Class size: After state board vote Monday, the sky’s the limit
(Updated by me at 10:30 Monday night with interviews with local systems, experts)
The state Board of Education voted Monday to lift all limits on class sizes over the next year in response to the deepening school budget crisis that has already forced thousands of teacher layoffs, the loss of music and arts programs and shorter school years in some Georgia districts.
Described as an emergency response to a worsening financial climate, The 9-2 vote means that Georgia school districts can raise class size by 5five, 10, 15 students — or as many students as they choose — without seeking a waiver from the board or the Department of Education.
The vote essentially guts the prevailing state rules that mandated 23 students or fewer in k-3 and 28 in grades 4-8.
“I want to understand — we are giving school boards the right to decide in any class, in any grade and in any subject matter the ability to have any class size they want?” asked state board member James E. Bostic Jr.
Yes, said state school Superintendent Kathy Cox. “We wouldn’t have the authority to tell them no.”
Entrusted with this new freedom, local school boards can be counted on to act responsibly and not to raise class sizes to levels where students suffer, said Cox.
In the metro Atlanta area, counties contacted Monday said they have no intentions of suddenly supersizing their classes.
“We have got to trust the local school boards are going to do right by their students and by student achievement,” Cox said after a board member balked at eliminating all caps on class size.
Cox pointed out that state funding to schools has been cut by nearly $1 billion by the Legislature in the past year. “We don’t have a choice. We didn’t give them enough money.” “We are not providing the resources for local systems to conduct business as usual.”
But board member Linda M. Zechmann countered that parents and schools expect the state Board of Education to set limits and that the board was abdicating its oversight role in removing any ceiling on how many students can be in a classroom.
“In my experience in the field, people rely on us for boundaries,” she told her fellow board members.
In August, the state board approved a policy allowing school systems to raise class size by two students in k-8 classrooms. However, if a school district wanted a larger increase or wanted to raise class sizes in high schools, it had to seek a waiver from the board, and 106 systems have done so in the past nine months. The waiver process required state Department of Education employees to review the district’s request and performance data and make a recommendation to the board, which Cox described as too time-consuming during a period when cash-strapped districts need to be able to act quickly and decisively on their budgets.
Zechmann offered a motion that would allow schools to raise class sizes only by 20 percent, but it was defeated by her colleagues who felt that any limits would only aggravate already frustrated systems.
“It’s just for one year, one year,” said board member Brian K. Burdette. “We can’t say we are going to give systems more flexibility and then tie their hands.”
The vote represents a setback to an ambitious plan initiated a decade ago to reduce Georgia’s class sizes. In 1998, kindergartens housed 27 children and fourth grade had 33 students. Georgia brought those numbers down considerably, capping kindergarten at 22 students and fourth grade at 28.
Metro counties contacted Monday said they have no intentions of suddenly supersizing their classes.
In the Atlanta area, here’s a look at what school district representatives said Monday after the vote:
* City of Atlanta: “The district’s budget for FY11 has already been developed and approved by the School Board. It includes slight increases in average class sizes for all grade levels, but the resultant class sizes remain within state limits. The district does not anticipate having to use the state’s recent lessening of class size restrictions option at this point,” said spokesman Keith Bromery.
* Clayton County: “As of today, the only class-size change Clayton County Public Schools is planning to implement for 2010-11 is increasing our kindergarten class size from 23 to 25 students. Each kindergarten classroom will be staffed by a teacher and a paraprofessional,” said Clayton schools spokesman Charles White.
* Cobb County: “In Cobb, we anticipated the need to increase class sizes for the coming school year and planned accordingly by seeking waivers last fall and earlier this spring,” said Cobb schools spokesman Jay Dillon. “We do not anticipate a need to increase class sizes further than what we’ve already requested. In fact, after a preliminary review of our current status and the allotment of teachers for next school year, we are confident that the worst fears about overflowing classrooms will not happen in Cobb. Many classes will see a marginal increase of two or three, and in some cases four of five students, but we don’t foresee any overflowing classrooms or unmanageable situations.”
