Educational Facilities Master Plan Grade Level Configuration and School Size

1
Educational Facilities Master PlanGrade Level
Configuration and School Size

• San Juan Unified School District
• November 18, 2008

Prepared by Susan Griffin, Asst. Supt. Student
Support Services Susan Hulsey, Asst. Supt.
Instructional Services Don Myers, Senior Director
of Facilities and Planning Mike Dencavage, Chief
Financial Officer Dr. Pat Jaurequi, Superintendent
2
Exploring the Key Data Elements

• October 14
• Overview and Development of Board Dialogue
• October 28
• Facility Assessment and School Closure Analysis
• November 18
• Grade Level Configuration and School Size

3
Exploring the Key Data Elements

• December 2
• Boundaries
• December 16
• Measure S and J
• Education Specifications
• January 13
• Open Enrollment
• January 27
• Enrollment Trends

4
Grade Configurations
9-12
K-8
7/8

K-6
6-8
K-5
SLIDE 4
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Current Inventory of Configurations
K-5
K-6
7-8
6-8
K-8
SLIDE 5
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Choices
SLIDE 6
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Choices
SLIDE 7
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Choices
SLIDE 8
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Summary of Research

• Grade Level Configurations
• Good educational practices are a more powerful
  determiner of student achievement than grade
  level configuration.
• The number of grade level transitions appears to
  be negatively related to student achievement.
  More transitions lower student achievement.
• Most research indicated that students in K-8
  schools performed better on standardized tests
  (Average class size nationally for K-8 is 25).
  However, performance gains generally diminished
  as the number of students in a grade increased.
• Provision of specialty courses at grades 7 8
  (e.g., algebra and foreign language).
• Most research indicated that K-8 programs and
  smaller class size had the most positive impact
  on economically disadvantaged students and
  students of color.

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Transitions
Kinder to Grade 8
Grades 9 to Grade 12
1 transition
Grades 9 to Grade 12
Kinder to Grade 6
Grades 7 and 8
2 transitions
Kinder to Grade 5
Grades 9 to Grade 12
Grades 6, 7 and 8
2 transitions with longer time between
Appendix B
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Questions and Comments - Configuration

• Staff Recommendation
• Elementary Configuration
• K-5
• K-8
• Secondary Configuration
• Grades 6 / 7 / 8
• 9-12

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School Size Small vs. Large
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School Size Small vs. Large

• BP and AR 7111
• K-5 enrollment from 365-649
• K-6 enrollment from 425-749
• 6-8 enrollment from 750-1200
• 9-12 enrollment from 1500-2200
• Other configurations

Appendix C
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School Size Elementary (K-5 and K-6)
K-5 and K-6 Average size 475
9-19-2008
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School Size (K-8, 6/7/8, and 7/8)
K-8, 6/7/8, and 7/8 Average size 689
9-19-2008
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School Size

• Numerous issues arise when planning for a small
  school, or when a school loses enough students
  that it finds itself small.
• Common issues include 
• What's the optimal size?
• How comprehensive can the program be?
• Are economies of scale gained or lost?
• Will the quality of education improve or decline?
   

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Response to Previous Public Forums

• Mixed reactions to both K-8 and K-5/6-8
  configurations
• Favorable reaction to having options in school
  configuration some thought there were too many
  choices
• Concern that K-8 schools have a more limited
  program for 7-8 (electives, science lab, etc.)
• Concern about inappropriate grade groupings
  without a plan to support students

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Size of High Schools
Average 1,446
9-19-2008
Appendix D
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Questions and Comments - Size

• Staff Recommendation
• Elementary
• K-5 650-750
• K-8 600-750
• Secondary
• Grades 6 / 7 / 8 750-900
• 9-12 1500-1800

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Next Step - Boundaries
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Communication Community Feedback

• Present workshop to principals at councils
• Provide slides for School Site Councils and
  PTA/PTO
• Provide information and solicit feedback on
  district website
• Hold 3 community meetings
• December 4 Carnegie Middle School 700 p.m.
• December 9 Del Campo High School 700 p.m.
• December 11 Jonas Salk HTA 700 p.m.

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Appendix A - Current Inventory of Configurations
K-6 Elementary

• Arlington Hts
• Cambridge Hts
• Cameron Ranch
• Carmichael
• Carriage Drive
• Citrus Heights
• Cottage
• Cowan
• Coyle
• Del Dayo
• Del Paso Manor
• Deterding
• Dewey
• Edison
• Garfield
• Grand Oaks
• Green Oaks
• Greer
• T Kelly

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Appendix A - Current Inventory of Configurations

• K-5 Elementary
• Dyer-Kelly
• Howe Ave

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Appendix A - Current Inventory of Configurations

• Grades K-8
• Gold River
• Lichen
• Orangevale
• Sierra Oaks
• Starr King
• Woodside

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Appendix A - Current Inventory of Configurations

• Grades 6 / 7 / 8
• Arcade
• Arden
• Barrett
• Churchill
• Pasteur
• Salk
• Note, 6th grade are enrolled through the open
  enrollment process at schools except Salk.

