Small Schools: A Reform That Works (Synthesis of Research)

Author: Raywid, M.A.
Publisher: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD)
Publication Date: 1997, December/1998, January
Journal: Educational Leadership
Journal Volume: 55(4)
Pages: 34-39
Full text available online at: http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational_leadership/dec97/vol55/num04/Small_Schools%40_A_Reform_That_Works.aspx

Abstract (written by WestEd)

"There is enough evidence now of devastating effects of large size on substantial numbers of youngsters that it seems morally questionable not to act on this evidence," argues Raywid. Disadvantaged students in small schools perform better on standardized tests of basic skills than those in large schools. High school students in small schools are more likely to pass core subjects and graduate. One study showed that the larger the school, the lower the student scores in reading and mathematics. Generally, advantaged students are less penalized by large schools. So limited school size, or at least creating "schools within a school" in which teams of teachers are matched with teams of students for years, provides strong leverage for reducing the achievement gap between minority, low socioeconomic status, and at-risk students and higher achieving students. Small schools also have less violence, and students are better behaved and less likely to drop out.

The larger the school, the greater the need to create structures that support deeper, more personalized connections between teachers and students. Whether the school operates more as a bureaucracy or as a community also matters; cross-curricular teams of teachers put into small units with groups of students can be effective in larger schools. Communication and reaching agreements is also much easier with a small staff than a large staff.

Note: The full-text article is available for free on the ASCD Web site. Use the URL above to locate the article by date in the Archived Issues section of the Educational Leadership area.