* DeKalb County: “Our budget is already set, and we are raising class sizes by two students,” said DeKalb schools spokesman Dale Davis. “We will take this new state policy under advisement.”
* Fayette County: “We will not take advantage of the new rule for increasing class sizes. We have already set our class sizes to the rule that was implemented last year,” said Fayette schools spokeswoman Melinda Berry-Dreisbach.
* Fulton County: “We have no plans to go to the board and say that we have been given carte blanche now and let’s raise class size even higher,” said Fulton schools spokeswoman Allison Toller. Fulton parents can expect class sizes of 23 or less in the early grades and 30 students starting in fourth, she said. However, if the system was faced with one or two students arriving last minute and pushing class sizes beyond those limits, Toller said Fulton then might take advantage of the new flexibility.
* Gwinnett County: Under a flexibility contract, Gwinnett is not affected by the state board policy as it sets its own class sizes. (The system has announced plans to raise class size next year by one student.)
Georgia is not alone in its abandonment of class size ideals in the face of a depleted state coffers. Over the weekend, 35,000 people showed up at the New Jersey Statehouse to protest the governor’s plan to increase class sizes there. In the Los Alamitos Unified School District in California, the schools are asking parents to donate $225 per child to prevent a jump in class sizes. Texas, which was one of the first states to mandate strict class sizes, is considering getting rid of its 25-year-old standards.
And there is a district-led campaign in Florida to revise a 2002 constitutional amendment capping class sizes at 18 students for kindergarten through third grade, 22 in fourth through eighth grade, and 25 in high school. The law was being phased in, and districts were supposed to be in full compliance this year.
One of the arguments being made in Texas and Florida is that there is no strong evidence that the expensive, smaller classes lead to improved student performance.
“Teachers and parents and even students are big fans of smaller class sizes, but the research is really not as supportive,” says Susan Walker, policy and research director for the Georgia Partnership for Excellence in Education. Research shows the benefits of smaller class size in kindergarten and first grade, says Walker, “but once you get past that, there is really no evidence that it makes a positive impact on student achievement.” More critical in those upper grades is teacher quality, she says.
University of Georgia language and literacy education professor Peter Smagorinsky offered another view: “From the standpoint of an ex-English teacher in three high schools, I can say that the more students you have, the less time you can spend on any one student. Do the math: If you have 120 students [which is a relatively low load] and spend one minute on each every day, that’s two hours of work outside class. Add 50 or 80 more students, and the problem becomes more acute. Now consider the teaching and grading of writing. Let’s say that you spend 15 minutes grading each student essay. That’s 30 hours of grading for 120 students; add 50 more and it’s a whole bunch more.”
I am torn on this decision. I understand that local systems need flexibility but I think the current requirement that class size waivers go through the state causes systems to think carefully before increasing a kindergarten class to 28 kids.
The counter argument is that it should be up to local boards and communities whether they can live with a 28-student kindergarten class, not the state board of education. The deluge of requests for waivers was also taking hundreds of hours of DOE staff time.
I would like to invite state school superintendent candidates to weigh in on this important issue.
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217 comments Add your comment
Insane if they think this will help increase test scores
May 24th, 2010
11:52 am
As a parent that is very active in my daughters classroom teachers are already struggling with 21 students in a classroom. They don’t have time to focus on the weaker performing students and now the dummies working for the states School board have decided schools can increase classes to any amount they need so that State of Georgia school board staff can keep a job. Brilliant! Let the students suffer while the dummies continue to get a salary. Tell me exactly what is the Lottery Fund paying for???
June
May 24th, 2010
11:53 am
Sure, let’s keep spending more and more money on testing and increase the class size. That will be a great help to the students and teachers – NOT!!! My daughter had 30 in her 4th grade class this year. Three of those 30 were special needs mainstreamed. I know they deserve the same education, however, I also know how difficult this made the teacher’s job. There was virtual chaos in that room ALL the time. Not a good education for my child…
Concerned Parent
May 24th, 2010
11:54 am
This makes no sense at all- prisons even have cap sizes on the number of prisoners that can be housed in one prison, but you are telling me there will be no cap size on the number of students in a classroom. Thanks Georgia for showing us all what you really think about our children’s education.
