Size as an Issue of Adequacy and Equity in Rural Places: Preliminary Results from the Matthew Project.

Autor/in	Howley, Craig
Titel	Size as an Issue of Adequacy and Equity in Rural Places: Preliminary Results from the Matthew Project.
Quelle	(1999), (39 Seiten) PDF als Volltext kostenfreie Datei Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Monographie
Schlagwörter	Academic Achievement; Educational Environment; Effect Size; Elementary Secondary Education; Poverty; Rural Schools; School District Size; School Districts; School Size; Small Schools; Socioeconomic Influences; Socioeconomic Status; Montana; Ohio + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Schulleistung; Lernumgebung; Pädagogische Umwelt; Schulumwelt; Armut; Rural area; Rural areas; School; Schools; Ländlicher Raum; Schule; Schulen; School district; School districts; Size; Schuleinzugsbereich; Schulbezirk; Sozioökonomischer Faktor; Socio-economic status; Sozioökonomischer Status
Abstract	Previous research in California, Alaska, and West Virginia has suggested that school or school district size may influence student achievement indirectly by mediating the effects of socioeconomic status (SES) on achievement. The Matthew Project is replicating the key analyses of the West Virginia study in four strategically chosen states: Georgia, Ohio, Montana, and Texas. This paper summarizes preliminary results related to school district size in Ohio and Montana. Variables included grade-level measures of achievement from statewide data sets for 1996-97; various proxies for SES (Aid to Dependent Children in Ohio and free and reduced-price meal rate in Montana); and school district size (actual size in Ohio and district enrollment in the grade under analysis in Montana, which has various district configurations). In each state, school districts were divided into two groups at the median for size. Preliminary findings include descriptive statistics, district-level regression equations for the ninth grade in Ohio and the eighth grade in Montana, effect sizes as appropriate, and correlational analysis by district size halves. Ohio results indicate an overall interaction pattern in which lower poverty rates were associated with greater benefits from large district size. Smaller Ohio districts exhibited a weaker correlation between district-level SES and aggregate student achievement at the ninth-grade level. In Montana, the interaction effect was weak, but unexpectedly, district size had a direct negative effect on achievement. Despite being somewhat poorer, smaller Montana districts performed better than larger Montana districts. Implications and recommendations for state policy are discussed. Contains 33 references and 7 tables. (SV)
Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC