Yes! And all research in education that I've ever seen agrees that class size is a vital component in successful learning. This is especially important to the writing classroom. Paul E. Doniger "If this were play'd upon a stage now, I could condemn it as an improbable fiction" (_Twelfth Night_ 3.4.127-128). ________________________________ From: Scott <[log in to unmask]> To: [log in to unmask] Sent: Friday, May 29, 2009 8:30:56 PM Subject: Re: Class size ATEG Digest - 28 May 2009 to 29 May 2009 - Special issue (#2009-127) I too am normally reluctant to classify a remark as stupid; however, the list member who indicated that class size was irrelevant in teaching writing must have been brought up by a school board member. My alma mater, MSC, whose regular Freshman English program I have praised highly, had a secondary program in basic writing skills for those who had failed the English placement exam. I had scored a 100 in the exam but my advisor had accidentally put my test in the "Dummy English" pile; therefore, I had to take a non-credit English class on the same semester as my first Freshman English class. My advisor apologized to me later but I replied that I had learned more in Dummy English than in regular English because the class size was quite small--around ten students--and we wrote a theme each day instead of one a week. The professor in the Dummy Class was also an excellent teacher. Having taught across the academic curriculum, I can aver that, in my experience, class size is more important in English composition than in any other academic class, including mathematics and foreign languages. N. Scott Catledge, PhD/STD Professor Emeritus *************************************************************************** To join or leave this LISTSERV list, please visit the list's web interface at: http://listserv.muohio.edu/archives/ateg.html and select "Join or leave the list" Visit ATEG's web site at http://ateg.org/ To join or leave this LISTSERV list, please visit the list's web interface at: http://listserv.muohio.edu/archives/ateg.html and select "Join or leave the list" Visit ATEG's web site at http://ateg.org/