Lessons for class size policy and research

The Political and Institutional Origins of a Randomized Controlled Trial on Elementary School Class Size: Tennessee's Project STAR

“…He argues that the relevant question is as follows: "For that level of investment, how could you achieve the greatest level of improvement?" Commenting on the results of Project STAR, Folger (1992) argues that a primary lesson learned from the project is that the maximum effect of reducing class size occurs in kindergarten and first grade. He further contends that "the high cost of substantial reduction in class size and the modest achievement gains that can be expected, even in Kindergarten and the first grade, suggest that less expensive targeted reductions should be tried" (Folger, 1992, p. 126).…”

It’s not just what you know, it’s who you know: Testing a model of the relative importance of social networks to academic performance

“…Much of the existing literature focuses on student ability and motivation, while literature critics cite inadequate attention to contextual factors that support academic performance (e.g., Yorke 1990Yorke , 1991. As a result, a number of investigations have begun to explore contextual factors outside of the classroom that shape performance, such as parental relationships, socio-economic status, and institutional characteristics (Baily and Boykin 2001;Schmader et al 2002;Zandvliet and Straker 2001), as well as infrastructural factors within the classroom context, such as class size and the use of educational technologies (e.g., Clarke et al 2001;Folger 1989;Glass and Smith 1979;Simpson 1980;Strauss and Frost 2001). Despite this recent wave of interest in contextual resources, there is no unifying theory of academic performance that combines undergraduate student characteristics with psychological, social, and infrastructural factors to explain academic performance in large class settings (Karabenick 2003).…”

Economic Research and Education Policy: Project Star and Class Size Reduction

“…From a policy standpoint, the relevant question is not whether reducing class size in the early years of school, holding other factors constant, offers learning benefits; most parents and educators would answer that of course it does, at least within the range of class sizes examined by STAR (Folger, 1989, p. 123). The question, as Levin et al (1984), Folger (1989), Harris (2002Harris ( , 2007Harris ( , 2009, Normore and Llon (2006), and others observe, is whether CSR is the best use of a large increase in education spending. One alternative use of extra funds is adding a teacher's-aid to larger classes, a line of inquiry originally included in STAR but compromised in the implementation; another is using the money to raise teacher salaries.…”

“…Project STAR (student/teacher achievement ratio) was commissioned by the State of Tennessee over thirty years ago, to determine whether classes should be reduced from their then current level of 22 students per class to a target level of 15 students per class (Folger, 1989;Finn and Achilles, 1990;Mosteller, 1995). In fall 1985, a non-random sample of 79 schools with 6,324 kindergarten children were chosen to participate in the project.…”