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Appendix A - Current Inventory of Configurations

• Grades 7 / 8
• Carnegie
• Rogers
• Sylvan

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Appendix B - K-5, 6-8, and 9-12
Kinder to Grade 5
Grades 9 to Grade 12
Grades 6, 7 and 8
2 transitions with longer time between

• Advantages of a K-5/6-8 configuration
• sense of community/connectivity over three years.
• greater potential for electives/extra curricular
  activities (sports).
• gives a longer transition period which is proven
  by research to enhance student achievement.
• developmentally more appropriate social
  environment for some students.
• open enrollment increases 6th grade access
• provides more consistency in sixth grade
  curriculum.
• would provide opportunity for increased after
  school programs at middle schools.

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Appendix B - K-5, 6-8, and 9-12 continued . . .
Kinder to Grade 5
Grades 9 to Grade 12
Grades 6, 7 and 8
2 transitions with longer time between

• Advantages of a K-5/6-8 configuration
• allows middle school students permission to slow
  down maturation activities.
• provides more flexibility for accelerated
  programs.
• provides consistency in standards based
  curriculum/instruction.
• 3 year intervention program may better prepare
  students for high school.
• greater opportunities for sixth graders for
  science and social science curriculum.
• increased independence while maintaining a safe
  personalized environment.

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Appendix B - K-5, 6-8, and 9-12 continued . . .
Kinder to Grade 5
Grades 9 to Grade 12
Grades 6, 7 and 8
2 transitions with longer time between

• Disadvantages of a K-5/6-8 configuration
• may not be developmental advantageous for
  immature sixth graders.
• parental concerns.
• credentialing issues.
• may lead to additional school closures.
• would lead to reduction in staffing and funding
  resources for elementary schools.
• need for additional classrooms/portables.

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Appendix B - Key Issues K-8 and 9-12
Kinder to Grade 8
Grades 9 to Grade 12
1 transition

• Advantages of a K-8 configuration
• Research has shown that student academic
  achievement is directly tied to the number of
  transitions made within their K-12 educational
  experience the fewer the transitions the higher
  the achievement.
• An additional factor that may add to this
  increased student achievement is that K-8 schools
  are traditionally smaller in size and the
  positive impact on student achievement may be due
  to smaller grade sizes.
• Lower SES students in K-8 schools performed
  better at the end of the eighth grade and
  received higher grades in the ninth grade then
  lower SES students who had attended middle
  schools.

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Appendix B - K-8 and 9-12 continued . . .
Kinder to Grade 8
Grades 9 to Grade 12
1 transition

• Disadvantages of K-8 configurations
• K-8 will have difficulty in providing teachers in
  specialty areas of science, math, foreign
  language, art, music and physical education.
• K-8 configuration does not allow for programs to
  address the developmental needs of any specific
  age group as well as middle schools.
• Middle schools can offer larger numbers of
  exploratory elective courses than K-8 schools.

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Appendix B - K-8 and 9-12 continued . . .
Kinder to Grade 8
Grades 9 to Grade 12
1 transition

• Disadvantages of K-8 configurations
• Middle schools tend to offer more
  interdisciplinary teaching than K-8 schools.
• K-8 schools, older students who were discipline
  problems set worse examples for younger students
  than did older discipline problem students in
  middle schools.

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Appendix C - School Size

• No Reliable Link Between School Size and
  Curriculum Quality.
• Research has shown that there is no reliable
  relationship between school size and curriculum
  quality.
• It takes a lot of bigness to add a little
  variety. On average, it takes a 100 increase in
  enrollment to yield a 17 increase in variety of
  offerings.
• Bigger does not necessarily mean more offerings
  and smaller does not necessarily mean fewer
  offerings, but researchers have found that larger
  schools tend to offer more introductory courses
  in non-core areas.

Source Research in Brief Small Schools,
School Services of California, June 23, 2006 Vol.
26,No. 13
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Appendix C - School Size

• Larger Does not Necessarily Mean More
  Cost-Effective.
• There are dis-economies of scale for very small
  and very large schools.
• Very small schools can be cost effective, but
  only when they forgo big school infrastructure
  large schools can be cost effective, but they
  tend to require large staffs to manage and
  control large numbers of students.
• Relationships Formed More Easily at Small
  Schools.
• Students attending small schools tend to
  participate more in extracurricular activities,
  build stronger relationships with peers and
  teachers, and have parents that are more
  involved.
• However, there is also research that shows that
  schools within schools (or small learning
  communities) can have similar effects.

Source Research in Brief Small Schools,
School Services of California, June 23, 2006 Vol.
26,No. 13
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Appendix C - School Size

• Achievement at Small Schools May Be Comparable To
  or Better than Larger Schools.
• About half of the research finds that there is no
  difference in performance between small and large
  schools, and the other half finds better
  performance at small schools.
• There is some evidence that small schools are
  more effective in supporting achievement of
  socioeconomically disadvantaged and special
  education students.
• However, the same study also found that larger
  size benefited more affluent communities.

