Small elementary school classes
Program basics
- Seeks to reduce the ratio of students to educators in a classroom
Strength of evidence
Evidence level: Promising (Third-highest tier)
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Promising (Third-highest tier)
Ranked as having the second-highest level of evidence by County Health Rankings and Roadmaps
Target population
Elementary school-aged children
Program cost
Not available
Implementation locations
- Nationwide
Dates active
Not available
Outcomes and impact
- Some evidence that smaller class sizes create small improvements in academic outcomes, particularly in kindergarten and first grade
- Benefits appear greater for students who are struggling in school
- Gaps between high-performing and low-performing students appear lower in smaller classes
- Evidence that improvements in reading skills among minority students persist for at least five years
- Small classes may improve graduation rates for low-income children, particularly for children in third grade
- Class size reduction efforts appear more likely to have positive impact when accompanied by teaching techniques specially designed for smaller classes
Keys to successful implementation
- Note: This content is under review
- Facility constraints often hamper efforts to reduce class sizes. Maximize space in existing buildings, potentially by remodeling existing school buildings to contain a greater number of small rooms.
- Infrequently used spaces in schools, like theaters and library stacks, can be repurposed to maximize classroom space
- Provide English Language Learning and special education programming within the small-class context rather than pulling students out of class.
- Train teachers to use assessment data to improve student achievement in a small class context.