DunMoody
May 24th, 2010
11:57 am
So, if a principal tries to assign class size as equally as possible, that’ll mean 30-35 kids in building classrooms and trailers. And that is complete insanity. A trailer classroom (aka learning cottage) is abysmally crowded with just 20-24 desks and kids. There is simply no sane way to fit 35 + kids, particularly teenages, in a trailer classroom.
Bet the geniuses in the state and county DOEs haven’t thought through that, either.
Rich
May 24th, 2010
12:03 pm
There is another way. It’s called raising taxes.
But because your politicians are too chicken**** to even contemplate that idea, largely because you’re too selfish to understand that it’s a necessity, this is what you’re left with. You get what you’re willing to pay for.
Joy In Teaching
May 24th, 2010
12:04 pm
I had 29 middle school students in a classroom once. It was sheer hell. The echoing effect from all those little voices was enough to drive one insane. Also, we never could hear the fire alarm out there unless my students were relatively quiet and the doors were open. Apparently, the fire marshall never really cared about that.
Also, with more students comes more behaviour problems. And I’m pretty sure that the state isn’t about to give teachers any actual power to deal with that. I actually had a conference a few weeks ago because a parent felt that I looked at her child wrong. Took about 20 minutes out of my life that I’ll never get back.
So much for hanging on to our # 48 ranking.
Blue State
May 24th, 2010
12:07 pm
This is what happens when Republicans are charge of government in Georgia; only tax cuts for the wealthy mean anything. Put a Republican governor, senator or representative in front of a class of 35 middle school students every day for a week and class sizes would soon be back to a reasonable number. The Republican Party is the party of big business, the wealthy and privileged, and those with power, not the common man. Georgia is getting exactly what it deserves for electing ultra conservative politicians who are out of touch with reality of the everyday life.
Northview (Ex)Teacher
May 24th, 2010
12:07 pm
Fedup,
Not soon enough.
A Happy Parent
May 24th, 2010
12:07 pm
Reinforces my decision to put my daughter in a private school. I encourage all who can to get there kids out of the system. Best decision I ever made!
teacher man
May 24th, 2010
12:17 pm
screwed
Fed Up
May 24th, 2010
12:17 pm
FULTON COUNTY FIRE MARSHALL- Are you reading this ??????
concerned DCSS parent
May 24th, 2010
12:19 pm
Does this also change the class size limits for gifted classes? Maureen, do you know?
Disgusted
May 24th, 2010
12:25 pm
Maybe the State Fire Marshall can weigh in on the class size now…how many students are safe in the room provided.
Newsman
May 24th, 2010
12:27 pm
Another increase in college tuition. On top of one 2 years ago and another last year. Hmmmmm and how much are the football coaches making? Sounds to me like some the increases are passed along to keep the high paid coaches happy.
Make Do
May 24th, 2010
12:27 pm
As a taxpayer, I say enough. The school system like everyone else must make do with what the have. I’m sorry but we are all in a bind. The budget issues may result larger classes and less individual time with each student. I know it is an “out of the box” concept but parents may have to spent time with the childern helping with their school work rather than relying on overwhelmed teacher. Or if parents have more money than time, send them to private schools, but stop the whining.
GO BLUE
May 24th, 2010
12:28 pm
GABuckeye37
Maybe that is why this person is an EX teacher. GO BLUE!
I_Teach
May 24th, 2010
12:34 pm
I teach gifted….Our numbers went up last year…from 17 to 19 in elementary for this current school year. We will find out this week if our numbers are going up yet again.
I was interested in the “back when we were in school, we had…” comments….SO NOT relevant now.
Yeah. My first teaching job? Catholic school. 33 first graders. No paras. No planning periods. *I* was IT.
No time for much remediation….! Thankfully, the amount of ‘assessing” and individual planning required back in 1985 was negligible compared to what is required of today’s teachers.
