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Show Davis ranks high in teacherpupil ratio By DONETA GATHERUM FARMINGTON "When is enough enough?" and "How many are too many?" are questions educators have to consider each time a new students moves into the school district. Next to salaries, the main issue the school teachers have brought to the attention of the state legislature and the public is that of class size. Since 1981 Utah has ranked number one in the nation in pupil-teacher ratios with an average of slightly more than 24 students in a classroom compared to the national average of about 18 students per teacher. According to Dr. Stephen Ron-nenkamp, Ron-nenkamp, Assistant Superintendent of Schools for Davis School District, class size is tied directly to state funding through the WPU (Weighted Pupil Unit), a formula used by the state to allocate funds to school districts. "Because of the WPU formula," Ronnenkamp stated, "class sizes are fairly standard across the state. They have remained about constant for the last seven years or so. When determining average class sizes, special education classes that CONTINUED ON PG.2 b Class sizes large in county from the evidence given in the thousands of case studies published. First, there is no optimal class size for all instructional situations. Third, small classes have a positive effect on student attitudes and behavior, classroom procedures and the quality of the classroom en- What is the average class size in Utah? 1. Utah average class size: 24.0 2. In sparsity areas: 18.0 In density areas: 25.5 3. In density elementary schools: 26.0 In density secondary schools: 25.0 4. In density elementary schools: -resourcehandicapped classes: 8.0 -academic classes: 28.0 -primary grades: 26.0 (range 22.0 to 30.0) -intermediate grades: 30.0 (range 24.0 to 36.0) 5. In density secondary schools: -resourcehandicapped classes: 8.0 -vocational classes: 20.0 -highly specialized classes: 20.0 -academic classes class size: 34.0 (range 28.0 to 40.0) Appropriate class size is dependent on student age, grade, student aptitude, ap-titude, subject taught and instructional instruc-tional methods used. Younger vironmenL Fourth, pupil achievement in the primary grades increases significantly when the pupils are CONTINUED FROM PG. 1 are limited in size by federal and state laws, are not included in the average. Special education and resource classes usually have 15 or fewer students in the program at any particular par-ticular time. Ronnenkamp said the school district tries to keep the primary grade classes, K through three, the smallest Grades four through six have larger enrollments. Class size continues to increase in the junior highs and peeks in high school Vocational classes are smaller than academic ones. Advance Preparation courses vary greatly in size according to the number of students who enroll in these specialized courses. 'Davis District strives to set 40 as the maximum number of students that can be in any class," Ronnenkamp Ron-nenkamp stated. Is there a correlation between small class sizes and effective teaching and learning? Steve Sirkin, Executive Director for the DEA (Davis Education Association), has collected research material regarding this subject The remainder of this article was gleaned glean-ed from material provided by him. J. M. Rice conducted the first empirical study on the relationship between class size and attainment in 1902. He concluded that there was no strong relationship between learning and class size. Since the publication of this early research data, more than 3,000 studies have been completed, each trying to determine the relationship between class size and achievement. achiev-ement. The older studies show few or no effects; newer studies show generally gen-erally positive effects come from class size reductions. Most of the studies do not measure changes in teacher attitudes at-titudes and behavior as class size is reduced. This would have to be a factor in creating a healthy learning environment. Some generalities can be stated Pupil Student Ratio Class Size Comparisons Based ud average daily en. c Itrnent 25 j HI rn nnn n n n n n n n I H H H l I I 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985. 1986 1987 1988 Source NEA (Uniting of the Slate Publications children seem to learn reading and math skills better in small classes. Second, very small classes (five or fewer students) appear to produce pro-duce considerably higher achievement achiev-ement than average size classes. taught in small classes for two or more consecutive years. Fifth, there is evidence that "at risk students and students classified as economically or socially disadvantaged progress scholastic ally when the class sizes are small Sixth, there are fewer discipline problems in small classes. Seventh, there is typically little. to be gained from reductions in class 1 size that do not bring class size ' below 30. In Texas and Indiana, class sizes are mandated by law. By trimming two students from the WPU in Texas, an average of 15 percent more pupils passed the state minimum skills test in 1987 than in 1985 before the class size reduction. reduc-tion. Brad Duggan, President of the Texas Elementary Principals and Supervisors Association, said, "There were improved self-concepts self-concepts in children, fewer discipline problems, improved social development and improved work habits. ' ' Duggan continued by saying, "If we can't teach children to read and write early, the game is over. There are too many distractions and too many things to overcome after those early years." Maria Caruso from Tennessee was selected to participate in Project Pro-ject STAR (StudentTeacher Achievement Ratio). She was assigned as-signed to a class of 14 randomly-selected randomly-selected first graders. After one year in the program, Caruso said she and her fellow teachers knew that reducing class size would help children build a strong academic foundation. "For years, people have said to us, 'You can't prove it. Every time they don't want to put money into reducing reduc-ing class size, they say, You can't prove it' But now, we have proven it At last, we have results that no school board or legislature can put down. |