The article discusses whether or not teachers modify their instructional strategies when they move from larger to smaller classes and includes many studies from 1999-2000. According to the research in the article, teachers do not make any substantial changes in their content coverage, grouping practices, or pedagogical strategies. However, research did find that teachers that moved to a smaller class size spent a little less time on disciplining students and a little more time with poor readers. This research has not yet provided information about the most effective teaching strategies for teachers to use in the transition to small classes.
Starting in 1996, many of the California school districts have taken advantage of additional funding to reduce class size in grades K-3. The research found that instructional practices improved in grades K-2 but remained the same across the board in grade 3, where teachers in reduced-size classrooms did not spend more time during regular lessons working with individual students. Research showed that there were few or no differences in curriculum content and student activites in either language arts or math. However, grade 3 teachers did report spending more sustained attention to students that did need help with reading than teachers with larger class sizes. Also, teachers in the smaller classes reported that they spent less time teaching the class as a whole and more time teaching to smaller groups of two to four students. Finally, teachers in reduced size classes reported spending more time addressing individual students personal concerns and less time disciplining students.
In another study noted in the article, it also found that teachers of small classes did not necessarily alter thier primary teaching strategies, but did spend less time on classroom management, therefore improving the learning environment and resulting in more time for teaching instruction.
