There are two main directions that the Wayland Public Schools might take to address class size: additions of staff only, or additions of staff and physical space. Depending upon specific needs and available space at each elementary school, staff additions might be in the form of teachers, teaching assistants, and/or educational specialists (e.g., for reading or math).
The School Committee's 1999 Class Size Task Force, on which I served, studied these and other options. Based on my own beliefs and the task force's work, I have come to the following conclusions.
1. Our goal must be the continuation of an excellent school system.
2. Parents clearly want smaller classes, as evidenced by the late 1990s petition effort that garnered over 600 signatures.
3. Research often but not always says that reducing class sizes has a measurable impact. For Wayland, reducing from mid-20s means that resulting classes would be in the high-teens/low-20s.
4. Clearly, other than financial, class size reduction does no harm.
5. Comparable towns have smaller class sizes, especially in grades 3-5.
6. Based on a thorough survey, our teachers see clear benefits to class size reduction.
7. The issue, then, is one of money, both in the form of staff and building space.
8. While being respectful of the impact of school spending on real estate taxes, especially for long-time residents who may now be on fixed incomes, it is my opinion that spending money wisely and in line with the School Committee's class size policy to ensure the excellence of our school system is an imperative that will pay itself back many times over, both educationally and in terms of property values.
Thank you.
Class Size | MCAS | METCO | Special Education
If you have any questions or comments, call me at 508-353-3175 or
send me email at dieffenbach @ alum.mit.edu.