Smaller Class Size Raises Achievement, Study Finds

Wisconsin's SAGE (Student Achievement Guarantee in Education) class-size reduction program is a proven success in helping needy children in early grades.

A 2003 study by the Education Policy Research Unit at Arizona State University  (Word, 35 pgs) compared the academic achievement of low-income K-3 students in schools that participated in the SAGE program to that of students in non-SAGE comparison schools located in SAGE districts.

The study concluded that the SAGE program:

• Increased student achievement.
• Upheld gains through 3rd grade.
• Was most beneficial to African-American students.
• Narrowed the achievement gap between African-American and white students.
• Compensated for poor attendance.

The study was conducted by Phil Smith, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee; Alex Molnar, Arizona State University; and John Zahorik, UW-Milwaukee. From 1971 to 2001, Molnar was on the faculty of the School of Education at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, where he directed the Center for Education Research, Analysis, and Innovation (CERAI) and the Center for the Analysis of Commercialism in Education (CACE).

The SAGE program was designed to increase the academic achievement of low-income children in grades K-3 by reducing class size, reforming the curriculum, providing professional development for teachers, and opening schools to morning and evening activities.

SAGE was created in 1995, based on the work of a special task force appointed by the State Superintendent of Public Instruction to study the condition of urban education in Wisconsin. It is administered through a program of five-year grants designed to promote academic achievement. SAGE schools get state aid equal to $2,000 for each low-income child in the grades served by the program. Schools participating in the SAGE program are required to:

• Reduce class size to 15 pupils.
• Keep the school open every day for extended hours and collaborate with the community in educational, recreational and social service activities.
• Provide a rigorous academic curriculum designed to improve academic achievement.
• Improve professional development programs and staff evaluation practices.

SAGE was also evaluated continuously from 1996 to 2001 by the Department of Public Instruction and the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee School of Education. Those evaluations also found the program to be successful.

To learn more, see the Wisconsin Education Association Council's comprehensive resources on SAGE and class size reduction.