RECORD
Lubienski, Sarah T., and Christopher Lubienski, and Corinna C. Crane. “Achievement Differences and School Type: The Role of School Climate, Teacher Certification, and Instruction.” American Journal of Education 115. 1(2008): 97-138. Print.
The article can also be accessed here:http://ezproxy.messiah.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=34884906&site=ehost-live
SUMMARY
The Lubienskis have published more than one paper on a similar topic. This one is a look into the reasons why they received the results they did in their first study on the subject in 2006 (you can a summary and the full text here: http://www.ncspe.org/readrel.php?set=pub&cat=126). In that study, they made use of the NAEP data from 2003 and drew the conclusion that after adjusting for demographics, public schools performed about the same or slightly better than private schools. This was surprising to many, and so this particular study is rather welcome. This installment of their study uses the same data, with a different analysis pattern, to try to isolate the variables which create the difference in performance. Being based on a previous study of theirs, the analysis provided here will treat all findings they reported in the original 2006 paper as trustworthy, although it goes almost without saying that there are those who would dissent in this opinion.
This study focuses on a number of variables, and works to show which ones are significant in producing the outcome described above. These variables are: school type, class size, variables involving school climate/parental involvement, teacher certification and qualification, and instruction practices. The study used the raw, restricted-access mathematics data from the 2003 Main NAEP data, which sported samples larger than any other nationally representative assessment of U.S. schools. The scope of the assessment is large, however, the Lubienskis do say that some of the questions used in the assessment are rather rough and unspecific. This is important to know when interpreting the findings.
The public schools used had a lot more minority students, children with poor English skills, students with individualized education plans, children who needed special lunch rates, and those who had limited access to at-home study materials. The private schools studied were generally smaller, with higher teacher morale, higher level of parental involvement, and less school conflict. The public school teachers were mostly certified, while on average, the conservative Christian schools had less than 45% certified teachers. Public school teachers reported in participating in more forms of professional development than private school teachers generally did.
The study found a number of things that may seem surprising to some. For one thing, only certain forms of parental involvement can be deemed significant. Involvement in PTA meetings and other academic support proved significant, while something like volunteering at the school meant very little. Teacher morale and students talking about their studies at home both had positive effects, while student absences had a very negative effect on achievement. Surprisingly, the time spent on mathematics instruction was insignificant (although the input for this variable is known to be rather weak and non-specific), but teaching method had a great deal to do with success. Teachers who exposed themselves to different types of professional development were more effective. Lastly, the study found that the way in which math was taught was very important. Those schools who taught mathematics from a very traditional emphasis on basic operations held their students back a bit from achievement, whereas an emphasis on more reform-based mathematics instruction brought success with algebra, graphical analysis, and the teaching of the use of calculators.
All of this being said, the study claims that the grand majority of the differences in performance should be chalked up to demographics in the school. School climate, pedagogy, and teacher qualification, while significant, was shown to be much less of a factor than the actual make-up of the students in the school. As mentioned earlier, the public schools contained many more children who had trouble with English, who qualified for lunch assistance, and other factors. Even with these considerations, the public schools performed right alongside or a little better than the private schools.
There’s no way of knowing whether these factors “caused” the differences, or to what extent that causality may be the opposite. The study also assumed linear relationships as opposed to other sorts of regressions. The age and grades of the students probably has an impact on results (4th and 8th grade).
The most important things to look at are the most significant impacts: teacher certification and the use of reform-oriented mathematics instruction in public schools. Teachers need to be more highly qualified and involved in academic endeavors, while holding to the new and nationally approved non-traditional methods of mathematics. These are the fairly black and white results of the study.
APPRAISAL
This study is excellent at providing possible solutions to the question of why their previous study showed public schools performing at a higher level than private schools. However, a few things should be noted, before taking everything the study showed as scripture. First, the age of the students was very limiting. Fourth grade and eighth grade students have very different attitudes in both public and private schools, and their inputs are affected accordingly. Similarly, their application of more mathematics is rather limited, and so measuring their mathematics achievement is less indicative at this point in their experience. The study showed rightly, I believe, that teacher qualification is very significant in improving the outcomes of their students. Other examples, like the Finnish education system, show us that better teachers improve students more. This makes sense, but it seems that at the top of the factors which are shown in the study to be significant, this one is more than most, as it is also backed by history. The whole study is significant in the light of school voucher systems and the push for private schooling. If there are reasons to go to a private school, it seems this study had trouble justifying it, based solely on performance in mathematics in fourth and eighth grades. What the study fails to show is: long term benefits of one system versus the other and the way in which these small factors like teacher morale may impact a love for learning (which is not discernable from math scores). There are reasons outside of this study’s scope which may compel a reasonable person to go to a private school. This may be because of a more long term benefit, or a better atmosphere, or out of a religious desire, or some other reason, even though there may be no mathematical reason in fourth and eighth grades. For example, while math scores don’t show any benefit, the data still shows that private school classes are smaller, that the teachers have higher morale, and that there is less conflict. If these reasons are more compelling than an elementary school math score on a test which is administered according to the state’s standard of excellence (thus favoring the reform-based teaching), then certainly, a private school is still an excellent choice.
A review by: Noel Murray of Messiah College
Education Research Reviews 