the case for small schools
High graduation rates, less violence, a sense of belonging instead of alienation are among the mountains of evidence supporting the case for small schools.  While some cite cost efficiency as the reason for larger schools, smaller schools often boast lower drop-out rates. While the “cost per pupil may be higher in a smaller school, research shows that the cost per graduate is often almost equal between larger and smaller schools.

In 1930, one room schoolhouses accounted for nearly 70% of the nation’s public schools. Between 1940 and 2000, the number of elementary and secondary schools decreased from 200,000 to 62,000, despite a 70% rise in US population. Average enrollments rose from 127 to 653. the number of high schools with more than 1,500 students doubled in the last decade.

According to Stacey Mitchell in the New Rules Project Journal, “Proponents argue that big schools allow for more courses, advanced equipment and significantly lower cost per pupil year than small schools.  But, a growing number of critics are asking, do big schools produce better students? Educators question whether the failings of the nation’s schools weren’t directly related to their size.

A US Department of Education report comparing small schools (less than 300) with big schools (more than 1,000) found that big schools have:

• 825% more violent crime
• 270% more vandalism
• 378% more theft and larceny
• 394% more physical fights and attacks

Further, 52% of small school principals report either NO discipline or minor discipline problems. As important as the schools themselves, small schools are manageable, administrators know the students and their families, and disciplinary problems are detected and resolved earlier.

The idea that large schools are better persists despite substantial evidence to the contrary. According to the Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory review of results from over 100 studies on school size, “Student Achievement in small schools is at least equal and often superior to achievement in large schools. In addition, a large body of research in the affective and social realms overwhelming affirms the superiority of small schools.”

Mary Anne Raywild of Hofstra University wrote in her review of school size studies,  that the relationship between size and positive educational outcomes has been “confirmed with a clarity and at a level of confidence rare in the annals of education research.”

Small school student achievement equals or outperforms large school student achievement. Grades, test scores, honor roll, subject-area achievement, higher-order thinking skills and years of education achieved after high school were all used as indicators. While many small schools are located in rural areas, researchers have concluded that it is the smallness of the school, not the setting that makes it successful.

	Small Schools	Large Schools
Sense of Belonging	Operates more like a community. Students report a strong sense of belonging. Teachers can identify and respond to individual needs	Functions like a bureaucracy. Students are relatively anonymous and slip through the cracks
Parental Involvement	More likely to be involved and to volunteer The greater the degree of local control, and parental involvement, the more likely community members are to vote in school board elections and to authorize additional spending for education.	Parents alienated  and not as involved
Attendance & Dropout Rates	Higher attendance rate Students who transfer from large to small schools improve attendance. Small schools graduate more students	Lower attendance Higher drop out rate
Extracurricular Activities	Higher rates of participation in extracurricular activities Higher participation rates improves attendance and academic performance Students participate in a wider variety of activities Sports teams, musical groups and clubs depend on broader participation. Participation in extracurricular activities is a significant indicator of academic success.	Only the most talented are recruited for teams sports teams and performance groups A small number of gifted students dominate while a vast majority of students are relegated to spectator status.
Poverty	The impact of poverty is significantly reduced when kids attend small schools. The smaller the school, the more likely students in poverty will succeed. Smaller schools cut poverty’s impact on test scores by 20-70% depending on the grade level. Students are better off in small schools, even if class sizes are larger.	Poverty has a substantial negative impact on student achievement. The larger the school, the more likely students living in poverty will fail.
Curriculum	Even schools with 100-200 students were able to offer core curricula comparable to scho9ols with more than 1,200. Small schools tend to be more flexible and allow teachers greater control over curricula. Small schools more often apply innovative teach methods such as team teaching, integrated curriculum and multi-age grouping all of which improve student achievement. Collaboration and advances in technology continue to broaden curriculum in small schools.	In schools above 400 students, increases in enrollment made little difference in improving students’ access to courses or in offering teachers the opportunity to teach more specialized classes.

According to  Rachel Tompkins in Building on Assets, “While cost is perceived to be higher in smaller schools, small schools have proven to be more cost effective when measured on a cost-per-graduate basis.”