A retired teacher sent this post:
Larger Classes— Less Education
By Anita Getzler
Listening to the public discourse on classroom size, it’s been suggested that the number of students in a classroom does not affect a student’s ability to learn. However, when I tell people that this can mean 45, 50, even 70 students in a classroom, they are shocked and their response is, “How can you teach? How can students learn?” The effects of increasing classroom size are more than a debate of numbers and statistics. The implications touch every student and teacher.
As an art museum educator for 25 years, I led teacher and students workshops and I have two sons who attended public high schools. However, until I actually taught in a public school, I had no concept of how incredibly rewarding and inspiring, difficult and exhausting the profession could be. Or, how ineffectual and boring school can become for students in overcrowded classrooms. It’s been suggested that with improved classroom management skills, teachers would be more effective and alleviate problems arising with increasing classroom size. I mastered those skills and managed to keep a class of forty-five, 9th and 10th grade overly energetic high school students seated and working. What I could not anticipate was the extraordinary effort it would take to maintain a compassionate, disciplined, and creative classroom as student numbers steadily increased.
To promote kindness and respect, and teach lessons of patience and hard work, I constantly monitored the classroom— instructing, encouraging, and analyzing students’ artwork. This was especially true during the first semester in my Art 1 classes comprised of primarily freshmen needing more supervision. Sounds right—teachers should be engaged with their classes. But what happens when half the class asks for help? I warned students it might be a long wait before I could respond to their raised hands and many were patient, but some became frustrated and even angry. Several put down their hands and never raised them again. Later, I heard students lamenting they needed more one-on-one instruction and were disappointed in their work, or felt rejected and personalized it to mean that I didn’t care about them.
It became necessary to simultaneously assist individual students while observing the entire class. I could anticipate certain students might stop working, possibly throw an eraser or pencil, use their cell phones, or begin chatting across the room. I weighed the benefits between teaching individual students or securing overall classroom discipline. How could I help students in a caring and sensitive way when I had just minutes to point out the positive in their artwork or discuss their intentions? The result of my quick comments and demonstrations was some students felt I was critical of their work. I sensed the reluctance to undergo the risk of a quick critique. Finally, I didn’t want the risk either and spent more time with fewer students.
Each of my classes included students who didn’t make an effort; others who chatted and got nothing done; some who sat quietly but did little; and some who were always working, but never completed their assignment. Initially, I assumed they were lazy, lacking in motivation, inattentive, or didn’t care about completing work. It was tempting to make those judgments, give the D or F, and save myself a lot of effort. But after having a private conversation with each of them, I learned some were lacking in basic skills and were embarrassed in front of their peers, while others just couldn’t keep up with the pace of the class. Many students were too shy or insecure to ask for help and could easily be overlooked. As classes grew, I gave up more instruction time to have these conversations to encourage more students and design individual goals.
Art is often the chosen elective for students with special needs. Some of these teens discovered hidden artistic talents. Others struggled, never getting enough instruction to master a technique and were left lacking in self-esteem and self-worth. Similarly, when the highly talented students created art pieces, they lacked the personal instruction time required to more fully expand their abilities. The demands of overcrowded classrooms do not afford these students the necessary time, space and attention.
I began my first year teaching with the notion that students were absent because they were sick or lazy. Over time, the realities behind continued absences, tardies, poor grades, and sleeping in class became clearer. Students didn’t offer the information; they just walked in and took a seat. But through private conversations, I discovered the homeless student, the student with her own child, students who remained home to baby-sit their younger siblings so parents could work, and others who suffered from illnesses. Several had late-night jobs, and many were in great distress experiencing home foreclosures, divorces, unemployed parents, while others lost a parent and/or friend to terminal illnesses, accidents and suicides. Most were relieved to share their stories and grateful for a sympathetic ear. In this past year of teaching, there were more students with more serious problems, which meant using more instruction time to have these critical discussions.
The art class offers opportunities to express personal emotions and develop creative ideas. Students expressed extraordinary insights in the narratives that accompanied their art pieces, but it was a constant challenge to elicit verbal responses during class discussions. Why was it so difficult for students to share feelings and ideas with each other? Some articulate students said they stopped responding to my questions because they were “tired of thinking for the other students who were lazy and unwilling to put out the effort.” That was certainly part of the class dynamic, but I also believe that lack of trust is a factor. Students were not willing to share personal feelings or ideas with 45 other students they didn’t know or trust. Why risk their lack of understanding, someone’s ridicule, or a tactless remark? Students watched me deal with students’ disrespect on a daily basis, why should they place themselves in that position? Creating an honest, caring class community became more elusive as the numbers grew. This was reflected in the larger school community as well.
