Data on more than 2,700 disadvantaged secondary (high) school students shows that minimizing pupil numbers in classrooms does not lead to better grades. Reducing class sizes could even decrease the odds of children achieving the best results, say the study authors. The quantity of teachers also does not increase the odds of pupils from the poorest backgrounds achieving academically, despite concerns over staff shortages in schools. Instead, the researchers say that resilience is guaranteed by the quality of teachers such as those with high discipline standards and who use their expertise to improve learning. https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/03/240308123326.htm Although this study is about China and Japan, it is probably generally applicable. In a larger classroom the teacher must enforce order and attention to prevent chaos. In a smaller classroom, there is more tendency to get involved in informal one-to-one communication, which can easily get out of hand and lead to a chaotic learning environment.
That's hilarious. I was shaking my head willing to agree with you until you came to this last part. China and Japan ARE NOT like the people in other societies. There are some very big differences, and these Asian students study a lot on their own and put themselves under a lot of pressure. This study suggests a possibility that it MIGHT be applicable to other countries, but I think it's way too big of a jump to assume that it probably is.