Source Research in Brief Small Schools,
School Services of California, June 23, 2006 Vol.
26,No. 13
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Appendix C - Smaller Elementary Schools

• Literature indicates consistent academic success
  of smaller elementary schools especially for
  socioeconomic disadvantaged students.
• Its not size alone that creates the benefits of
  small schools. It is the personalization and
  responsiveness and the sense of community that
  the smallness and less formal structures permit.
  Raywid (1997)

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Appendix C - Smaller Elementary continued . . .

• Characteristics of successful small schools
• Student performance improves
• Graduation rates increase
• Attendance rises
• Students feel safer and more connected to their
  teachers and school
• Discipline problems are reduced
• Teachers experience enhanced professional
  satisfaction
• Parents feel more involved.

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Appendix C - Smaller Elementary continued . . .

• Challenges of small schools
• Leadership and Governance
• Staffing
• Curriculum and Instruction (standards-based)
• Facilities
• Staff Cohesion and Planning
• Budget and Resources
• Outreach and Communication

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Appendix C - Other Reference Sources

• A comprehensive review of research prepared by
  the Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory
  http//www.nwrel.org/scpd/sirs/10/c020.html 
• A list of research references compiled by the
  Gates Foundation
• http//www.gatesfoundation.org/nr/Downloads/ed/res
  earchevaluation/SmallSchools_bibliography.pdf

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Appendix D - Size of High Schools

• Critics say that creating small high schools out
  of large ones merely masks the real problem
  coming up with a national consensus on what
  children should be learning in high school and
  making sure they learn it.
• "The size of the school matters less than the
  quality of the curriculum," argues Brookings
  Institution scholar Diane Ravitch, an educational
  historian.

Newsweek, May 29, 2008
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Appendix D - An Ideal Size for a High School?
After analyzing progress in mathematics and
reading from 8th to 12th grade for 10,000
students in a federal data base from almost 789
public and private schools of varying size, the
Lee and Smith study concluded that "the ideal
high school" enrolls between 600 and 900
students. Size matters, they believe, because
it affects social relations within the school and
the school's ability to provide a strong
curriculum for all students. Very large schools
lack a sense of community and cannot shape
student behavior, while very small schools cannot
offer a full academic curriculum. Lee, Valerie
E. Smith, J.B. "High School Size Which Works
Best and for Whom?" Educational Evaluation and
Policy Analysis, 1997, Fall, 19 (3), 205-227
Lee. Valerie E. "Effects of High-School Size on
Student Outcomes Response to Howley and Howley."
Education Policy Analysis Archives , Vol. 12, No.
53, September 24, 2004. ".equity without
excellence is not something we should encourage
in schools" (p. 4).
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Appendix D - Size of High Schools
But high schools, long plagued by low achievement
and high dropout rates, have been subject to a
host of reforms that have flickered and faded.
For the last six years, with support from the
Bill Melinda Gates Foundation, cities like New
York, Chicago, Milwaukee and San Diego have been
replacing their large dysfunctional inner-city
high schools with smaller ones that are specially
designed to keep students from falling through
the cracks.
Newsweek, May 29, 2008
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Appendix D - Size of High Schools
Although the results of the new small high
schools movement have been mixedattendance and
graduate rates are up, while test scores have
remained about the samefinding a way to get kids
to stay in school, proponents say, is half the
battle. For underserved kids in high-needs
communities, says Joel Klein, schools chancellor
of New York City, which has been on the forefront
of the small high schools movement, "converting
big high schools into small ones creates a
personal scale to schools. And that is critical
for learning."
Newsweek, May 29, 2008
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Appendix D - Size of High Schools

• Michael Hicks and Viktoriya Rusalkina of Marshall
  University conducted a study of the relationship
  between school consolidation and student
  achievement for the West Virginia School Building
  Authority in 2004.
• Their analysis of all West Virginia high schools,
  consolidated and single, found a tendency for
  higher achievement in larger, not smaller,
  schools. In fact, they found that both teacher
  education and larger schools "correlated with
  higher test scores among certain groups."

Source High School Size and the Education of All
Students in 9-12 What the Research
Suggests EdNews, February 15, 2006
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Appendix D - Size of High Schools

• Start-up costs are high, and small high schools
  cost about 5 percent more per student to operate.
  
• By some accounting students get less for the
  money. Small high schools offer fewer courses and
  foreign language options, and extracurriculars
  like a school newspaper, a marching band or a
  sports team are limited.
• U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings
  says she's not convinced small high schools are
  the answer.

Newsweek, May 29, 2008
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Appendix D - Optimal Size of High Schools

• Advantages of 1500 to 1800 Enrollment
• better able to build comprehensive master
  schedule
• more able to offer and fully enroll advanced
  placement courses
• wider variety of elective offerings
• availability of CTE and multiple foreign language
  courses

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Appendix D - Optimal Size of High Schools

• Advantages of 1500 to 1800 Enrollment
• AVID can be offered without eliminating other
  electives or class offerings
• full range of activities like Athletics and VAPA
  programs can be offered for all grade levels
  including freshman
• reduces teachers traveling from room to room when
  the school is overpopulated

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