Along with bigger classes came more administrative tasks, more meetings with counselors and parents, additional computer entries for daily attendance, class participation, grades, and anything that needed recording. During my first four years of teaching, I devoted many hours after school and on weekends grading artwork and exams. During the past two years, as student numbers reached 240, my grading methods changed dramatically. The time to review each work and the number and length of comments were reduced considerably and finally, I graded artwork during class.
As classroom size increased I ran into basic density challenges.
In an art room, increased classroom size means decreased artwork size—there isn’t enough room on each table for working large. Extra students meant extra furniture. Eventually it became a challenge to squeeze my way across the room once students were seated. I worried that a larger substitute teacher would simply not be able to navigate across the classroom! Students seated closer together also meant more behavioral problems and lower grades. This lack of personal space resulted in students acting out and distracting one another from working to their full potential. My attempts to insure the right “mix” of students at a table made seating assignments a mind-bending task.
Numerous studies indicate it takes five years for a teacher to feel confident and secure in the classroom. That was true for me. I had my lessons ready to go, knew what to expect from my 9th and 10th graders and didn’t take things quite so seriously. During my 6th and final year, I held the reins pretty tight for the first three quarters of the school year. Finally, when the fourth quarter arrived, most students worked for the sheer satisfaction of creating beautiful pieces. They trusted me, asked for help and critiques and we could relax.
So why did I choose to resign from teaching at the end of my sixth year? It was hard to leave a profession I dearly love and at which I had become accomplished. As with any profession there were difficulties as well as great satisfaction and joy. But only teachers know the physical, emotional, intellectual and psychological effort it takes to truly teach. I wanted to teach with an interchange of ideas and creativity. However, as student numbers grew, I could no longer sustain the person I had to be in order to maintain my personal standards for quality teaching. At times, I feel like a deserter, but the envy in some teachers’ eyes tells me that many would jump ship along with me if they could manage it. It’s not because we don’t want to teach, it’s because we signed up to work in teachable environments and now find ourselves in untenable situations. Many teachers are figuring out how to maintain their health, their sanity, and their standards of teaching as best they can, while suffering alongside their students in these overcrowded classrooms.
When students wrote their end of the year comments to me, the most frequent suggestion was for fewer students in the classroom.
I believe the public is unaware of the day-to-day realities of the classroom and the great harm being inflicted upon students and teachers by the steady increase of classroom size. I have written about my own teaching experience in order to shed some light on this critical situation, and move citizens to act to save the heart of our educational system.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
As a NYC middle school art teacher of 28 years, I enjoyed reading this post. I teach over 300 students each year and I hear the same complaints from my students. Many of my eighth graders have never had art before and therefore are lacking in the needed skills to meet the Benchmark Standards. Administration is now requiring us to collect data, make meaningful comments, grade to a multilevel rubric and teach art as if these students have had a developed curriculum since Kindergarden. Students get upset that their work is not “on level” and then lose interest. I spend a large amount of time grading work rather than helping these kids through the creative process. While we need accountability in teaching art I fear that we are losing the real meaning and purpose of education.
Powerful work; we as a nation and we as a profession will be poorer for your classroom absence
Beautifully stated.
I am so sorry you are no longer teaching. So many students will not benefit from your knowledge, your creativeness and your kindess. I would love to see this letter published in all the nation’s major newspapers.
People who talk negatively about teachers’ desires for smaller classes don’t often know about the amount of paperwork that is required to be kept on many students in school today. I’ve looked at the cumulative folders of many students and some of them are extremely thick. If the student transferred to another school, you would have to mathemes records in a box and not a large envelope. Teachers are the ones responsible for that paperwork and using that information to guide their instruction.
Furthermore, it’s complete nonsense to dismiss the desire for smaller classes as a ploy by the teachers union to garner more members. Virtually all charter, private, and small liberal arts colleges cite small classes as an advantage in their advertising.
THANK YOU for that beautiful post. I run into the same problem. I teach social studies for 8th and 9th graders and usually have between 240-250 students. I regret that I can’t get to know the students in the way I want to. They hunger for knowledge and enjoy confronting social issues. But there are just so many. And the number of mainstreamed, often severe, special education students is growing. I LOVE teaching special needs kids and would have them all the time, but it does take more work to help them grow.
