The relationship between class size and secondary students' mathematics achievement: longitudinal evidence from a large-sized class in China.
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| Title: | The relationship between class size and secondary students' mathematics achievement: longitudinal evidence from a large-sized class in China. |
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| Authors: | He, Yahan1 (AUTHOR), Zhang, Shumei2 (AUTHOR), Fan, Lianzhong3 (AUTHOR), Yu, Boran4 (AUTHOR), Wang, Lidong5 (AUTHOR) wldyaoyuan@163.com |
| Source: | Cambridge Journal of Education. Aug2025, Vol. 55 Issue 4, p587-603. 17p. |
| Subject Terms: | *Class size, *Secondary education, *Students, *Longitudinal method, *Mathematical ability testing, Analysis of variance |
| Geographic Terms: | China |
| Abstract: | This study examines the relationship between class size and secondary school students' mathematics achievement focusing on three aspects: (1) the relationship between class size and mean mathematics achievement gains; (2) how relationships differentiate across student groups; and (3) the association between class size and variance in mathematics achievement gains. Using nested ANOVA, the authors analysed improvements in the mathematics achievement of 8295 Chinese middle school students from classes of different sizes over two academic years, while ANOVA was employed to examine variance across different class sizes. The findings suggest no significant relationship between class size and mean gains but a significant relationship between class size and achievement variance. Further analysis of different student groups indicated that although larger class sizes were associated with increased variability in mathematics improvement, there were no differential relationships for students with different class ranking or mathematics performance level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
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| Database: | Education Research Complete |
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| Abstract: | This study examines the relationship between class size and secondary school students' mathematics achievement focusing on three aspects: (1) the relationship between class size and mean mathematics achievement gains; (2) how relationships differentiate across student groups; and (3) the association between class size and variance in mathematics achievement gains. Using nested ANOVA, the authors analysed improvements in the mathematics achievement of 8295 Chinese middle school students from classes of different sizes over two academic years, while ANOVA was employed to examine variance across different class sizes. The findings suggest no significant relationship between class size and mean gains but a significant relationship between class size and achievement variance. Further analysis of different student groups indicated that although larger class sizes were associated with increased variability in mathematics improvement, there were no differential relationships for students with different class ranking or mathematics performance level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
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| ISSN: | 0305764X |
| DOI: | 10.1080/0305764X.2025.2521514 |
