DOE Makes Class-Size Case

Schools Chancellor Joel Klein continues to insist that quality Teachers rather than reduced class size is the crucial element in improving education, but solid evidence that having fewer students to instruct affects the quality of teaching has been provided by one of the pet projects of the Bloomberg administration.

The small high schools created by the Department of Education to replace larger, failing institutions since the Mayor took office have succeeded handsomely, with a graduation rate that is roughly 33 percent better than the citywide number. In some cases the smaller high schools have graduated more than double the percentage of students of the ones they replaced: Hunter Science High School, based on the campus of the old Martin Luther King High near Lincoln Center, had an impressive 90-percent graduation rate compared to its predecessor's 41 percent.

Hunter Science had an average of 21.7 students per class. The citywide average is 28 students, and for the small high schools as a group the average is 24.

Other factors have undoubtedly contributed to the success rates, including the fact that the new schools were initially not required to admit English-Language-Learners or Special Education students and were the recipients of large grants by supporters of public education.

Nonetheless, if these schools are doing so well with fewer students, is it unreasonable to believe that larger schools might also flourish if class sizes were smaller? Talk to virtually any Teacher - including those who are retired and therefore have no self-interest to promote - and they will tell you it is easier to control a class and to give individualized attention to students who need it if they are not dealing with a packed classroom.

One education advocate went so far as to argue that even a so-so Teacher will do better with a smaller class, and a good one is more likely to realize his or her full potential.

With the city getting a fairer share of state aid as a result of the Campaign for Fiscal Equity decision, and with funding scheduled to rise in the coming years, Mayor Bloomberg and Mr. Klein should look to bring class size citywide down to the level of the new high schools that they've made the showcases of their education policies.