The influence of class size upon numeracy and literacy performance

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this paper was to investigate the influences of calendar year, year level, gender and language background other than English (LBOTE) on student achievement in literacy and numeracy relative to class size. Design/methodology/approach Data for this study were collected over five years (2008-2012) as test results from the Australian National Assessment Plan in Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) in Years 3 and 5 from over 100 Sydney primary schools. Findings It was found that the most important factors influencing academic performance in literacy and numeracy were, in descending order: gender, LBOTE, the calendar year in which the test was conducted, followed by class size. All variables were significantly associated with NAPLAN performance, but effect size estimates for class size were close to zero. Originality/value The results of this study support other studies suggesting that factors other than class size are more important in influencing academic performance.

Individualized Assignments, Group Work and Discussions: How They Interact With Class Size, Low Socioeconomic Status, and Second Language Learners

“…We also did not detect a main effect for class size, although there was an interaction between class size and discussions in the math class. This contrasts with prior findings that smaller class sizes related to better learning [i.e., (Krassel and Heinesen, 2014)], although in some studies the effects of class size was very small (e.g., Watson et al, 2016), or affected by additional factors (Hattie, 2005).…”

“…Teaching strategies are also affected by class size. Class size alone is generally found to have a small, but significant effect on learning outcomes with larger classes leading to slightly worse outcomes on average (Brühwiler and Blatchford, 2011;Krassel and Heinesen, 2014;Watson et al, 2016). Early evidence of this was well-summarized by Glass and Smith's (1979) meta-analysis, which indicated a continuous improvement for shrinking class sizes below around 30 students.…”

Empirische Arbeit: Zur Erfassung fragwürdiger Überzeugungen zu Bildungsthemen: Entwicklung und erste Überprüfung des Questionable Beliefs in Education-Inventars (QUEBEC)

“…Der Stand der Forschung widerlegt solche Erwartungen jedoch weitgehend (Bromme et al, 2014). Demzufolge hat die Klassengröße allenfalls geringe durchschnittliche Effekte auf Schulleistung und dies nur für spezifische Gruppen (Bowne, Magnuson, Schindler, Duncan & Yoshikawa, 2017;Hattie, 2016;Lankes & Carstensen, 2010;Li & Konstantopoulos, 2017;Watson, Handal & Maher, 2016). Auch in experimentellen Interventionsstudien gefundene Effekte, die als stärkste Evidenz für die Relevanz der Klassengröße gesehen werden könnten, fallen relativ gering aus (Hattie, 2016;Mosteller, 1995).…”

One Size Does Not Fit All: Toward an Evidence-Based Framework for Determining Online Course Enrollment Sizes in Higher Education

“…Alternatively, perhaps findings on class sizes could lead to implications that would be perceived as a threat to university finances, or pique political sensitivities regarding varying populations' access to equal educational opportunity (Colwell & Jenks, 2004;Curriculum Committee, 2011Diette & Raghav, 2015;Maringe & Sing, 2014;. Whatever the reasons, no existing convergence of research evidence provides guidance for determining optimal online class sizes at different educational levels and under varying contextual conditions-that is, no one size fits all (Beattie & Thiele, 2016;Bettinger, Doss, Loeb, Rogers, & Taylor, 2017;Bristol & Kyarsgaard, 2012;Chapman & Ludlow, 2010;Cheng, 2011;Colwell & Jenks, 2004;Curriculum Committee, 2012;Freeman, 2015;Haynie, 2014;Hewitt & Brett, 2007;Horning, 2007;Johnson, 2010;Kim, 2013;Lee, Dapremont, & Sasser, 2011;Liu, 2012;Mandernach & Holbeck, 2016;Morrison, 2015;Mupinga & Maughan, 2008;Parks-Stamm, Zafonte, & Palenque, 2016;Qiu, Hewitt, & Brett, 2012;Ravenna, 2012;Roby, Ashe, Singh, & Clark, 2013;Seaton & Schwier, 2014;Shaw, 2013;Sorensen, 2014Sorensen, , 2015Taft, Perkowski, & Martin, 2011;Tynan et al, 2015;Walls, 2016;Watson et al, 2016).…”