Two seemingly different threads are in play on the issue of class size. The first is manifested in media reports that tell readers that class sizes are rising to concerning levels. The second thread appears in the work of some researchers and education leaders and suggests that repurposing class-size reduction funds to pay for other reforms may…

Even as new educational technologies have emerged, staffing innovations have seemed all but impossible in American schools. Charter and district schools alike long ago surrendered to the notion that education requires at least as many core teachers as is determined from dividing enrollment by class size. A few new school designs suggest that we…

As the economic outlook continues to darken, school districts will be looking for ways to cut costs, and they will no doubt wrestle with some difficult issues. When does it make sense to keep classes small? When does it make sense to increase class sizes to cut costs? Such debates are often carried out in the absence of information about what…