaller classes are parents, who have the understandable but mistaken impression that it is good for their children, the teachers union, and education bureaucrats. All these groups have an extreme self-interest in this matter.

By: Jennifer S

Jennifer S — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 23:25:12 +0000

And yet if you look elsewhere, you’ll see things such as:
“While much has been written about class size and student achievement, there is no
scholarly consensus on the issue. However, more scholars than not suggest a direct connection
between the two variables. In a meta-analysis of research up to the early 1980s, Glass et al.
(1982) maintained that the evidence suggested small classes were associated with higher levels
of achievement across all grades at the primary and secondary level.”
“Some of the most compelling evidence on the connection between class size and student
achievement has come from Tennessee’s experiment with class size reduction, and the
systematic tracking of student performance after the initiation of that program in 1985 (Finn and
Achilles 1999; Pritchard 1999). The Tennessee study involved 79 schools, more than 7,000
students, and a random assignment process to control for school level and curricular effects. The
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study found that primary school students in smaller classes consistently outperformed their
counterparts in large classes on standardized exams; that the impact was even larger for minority
students in early stages of the experiment; and that the impact of small classes in early primary
grades had a lasting impact that persisted beyond five years (Pritchard 1999, 4; Nye, Hedges, and
Konstantopolos 1999, 127). Krueger and Whitmore (2001) discovered that the impact of the
Tennessee program could even be traced to ACT and SAT college entrance test taking patterns
and student scores, with more noticeable increases for black students.”

etc.

Class size does have an affect on student achievement. Yes, it’s expensive. But it’s what is good for the children, and that’s ultimately all that matters.

By: Tye Pameticky

Tye Pameticky — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 18:14:01 +0000

What the general public doesn’t seem to understand are the reasons behind the teacher shortage. First would be salary. Many states pay much better than Kansas. Most careers that require the level of education that teaching does pay much better. The teachers that choose to remain in Wichita are here because they love to educate children and want to make a positive difference in their lives. The benefits here are also lacking in comparison to many other states. Class size is a major issue. Why would a new teacher choose to work in a district where they will have 30+ students in a class when they can go elsewhere with better pay and benefits and have 20 students in the class? If anyone thinks having the summer off makes up for the lower pay they are mistaken. My wife works at least 10 hours per day. She puts time in on weekends as well. Being a teacher doesn’t start and stop with the school bell as is does for students. Teachers report to school after the end of the year is over for the students and are back before the year begins for students. They also spend a lot of time in the summer planning and preparing lessons and gathering supplies. Supplies that many purchase with their own money I might add. And anyone who actually believes this propoganda stating that a reduction in numbers in the classroom makes no difference obviously has NEVER spent time teaching public education. It has a direct connection to the amount of time spent on content rather than discipline and classroom control. Less students are much easier to handle and spend more one on one time with the teacher which allows them to develop the particular skill much more quickly and thoroughly. And by the way, If you don’t push to build more schools now and get those schools populated with teachers you are going to really be in a jam when the towns population growth exceeds the schools capacity completely. Students should NOT be going to class in temporary trailors! If you don’t invest in your own childrens futures who will? I don’t want to hear any of you complaining about high crime rates or the welfare rate increasing in the future. Both seem to have a direct relationship to lack of education. Give the students a chance to succeed and I think you will be supprised. Maybe they will remember and grow into taxpaying citizens that will work for a better community. That same community that you will be retiring in about the same time they are old enough. Who do you want to depend on? People with no investment in their community or citizens who make a difference? You choose.