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Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION

Caps on class size debunked

By: Editorial

Posted: 02/21/2012 1:00 AM | Comments: 0 (including replies)

The NDP's promise to cap the size of primary-grade classes at 20 students hiked provincial funding for schools by $4 million in this year -- and that's just to begin laying the groundwork. The panel that has been asked to launch the policy starts its work at an inauspicious moment: Ontario has just been advised to scrap its policy as the research on its benefit to students does not support the expense.

Economist Don Drummond, whose report was released last week, was asked to find ways to rein in Ontario's mounting deficit. It zeroed in on an unwise decision that province made to force its schools to cap kindergarten to Grade 3 classes at 20 students, a policy that cost $430 million in 2009. The class cap triggered a wave of hiring of teachers and teacher's assistants, and higher capital expenditures.

In recent years, Ontario has made noticeable improvements to educational outcomes -- its students perform well in comparative assessments, literacy and numeracy has improved and graduation rates have climbed. But the Drummond report found little direct link between capping class size and the outcomes. Class caps happened alongside the broadening of standardized testing, publication of outcomes, a focus on literacy, and the passage of legislation designed to keep teens in school until they turned 18.

The research shows the impact of class size is not strong. One study of Ontario's experience with a cap found modest benefits regarding student achievement, the Drummond report noted. The vast majority of international studies "showed no statistically significant impacts." The commission advised the McGuinty government to increase the average class size across the grades and hike the k-to-Grade 3 cap to 23.

The NDP's cap answers a long-standing campaign by the Manitoba Teachers Society. It runs counter to much of the sentiment expressed during a public consultation launched in 2002 by the Doer government. The panel concluded it was best to leave individual schools to decide class size, to serve particular student profiles and circumstances. Growing evidence points to the quality of the teacher as having a greater impact on student success. Incentives to teachers who produce results would be a better investment of scarce provincial funds.

Instead, ignoring abundant research, the Selinger government has imposed a class cap to favour unionists for crass political payback. This will load a growing burden on taxpayers for no real dividend for children.

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition February 21, 2012 A14

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