The effect of class size: A study of second and third grade student achievement in The School District of Greenville County, South Carolina

The purpose of this study was to determine if in The School District of Greenville County, South Carolina, class size in grade 3 was related to student achievement from grade 2 to grade 3 in total reading and total language as measured by the Metropolitan Achievement Test, Seventh Edition.; The goals of the study were: (1) to determine if students who were in smaller classes for a prescribed period of time performed better on the MAT-7 than students who were not in smaller classes, when controlling for student cognitive ability, and (2) if results varied in question 2 when data were disaggregated by race, gender, and socioeconomic status. Small classes were defined as 18 or fewer students, while large classes were identified as having 23 or more.; A quantitative approach was used to determine the relationship between class size and student achievement from the end of grade 2 to the end of grade 3. The Metropolitan Achievement Test, Seventh Edition (MAT-7) was used as the measure of student achievement. The Otis-Lennon School Ability Test, Sixth Edition (OLSAT-6), was used to control for student cognitive abilities. The data gathering process included an intentional selection of all second grade students who met class size criteria in 1998–1999 and were in the same class size again in third grade in 1999–2000.; Based on the findings in this study, the following major conclusions have been drawn: (1) Though many research findings indicate that reduced class size has a positive impact on student achievement and helps to reduce the achievement gap, this study did not fully support that notion, if measuring gap reduction. Significant differences existed to begin with at the end of second grade, and those differences continued in third grade, (2) However, the achievement gap did not widen. Although students in small classes were much poorer, the researcher concluded that small class size helped students not fall further behind. In fact, when controlling for cognitive ability, students in small classes were “catching up” with peers in large classes in total language, and (3) Because the issue of class size reduction is complex and this study, like all studies, had limitations, the final effect of class size on student achievement is still unknown. For that reason, further evaluation of its effects merits further study.; It was the researcher's goal to contribute to a broader understanding of the issue of class size, and provide educators and policy makers with more knowledge about the effects of class size on student achievement.