Smaller classes work - don't turn back the clock

With 30 kindergartners in her Garden Grove classroom, one might say that Phuong Phung-Nguyen is truly providing education for the masses.

Getting kindergartners to reach the achievement levels that used to be expected of first- and second-graders is no easy task for her. The Garden Grove Education Association member is one of a handful of kindergarten teachers in California working without the advantage of class size reduction, which caps the ratio of students to teachers at 20:1.

She does her best, but wonders if it's enough. Half of her students are English language learners, and many did not know how to hold a pencil, color or write their names when they arrived in September. Although she teaches them just three hours per day, she is expected to have them sounding out words, knowing basic math concepts and writing by June.

"Sometimes I can't give the high-achieving kids enough attention, because I have to help those at the bottom catch up," she laments. "When you have a large number of kids, it's harder to make individual time for them."

As she takes turns working with small groups of students on the floor at Crosby Elementary School, sounding out words phonetically, students at other learning centers work independently. Whenever they start to argue, run around the classroom or get into mischief, she has to stop and get them back on track.

"I've visited other districts that have ratios of 20 to 1 and can see that even with low-performing kids, teachers can do much more. It makes me envious."

Getting teachers to agree on any one thing can sometimes be challenging. But when it comes to class size, there is a definite consensus: More is not merrier.

"I've been teaching 32 years, and I believe class size reduction has had the greatest positive impact on students of anything we've ever done - or ever will do," says Sue Yalom, a member of the Livermore Education Association and a second-grade teacher at Rancho Las Positas Elementary School. "I've noticed a tremendous difference."

Despite rising test scores and community outrage, Livermore school board members have voted to eliminate class size reduction next year. "It's too bad. When we have a budget crunch, the first thing they do is eliminate class size reduction," says Yalom. "If politicians had their priorities straight, we would be talking about offering class size reduction in other grades rather than eliminating the program."

She's been working with a student who seems to have attention deficit disorder (ADD) to help her develop strategies for self-control. "I would never be able to do that in a class of 30. Because I can work with her individually, she has avoided medication to solve her problem. Class size reduction has kept medication from being a first resort." And that's just one example of how smaller classes make a difference, she says.

"Smaller classes make a difference - a big difference," agrees Kathy Haff, a third-grade teacher at Washington Elementary School in Riverside and a member of the Riverside City Teachers Association. For several years, her class was included in the district's class size reduction program. However, because her school board decided to remove third grade from the program this year, Haff now has 28 students in her class. Next year, she anticipates 32 students.

"Having eight extra students in class is challenging," says Haff. "When you have eight more bodies, the kids tend to talk more. There isn't as much room in the classroom, and because of the crowding, you can't separate the kids who talk." Her students are showing much worse behavior now.

Some are considered gifted and others narrowly escaped being retained. Several are English language learners (ELL), two have ADD and four have attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). She combines groups of students - such as low achievers with ELL students - for grammar or vocabulary building, but worries that some are falling between the cracks because there's less time to give them individual attention.

"When you have a smaller group, you can focus on problems and nip them in the bud because you can assess students quickly. In a larger class, the highest achievers can work independently and the lowest achievers need constant help, so the middle-level child may be overlooked. I have C students who could get B's, but I can't worry about them because I have D students who need to be pulled up to C's."

"My class is much lower-achieving than last year," says Haff. "It's not that they came in low, but they are not catching on as quickly because the class is so big. I think it will definitely be reflected in their test scores."

If class size reduction is abandoned at Willow Glen Elementary School in San Jose, Jason Alvarado may have more than 30 bilingual kindergartners. "Parents won't like it," he predicts. "They have seen kids in this school grow tremendously over the past five years - and they will want their kids to benefit, too. Unfortunately, we are going backward instead of forward."

"The state standards are much harder to meet if you have more than 20 students," says Alvarado, a member of the San Jose Teachers Association. "It is very difficult to meet each child's academic and emotional needs - especially when they are English language learners."

Mariana Figueroa, a first-grade teacher in San Jose, likens the difference between small and large classes to night and day. "When I had 35 students it was very difficult," she recalls. "It was really overwhelming. I feel very lucky to have 20 students now, because I feel I can give them the attention that they need to succeed."

"One thing that I really like is that I get to know my students' academic needs better," says Figueroa, a member of the Oak Grove Education Association (OGEA). "I can spot academic and social problems early and deal with them right away. With 20 students, I know each and every one of them on a personal basis, and I have more time to get to know their families. I can take the time to tell parents of English language learners what strategies to use at home to help their children succeed."

Inside her classroom at Christopher School, the students are on task and working independently in various learning centers. Figueroa takes turns working with groups and occasionally pulls children aside for individual skills assessment - something she says could never happen in a large classroom.

"When I had 35 students in a classroom they were constantly hitting each other, talking to each other and making me feel like a referee," she recalls. "With 20, it's calm. We can work together and go to a deeper level on whatever concept we are learning. As a result of class size reduction, I'm meeting their needs - and test scores have gone up."

Although Marie Mabanag, a fourth-grade teacher at Christopher School, does not have class size reduction, she has seen the positive impact it has on students coming to her from classes that do. They tend to be much stronger academically and better behaved than those who have not experienced small classes.

"I've seen the trickle-down effect of class size reduction, and with each successive year of implementation, students have done better," she says. "As a fourth-grade teacher, I've benefited indirectly. Those of us who teach older grades depend on class size reduction to get students more prepared and ready to learn."

She is angry to think that class size reduction has been put on the chopping block in so many school districts. "It's a big injustice to these kids. California keeps upping the bar as to what it expects from students, and keeps taking away what they need to succeed."

It works in upper grades too

Class size reduction for select upper-grade classes - like ninth-grade math and English - is under siege as well. Teachers worry that it will mean more students will fail the high school exit exam - or drop out of school.

In Merced, class size reduction for ninth-grade math and English and 10th-grade algebra will likely be dropped, says James Hoover, president of the Merced Union High School District Teachers Association. "Classes will probably go from 20 students to as many as 35 students."

District officials claim that there has been no increase in student achievement attributed to class size reduction in ninth-grade math. But math teacher Andrew Miller thinks otherwise. The figures the district is using are misleading because class size reduction was put in place at the same time the district eliminated all lower-level math courses and required all students to take ninth-grade algebra. "From an achievement perspective, we had large positive growth that year on the math portion of our API scores."

In addition, class size reduction has made classroom management better, he adds. "A significant number of students in first-year algebra have behavioral problems. The lower enrollment means that I get fewer of those kids to deal with, more space in my room to separate them from each other, and more of a chance to work with them in ways other than classroom expulsion. Having eight of these kids in a class of 40, where every desk is occupied from corner to corner, is vastly different from having four of them in a class of 20."

In Marysville, class size reduction for ninth-grade English and beginning algebra classes was eliminated midyear. "The teachers loved having small classes, and the students are having a much harder time after switching into larger classes at the semester change," says Rich Valentini, president of the Marysville Unified Teachers Association.

"Now I'm worried that they will get lost in the shuffle. Taking away small classes from students and putting them in large classes with different teachers right before they take the high school exit exam is like saying to students, 'We'll give you basic training, but when we send you out to run, we're taking your boots away.'"