Growing Classes - Do Learning Outcomes Suffer from It?

 There's been a debate for many years about what effect class size has on student achievement. It's widely felt that classes in most state schools are too big, and one of the major attractions of private education is the smaller classes. Actual research outcomes have been mixed, however. So do larger classes really damage learning outcomes?

Why Should Class Size Matter?

 There can be plusses and minuses in having larger classes. Advocates point to the dynamics that can be achieved when groups of students are learning together. The interaction between the students can at times create a more positive learning experience than would be possible with smaller numbers. On the other hand, a larger class prevents the teacher from having a sufficient degree of one-to-one interaction with individual students. While this may be less important for those with strong peer-interaction skills, it's extremely easy for shy or insecure students to get lost in a large class. It also makes it harder for the teacher to form a personal connection with each student. There's evidence that the presence or absence of such a relationship makes a big difference to how much the student will learn.

What Does the Research Say?

A good deal of research has been done on the effects of class size, especially in the US. Results have varied, but in general they indicate that smaller classes offer some benefit, especially in early-years learning, whether the benefit is slight or substantial.

Perhaps the strongest evidence came from research done in Tennessee in the 1980s. The Student Teacher Achievement Ratio (STAR) process compared kindergarten students put randomly into larger or smaller classes. The short-term conclusion was a "definite advantage for small classes in achievement", but it didn't stop there. In a follow-up study twenty years later, figures showed that the children in the smaller classes performed better in a range of key subjects, were more likely to have graduated from high school and showed more positivity about learning in general. Some other studies have been less conclusive, however, with researchers such as John Hattie suggesting that factors such as teacher training and engagement may have more effect on student achievement. Other research has put forward the opinion that the optimum class size may be 18-24, with both larger and smaller classes being less efficient.

Teaching Style Matters Too

It has been suggested, however, that the negative results from much smaller classes may be down to the teaching style used. The best way of teaching small classes is completely different from the best way of teaching large classes. Since most teachers are trained with large classes in mind, they appear often to continue applying those methods when faced with a small class, resulting in a fall in standards of achievement.

This gives a distinct advantage to private tutors, especially those who haven't come from a mainstream school background and haven't been conditioned into a teaching style aimed at large classes. Depending on the needs of the subject, a tutor can teach either a small class, enabling interaction but also providing individual attention, or teach one to one. Register with TutorExtra if you want to find out more about how a private tutor can provide a better learning outcome for your child.