From: bpittenger@earthtones.com
Date: Sun Oct 03 2004 - 08:43:45 PDT
Message-Id: <025F4F1F-1553-11D9-B41A-000A27D86522@earthtones.com> From: bpittenger@earthtones.com Subject: Re: Middle school class size Date: Sun, 3 Oct 2004 08:43:45 -0700
Melissa,
Thank you for raising this issue of class size. It is on my mind
daily. In addition to individual class size, the number of daily
contacts is an important issue as well. In our middle school, our
district contract allows a maximum of 35 per class, with up to 192
contacts per day, in 6 classes. [This in addition to the fact that our
periods are only 42 minutes long!] I would love to know where we fall
in the spectrum of class size and student contacts. [Our high school
teachers have one fewer class, with hour-long periods. Our 1st-3rd
grades have up to 20 students, and our 4-5 grades have up to 34;
however, our elementary schools are not monitored, to my knowledge, on
their presentation of science curriculum.]
As teachers of science, I can't help but think that we should have, or
obtain, hard data to analyze. And with analysis of that data, perhaps
we could make some recommendations. Personally, I believe there are
several important variables that present themselves, and likely several
that I have missed. Perhaps a formula could be developed which would
include class size, daily contacts, age/maturity/experience of the
students, length of class period, number of special needs students,
nature of classroom/equipment, support services available, and
experience of the teacher. Based on such a formula, with wiggle room,
perhaps our branch of the teaching profession could make
recommendations about class sizes. Perhaps CSTA and/or NSTA could
invest in such a study and analysis.
Before becoming a teacher, I was an attorney. I always appreciated the
fact that in the legal profession it was considered an ethical
violation if an attorney were to take on so many clients that s/he
became unable to adequately address the needs of the clients. [In such
a case, if an attorney were found to have provided substandard
representation they could be disciplined, and their license could be in
jeopardy.] I wish there were a similar understanding in the education
profession - where a district could be held to an ethical standard in
class size. The district should be held responsible to ensure that a
teacher be given an appropriate number of students.
Ben
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