Nevada is ranked poorly on class sizes

By Emily Richmond (contact)

Wednesday, Dec. 1, 2004 | 11:06 a.m.

Nevada's public school classrooms are the sixth-largest in the nation with an average of 19 students for every one teacher, according to a new report released Tuesday by the National Education Association.

Tuesday's report included updates of estimates released last spring. The annual roundup of statistics by the country's largest teachers' union combined statistics for Clark and Washoe counties with the state's 15 rural school districts.

Many Clark County schools, which account for about 70 percent of Nevada's student enrollment, have class sizes significantly larger than the average for both the state and for Utah, which ranked first on the NEA survey with 22.5 students for every teacher. The national average student-teacher ratio for 2003-04 was 15.7 to 1.

It's not unusual to have middle school classes with as many as 35 students and high school electives with 40 students, said Agustin Orci, deputy superintendent of instruction for the Clark County School District.

State statute requires class sizes in grades one through three to be no larger than 15 students for each teacher. But the 2003 Legislature passed a budget that funded schools at a ratio of 16 to 1 for first and second grades and 19 to 1 in third grade.

For the 2003-04 academic year, 13 of the state's 17 school districts -- including Clark County -- received waivers from the Nevada Department of Education to exceed the class-size limits.

For the 2003-04 academic year, Clark County's average for grades one and two was 18 to 1. In grade three the average jumped to 21 to 1, according to district figures. In grade four, which has no limit on class size, the average teacher had 29 students. The ratio climbed again in fifth grade, to 30 students for each teacher.

The state's class size reduction plan has thus far focused on grades one through three at a cost of $100 million annually. Some educators and parents have pushed for the money to instead be shared out through all grades, bringing down class sizes by a smaller percentage overall but possibly helping more students in the long run.

The 2003 Legislature approved letting rural districts, which struggle to find qualified teachers, maintain a ratio of 22 students for every teacher in grades one through five. The statute change came after the Elko County School District sought a waiver to switch to the 22 to 1 ratio and later reported improved test scores and overall student achievement.

A request by the Clark County School District for similar accommodations was denied. Lawmakers instead told Clark County education officials to conduct a study of possible class size reduction plans and report to the 2005 Legislature in February, Orci said.

Research on the effectiveness of class size reduction plans has been mixed. There is no "magic number" that guarantees student success although educators agree that "smaller is better," Orci said.

"When you start getting up over 25 (students for every teacher) it becomes very difficult to provide individualized attention," Orci said.

Class size reduction is also expensive -- it would take $14.6 million to reduce the district's fourth and fifth grade classes to a ratio of 25 to 1, district officials said.

Pat Skorkowsky, principal of Thurman White Middle School, said class sizes at his Henderson campus average 32 students for every teacher. Even at that size it's a struggle to find enough classroom space, Skorkowsky said.

The Elko plan "looks promising" but may be difficult to replicate in Clark County, Skorkowsky said.

"You can't take a cookie cutter approach," Skorkowsky said. "All of Nevada's districts are so different -- what might work for a rural school may not be the answer here. That's why we need a class size reduction plan that's flexible."

In addition to student-teacher ratios, the NEA report also looked at education spending, teacher salaries and per-pupil funding. Nevada's overall rankings for the 2003-04 academic year were essentially unchanged from the prior year.

When it came to education spending, Nevada held on to 47th place for the second consecutive year, with an average per-pupil expenditure of $6,230. That was a 1.7 percent increase over the 2002-03 average of $6,128. The District of Columbia ranked first with $13,317, while Utah was last with $5,091.

California climbed five spots to 25th place, with an average per-pupil expenditure of $7,692, an increase of 6.2 percent over the prior year. Vermont had the largest increase in education spending -- 6.7 percent, to $10,630 per student, putting the state in sixth place. The national average per-pupil expenditure was $8,208.

Nevada ranked 26th in the nation for a second consecutive year with an average teacher salary of $42,254, up 1.1 percent over the 2002-03 academic year. For the 2003-'04 academic year, the national average for teacher salaries was $46,726, an increase of 2 percent over the prior year.

In Clark County, which accounts for 70 percent of the state's student enrollment, teacher salaries start at $28,491. To earn $42,245, the district's salary schedule requires a teacher to have at least nine years experience and 32 credits toward a master's degree. About half of the district's 16,200 teachers have taught for fewer than five years.