When I tell policy makers about how many students I have, they always go pale. They don’t seem to make the connection that the severe cutting of education budgets, and the addition of more and more onerous tests has such an impact. But they still refuse to do anything about it.
I taught broadcasting and TV Production for most of my career. The program became so successful it spawned an ARTEC Academy. I was able to place students in career internships throughout the city and many of my students went on to achieve incredible success. Then they started to “dump”. It didn’t matter that we didn’t have the equipment. It didn’t matter that I had no textbooks. No one cared that there weren’t enough seats. If I wanted to survive as an elective, I learned to shut up. Luckily, I was close to retirement. The entire program is gone now. They killed it.
I had a class of 43 kindergarten students last week. What do you really think I can do with that many little ones? I often go into a class expecting a certain number only to have 8 to 12 more students. How can I be prepared to teach those extra students? Those students will either be repeating what I have already taught their own class or will be getting the lesson before the rest of their class. I have had to postpone my pretests that I will be using with my Student Learning Targets.
Beautifully written. Your powerful and moving comments should be read by all who think teachers are simply lazy if they advocate for smaller classes.
@ Brenda: I taught in a kindergarten class, in a private school, 23 years ago, where 2 teachers were assigned to 24 students per class! It was sheer joy to be involved in this nurturing environment. I can’t imagine the stress-toll of being expected to manage – much less teach – in a classroom of 43! Or 33! The love of learning must begin in the early formative years, ideally at home, to instill the desire to reach for higher education. We are robbing our youth, and our country, of a rich resource of a motivated and engaged citizenry, which is the natural outcome of an educated citizenry.
Very succinctly put.The more we spend on Defense the less we have for our future, our kids. We need smaller classes, higher paid teachers and an environment that tells our kids you are our most important asset. We do not do that. Our best teachers burn out. Our whole society is spinning out of control and no one seems willing to stop and make compromises. Are these the values we want to pass on.
thanks.
Thank you so much for writing this. You communicated your experience in a way that makes me feel completely understood. I myself am facing the current challenge of how to teach a group of 36 7th and another group of 36 8th grade 3-D art classes. It is my first year in this position and I love it, however, I find myself shutting down due to stresses and challenges that you are far too well aware of. The strategies and examples of how you managed to tend to the various dynamics and needs of your students will inspire me. Thanks again, Shauna
Thank you, I have been teaching for 18 years and my class sizes have grown from 33 to 43 on average. At the beginning of this school year one of the district administrators and my principle visited my classroom. The district administrator counted my students and said to my principal “She has 38 students in this class.” My principal responded that this was not even my biggest class. My largest class this year was 46 students. I to find it frustrating to know I have students who need more of my time and attention and not have enough time in a single class period of 55 min. to get to each one. Think of it this way I have 45 students in one room and 55min. that leaves me with about 1 min. to spend with each student if I did no teacher led instruction. Please do not get me wrong I love teaching, especially teenagers. They are fun and have a completely new perspective on life. They keep me young. So please this is not about money for me or other teachers. This about the lack of time I have to spend helping then get the most out of their education.
I am so glad that teachers continue to find this writing valuable. Thank you all for your comments! It’s been a year since I left teaching and I have to say, I miss the kids and their creativity. I’m finding ways outside the public school classroom to connect with that energy!
I couldn’t have articulated this problem better myself. Thank you for shedding light on an all-too-common issue. As an art teacher, I am strongly considering – with a heavy heart – leaving the profession as well.
Thank you for writing this post. I am an art teacher in Quebec, Canada. I just received my teaching load for next year, I feel this dread as I will have so many students. I loved that you talked about the psychological aspects of teaching art; something that the powers above don’t get. I too enjoy the personal aspects of teaching in high school. I am doing everything you mentioned, marking in class too. My marks I give students have also gone up because in all fairness they are not receiving enough attention and I just don’t want the mark to be an obstacle to learning. what does the mark really teach them. I take it one year at at time because I can’t foresee teaching like this forever. It has gotten easier but that as you mentioned is mostly gained survival techniques:) thanks again for a fantastic blog.
Thank you for your sincere comments. I’m so grateful that my article is of some help to you and commend you for all your heartfelt efforts in teaching.