Today’s teachers are expected to have individual learning plans in place for each child; are constantly doing individual assessments….it is ridiculously time consuming when you have 22; I can’t imagine how horrifying it will be for them when their numbers hit 25+. The hours of planning (all NON-compensated, of course) is staggering. At our school teachers are required to meet a minimum of three times per year for each student.
Hmm. Wondering–should my colleagues bring in sleeping bags?
ThrashFanMax
May 24th, 2010
12:36 pm
Being an educator and former government employee I can tell you that anything you do to expose the grift and corruption of the politico in charge will be met with ire. The AJC will not keep your name out of it, in fact they will run to the top and ask if you are telling the truth, so don’t expect the AJC to be a friend or supporter or freedom or of the right of whistle blowers to tell the truth about what is going on in government.
Now as far as education goes. Privatize some parts of the system. Food service and transportation can be done more cheaply by a private company, and oh if you do not want your current workers laid off…include them in the contract. Sell the company your buses and equipment or turn it over for the use of the new operators. Now this saves on salaries, benefits, maintenance, and many other levels. Hmmm oh and why don’t the systems look at privatizing building maintenance as well…again with the caveat on the contract that they hire current employees. DUH……
Now we cut millions there in large systems, let us look at the state level and central office staff. First superintendent pay should be cut 25% across the board, but especially in counties where teachers are being laid off. Second, superintendent contracts should be modified and perks such as car allowances, housing allowances, bonuses, expenses accounts, and pay for unused leave should be removed from ALL of these contracts. NO ONE reimburses teachers for their expenditures in their classroom and they make 25% of what these supers do. State level, cut staffing at the DOE to minimum levels and that staff should take just a many furlough days as teachers must take. LEGISLATORS listen up—-MAKE GAMBLING LEGAL and allow paramutual betting….keep tourist dollars at home and bring in new ones, oh and make sure that it is legal in some of the poorer areas of the state. COBB COUNTY–in your own survey a majority of respondants are begging you to raise the millage rate…we are all willing to pay a little more to make sure our kids are taken care of.
I also suggest that you school systems reconsider the cut off dates for Pre-K, K, and first grade…some of us have intelligent children ready to learn and you have empty seats that could have children in them but refuse to let our kids in because their birthdays are after Sept. 1, so it is private school for my child which puts a financial burden on me even though I pay my property taxes and can not use the services because of bureaucratic stupidity!
Corey
May 24th, 2010
12:38 pm
You can have all the best education you want, and we’ll keep your property taxes at 1980’s rate. Not! The Democrats in Congress and Mr. Duncan want to throw local school districts a lifeline, but the Repubs we keep sending to Washington from Jawga(who now claim they’re fiscal conservatives)aint having it.
ThrashFanMax
May 24th, 2010
12:41 pm
This is not a blue/red or dem/rep issue…the education systems have been screwed over by both parties…..you can have fiscal responsibility and a quality education system…..
Put this together….school spending keeps going down and criminal justice spending keeps going up….studies correlate this…the more you spend on education the less you have to spend on criminals!
Private School
May 24th, 2010
12:45 pm
Thank God for private school. I pay school taxes but get nothing to show for it. I then pay $11,000 a year for two kids in private school. Where the class size is 28. The school is a NCLB blue ribbion school, and consistently scores in the top 10% nationally.
Non-renewed educator
May 24th, 2010
12:46 pm
I would like to invite state and local superintendents to try to manage a class of 40 high school students and the new state mandated math curriculum at the same time. Not so strong in math? No problem, oh grand poohbah. Let me see you manage 28 kindergartners in one room…. go ahead, bring the press and cameras and make this educator’s day!!!
The Atlanta Journal Constitution Reports… «
May 24th, 2010
12:51 pm
[...] on the State Board Of Education that has voted 9-2 in order to get rid of class size limits. Share and Enjoy: [...]
Unbeliveable in GA
May 24th, 2010
1:01 pm
I can’t believe that our children’s education is being taken for granted. When the students that have a hard time learning gets mixed in with the problem students, the problem students are going to get all the attention. What has this world come to?
