Class Sizes : Quality or Quantity

I have experienced studying at  large (as for me) classes in university where were sometimes more then 50-60 students during lesson . For some subjects there was no loss of educational value in large classes compared with smaller classes. However, I remember that  postgraduate subject content is usually analytical and discursive in nature. This required from us as students to participate in discussions. This was pretty hard sometimes. With this, I think that students learn more and get more individual attention when classes are smaller. Also if classes are smaller and students are comfortable with their educational experience, they will be more likely to progress.

Australia has a growing population and a government that  is in most part incompetent at meeting the realistic needs of the people it is representing. We see in the papers and media that there is a larger focus on discrediting the minister ( in this case the education minister ) to gain credit or favor in the public’s eyes.

I think that correct class size is proportional to the teaching ability of the person delivering the lesson and also the level of the student’s education. For example,  a year one class has a very limited knowledge base to draw from and relies heavily on the input from the teacher. This early education often forms the basis of a student ability to learn. The quality of the teacher, in my opinion, is very important and the class size should also be at a level that gives him or her  the ability to distribute their time among the class giving the attention needed to each individual. If we then look to the opposite end of the scale, a university student who has learnt how to listen, research and focus their learning is not as demanding on a teacher. The teacher is I think there to deliver content and guide the student and able to spread his time more efficiently among a larger group.

I see reason in Pyre's argument in that it is not solely class size that is a key factor in effective education but also the quality of the person delivering the content. The way we look at education and in particular class size I think needs to be more flexible and could also be proportional to the teachers actual ability. From what I have been told and read in the media about school classes, here in Australia  there are teachers in the system that are incompetent or just do not have the resources at their disposal to give their class (whatever the size ) the quality of education they deserve. If the government actually stopped and looked at the bigger picture and not just trying to throw money into a system to gain the public's favor for an upcoming or future election I am positive that a system could be put into place that could not only attracts the people they need into our educational system but also a structure that identifies what actually works in relation to the number of students a particular level of teacher is competent in teaching.

As far as I know (if it is not my mstake), our teachers are not graded and this, I think, could be a step in identifying ability. Also this is a way to highlight and reward the experienced and enthusiastic teachers, who have the qualifications and dedicated to deliver their knowledge, that is reflected in their students grades.

How resources and funding is distributed can also impact on this and in some cases the public system is restricted. In the article Evans worried by university class sizes where education minister Chris Evans is looking at the  tertiary education the funding from the government is allocated by the vice-chancellor and I think he needs to be accountable for the way that these funds are used. It is him who ultimately sets class sizes and employs teachers and resources. 

Well, in conclusion, I should admit that the terms “small” and “large” are obviously a debatable subject. How many people in a "big" class? Does a small class consist of less then 20 people? I was curious about standard for sizes of classes, so I made a little research.

In some published sources “small”is defined as “30 or fewer students” while “large” is defined as “70 or more students” (Gibbs, G., Lucas, L., & Simonite, V. ,1996,Class Size and Student Performance. Studies in Higher Education; Toth, L. S., & Montagna, L. G.,2002, Class Size and Achievement in Higher Education: A Summary of Current Research). Other work defines a “small” class as having a ceiling of 55 students and a “large” class as having a ceiling of 120 students (Maxwell, N. L., & Lopus, J. S., 1995, A Cost Effectiveness Analysis of Large and Small Classes in the University. Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis). Other book distinguishes “normal” classes as consisting averaging 39 students and “megaclasses” of 120 or more students (Hancock, T.,1996, Effects of Class Size on College Student Achievement)... As for me, only qualified and experienced teacher can objectively say for particular subject if his/her class is big or small.

Press to this link to see video, which shows a few good reasons to keep classes small