Academics · Subject Resources

Count the room,
not the ratio

A school-wide student-teacher ratio counts specialists who never teach a full class. Ask for this grade's real number, count the adults in the room, weigh what matters for this child and compare the schools on what you saw.

Start a comparisonWhat you get

Comparisons

The worked example is made up: three first-grade classes of 24, 28 and 15 students, one with a full-time aide, and two fifth-grade classes. Use initials or a code for the child.

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What you get

Academics · Subject ResourcesFree

What you finish with
A saved comparison per decision: how much class size, adults in the room, reading and math groups, combined grades and individual attention matter; each school rated 1 to 5 with students and adults in the room; six questions marked answered or still to ask; and a next step. The flags rank the schools, show students per adult for each and call out a must-have rated 2 or lower. A side-by-side table prints.
Who it is for
Parents and guardians comparing schools or classes, especially for kindergarten through third grade.
Format
Browser tool with a saved record per decision. Prints a side-by-side table with the scores, the full record, every comparison in a table or a blank form; downloads a spreadsheet (.csv); exports and imports a file.
Access
Free. No account, no sign-in and nothing to install. Everything you type stays in this browser; nothing is sent to Caveat.
Where it lives
The Subject Resources space in Caveat Academics.
Support
Questions about access, an order or a correction: team@caveatacademic.com.

How to use it

  1. Weigh class size against the rest.
  2. Ask for this grade's real number.
  3. Count the adults in the room.
  4. Rate what you saw in a class.
  5. Print the side-by-side table.

Start a comparison

What the research says about class size

The Tennessee class size experimentWhoAbout 11,600 students in79 schools, 1985 to 1989Kindergarten to thirdgradeSmall classes13 to 17 students perteacherChildren and teachersassigned at randomRegular classes22 to 25 studentsSome with a full-timeaide, which added littleResultHigher reading and mathscores in small classesLarger gains forlow-income and BlackstudentsThe Tennessee class size experimentWhoAbout 11,600 students in 79 schools, 1985 to1989Kindergarten to third gradeSmall classes13 to 17 students per teacherChildren and teachers assigned at randomRegular classes22 to 25 studentsSome with a full-time aide, which addedlittleResultHigher reading and math scores in smallclassesLarger gains for low-income and Blackstudents
Tennessee STAR is the largest randomized study of class size; later studies of large class size cuts found smaller, mixed effects.

Ratio is not class size

A ratio of 15 students per teacher can sit next to classes of 25, because librarians, specialists and coaches count as teachers. Ask how many students sit in the room for this grade, and how many adults are with them for most of the day.

How much it matters

The strongest evidence is for the early grades: in Tennessee, kindergarten to third-grade classes of 13 to 17 outperformed classes of 22 to 25, and the gains lasted. Later grades and small changes, such as 25 to 23, show much less. A strong teacher in a class of 24 can beat a weak one in a class of 18.

Sources

  1. Mosteller F. The Tennessee study of class size in the early school grades. The Future of Children, 1995;5(2):113-127.
  2. Krueger AB. Experimental estimates of education production functions. Quarterly Journal of Economics, 1999;114(2):497-532.
  3. Whitehurst GJ, Chingos MM. Class Size: What Research Says and What It Means for State Policy. Brookings Institution, 2011.
  4. National Center for Education Statistics. National Teacher and Principal Survey: average class size (nces.ed.gov).

The worked example and its schools are made up. Research findings are summarized in general terms from the sources listed. Nothing you type is sent to Caveat. Support: team@caveatacademic.com.