SQ
May 24th, 2010
1:04 pm
I love reading these articles because it makes me so happy I moved my child out of Atlanta,GA!!! Our school is awesome in the state we live now!!
T'VILLE DAWG
May 24th, 2010
1:08 pm
You might as well take a year off, some everyday people need one on one help and they won’t get it this way. The way to fix the problem is to encourage local governments to have a special local option sales tax to help with the shortfall, we did here and we built schools and repaired old ones and made other improvements. All of us need to stop sending or local moneys to Atlanta for them to redistribute and give back out. This is the perfect time in our country to reassert our local rights as couties and states. They won’t have so much to piss away anymore. Freedom starts at home, lets stop the big governments now!
Embarrased in GA
May 24th, 2010
1:09 pm
The state of public education in our state is an abomination. Why, because the republicans in this state have somehow managed to convince the vast majority of citizens that “taxes” are a bad think and must be reduced/eliminated at every opportunity. What happens when taxes are not collected, well, among other things, public education suffers. Perhaps it will take the situation hitting “rock bottom” before the citizens (at least those with children of school age) start demanding the elected “leaders” fix the problem. Meanwhile, our state will remain mired in the bottom 1/4 of national test results, and who will suffer because of it – our future, the children.
protecting
May 24th, 2010
1:10 pm
PARENTS are you cultured or educated?
“…accordingly all experience hath shewn that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed.” (US Declaration of Independence)
When do we decide to abolish the forms that the School Board is accustomed too? When do you decide to go attend one of the “hearings?” When do you decide to hold these people’s feet to the fire? ENOUGH! How many of these people are up for election? How many if US are willing to serve? Run for office? Build a PARENT COALITION at our school? As a community stop abdicating our authority over our children to a poltical machine (school)? Not jut pulling our children out to homeschool but doing what I read here, renting a factility and starting our own community schools?
“Will you join in our crusade?
Who will be strong and stand with me?
Somewhere beyond the barricade
Is there a world you long to see?” (Les Miserables)
SamE
May 24th, 2010
1:17 pm
Shame on the State for poorly managing our school systems, education is vital if Atlanta and it’s metro counties want to stay on the map. This is an outrage.
john konop
May 24th, 2010
1:17 pm
Kathy Cox increased her staff at the DOE by 25% since 2006 and the local districts took care of high paid management while cutting teachers. This is not going to fly with voters.
Before we laid-off any teachers we should of done the following:
1) Cut the DOE by at least 50%
2) Cut all administrators salaries by 20% making over 6 figures.
3) Cut all administrators by 20%
4) Require all administrators to teach 1 class.
5) Charge a fuel fee to make bus service revenue neutral
6) Charge a fee for all extra activity at the school to make it revenue neutral
7) Put a freeze all new building and see if we can use cross utilize existing space ie high school class space for colleges courses at night.
Put a freeze on all travel and entertainment expense at the local level as well as the DOE
9) Increase lunch fees at a rate that it becomes revenue neutral
10) Solicit volunteer community help for office and class room assistants
It is very difficult to ask people to sacrifice when management will not do the same!
Olivia
May 24th, 2010
1:20 pm
Georgia needs to increase property, income and sale taxes, but do not touch class size limits. Increasing class size far from being a solution would create much more problems: safety problems, performance problems, teachers morale.
GO BLUE
May 24th, 2010
1:20 pm
I agree with John Konop. Why some many DOE employees to start with ?
BeBe
May 24th, 2010
1:24 pm
FYI to the State Board: There is a direct correlation between student/teacher ratio to the success of the students. We’re already at the bottom nationally – nice going.
Idea
May 24th, 2010
1:26 pm
Put the kids on strike. Next year maybe we should all keep our kids home for the first week of school. Maybe they will listen. Isn’t some funding based on days attended?
dekalb parent
May 24th, 2010
1:30 pm
You really think I can trust the Dekalb School Board to make this kind of decision after the decisions they have been making already this year? Please? More penalties to go on my childrens’ back for lack of misspending money from the state and county.
Big Al
May 24th, 2010
1:31 pm
The Great State of Georgia has spoken. Face it, education is a second priority item in this state. Where are you Zell Miller when we need you?
Smooth
May 24th, 2010
1:44 pm
It’s hard to believe that educated individuals don’t use common sense. We may as well let the students make the decisions. The educational systems need a lot of new leadership not a bunch of educated fools that’s not concerned with the students future. I can only hope that Mrs. Cox’s replacement use their head and not for the only purpose a hat or weave.
JohnD
May 24th, 2010
1:45 pm
Zell isn’t the answer. He endorsed Sonny, remember? How about the General Assembly cutting income tax for retirees? How smart is it to remove a tax source in a critical economic situation? If the politicians want to cut income taxes on retirees, then do it only for middle income. Wealthy people can afford to pay.
Andy
May 24th, 2010
1:46 pm
In my second grade class in 1968-69, there were 37 students. Granted, we were awaiting construction of a new building to ease crowding, but I grew up in a rural district of modest means; over 90% of the children in my class still attended in the same district AND graduated from high school. Your teachers first have to be aimed in the right direction.
Concernedfultoncoparent
May 24th, 2010
1:50 pm
I am very concerned about the raising of class sizes next year. They are stating that it will only be for 1 year but what will change so it is not a constant over the next several years. My son was in a kindergarten class with 22 students this year with a teacher and a parapro. Next year, the class size will increase and there will be no parapro, how is that possible? Our children deserve better than they will be receiving and our leaders wonder why our test scores are so low. Also, they are cutting CRCT for 1st grade next year which has pros and cons but seriously what will they cut next just so they can pad their own pockets.
protecting
May 24th, 2010
1:51 pm
“Next year maybe we should all keep our kids home for the first week of school.” OH NO the powers that be thought of that go read “O.C.G.A. 20-2-690.2 ”
In particular the part of Truancy being more than 5 days unexcused absence in a single school year.
Elect new folks into office!!!!!!!!!! Preferably very new.
high school teacher
May 24th, 2010
1:52 pm
Andy, when you were in school in 1968-69, you probably didn’t have classmates who suffered from fetal alcohol syndrome, ADHD, autsim, or any other disability. Those kids were in “special class” or not in school at all. This is not 1969.
protecting
May 24th, 2010
1:55 pm
“Wealthy people can afford to pay.” So earn more money so YOU can pay more! Redistrobution of the wealth is not the answer.
Dekalbite
May 24th, 2010
1:55 pm
Better idea – vote all incumbents out. That’s all the state of Georgia legislature and the DeKalb BOE cares about – power. Well, they had the power and look what they did with it. I just hate Sonny is not running again so we could vote him out too.
A Happy Parent
May 24th, 2010
1:56 pm
It’s what you get when you let the government educate your children.
protecting
May 24th, 2010
1:57 pm
Fulton County is keeping parapro in Kindergarten as of May 6. Did that change?
high school teacher
May 24th, 2010
1:58 pm
How will the class size affect systems who already gave out contracts to teachers? Can they rescind a contract less than a week after it was given out?
Concernedfultoncoparent
May 24th, 2010
1:58 pm
First grade will not have parapros and I definitely think it is needed in 1st as well.
Rich
May 24th, 2010
2:02 pm
Good, the residents in each county should be able to decide how to run the schools without the state or the federal government interfering. Maybe setting some quality standards, but it should be minimal.
TeacherescapedGeorgia
May 24th, 2010
2:05 pm
This is the reason I left Georgia and went back to Alabama to teach. The state board of education does not have a sense of reality when it comes to the education of students. Allowing Superintendents to make $355,000 a year is ridiculous. They should take a 20-30% hit minimum on their salaries if they are willing to layoff thousands of teachers in their systems. The Alabama Education Association stands up to the legislators when they start talking layoffs and the only layoffs that are taknig place are with local funds. Central Offices in Georgia have too many people making way too much money. Cut at the top because the foundation will suffer cutting from the bottom with teachers.