The Reference Desk, using available evidence and research, provides quick-turnaround responses to questions submitted by education stakeholders around the Northeast and Islands Region. Every Friday, REL-NEI highlights one or two questions submitted to its Reference Desk.
Question of the Week
Do High School Grade Configurations Affect Student Achievement and Outcomes?
Last week, this Digest featured a question about the effects of different grade configurations on student achievement and behavior in middle schools. This week’s entry looks at the research on high-school grade configurations.
Question
What does the research say about how high school grade configurations affect student achievement and outcomes?
Research Synthesis
Reference Desk researchers found a number of resources that address the topic of high school grade configuration. The findings from one study “imply that as the grade level of transition to high school is raised, high school dropout rates increase…. The dropout rates are particularly large for grade 10–12 high schools with the transition to high school at 10th grade. The dropout rates were lowest for both boys and girls in high schools with grade spans from 7 through 12 in which the transition to high school occurred at seventh grade” (Alspaugh, 2000; see below). However, another report suggests “the presence of a transition from eighth grade to ninth grade makes almost no difference for students’ ninth-grade outcomes relative to those of students who do not change schools between those grades” (Weiss, 2007; see below).
Publicly Available Resources
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The Effect of Transition Grade to High School, Gender, and Grade Level Upon Dropout Rates. Alspaugh, J.; Fall 2000; American Secondary Education, Vol. 29, No. 1 ; ERIC Document # ED431066; pp. 2–9.
From the abstract: “The purpose of this ex post facto study was to explore the interactive relationship among grade level of transition to high school, gender, and grade level of dropping out of high school as factors associated with high school dropout rates. The findings imply that as the grade level of transition to high school is raised, high school dropout rates increase…. It appears that as the grade level of transition to high school is raised, the difference between dropout rates for boys and girls increases…. The dropout rates are particularly large for grade 10–12 high schools with the transition to high school at 10th grade. The dropout rates were lowest for both boys and girls in high schools with grade spans from 7 through 12 in which the transition to high school occurred at seventh grade.”
- Fresh Starts: Reinvestigating the Effects of the Transition to High School on Student Outcomes. Weiss, C. C., and Bearman, P. S.; May 2007; American Journal of Education, Vol. 113, No. 3; ERIC Document #EJ757582; pp. 395–422.
From the abstract: “This article uses natural variation in the American educational system to … directly compare the ninth-grade outcomes of students who make a transition in moving to ninth grade with those who do not… [R]esults show that for both academic and nonacademic outcomes, the presence of a transition from eighth grade to ninth grade makes almost no difference for students’ ninth-grade outcomes relative to those of students who do not change schools between those grades. This is not to suggest that outcomes do not change between eighth grade and ninth grade but that the degree of difference is the same for students who change schools as for those who do not. Where differences appear, they are small and point to the benefits of school transitions for providing fresh starts to adolescents in socially difficult situations.”
- The Relationship Between Grade Configuration and Student Performance in Rural Schools. Franklin, B. J., and Glascock, C. H.; 1996; National Rural Education Association; ERIC Document # ED403083; 54 pages.
From the abstract: “This paper examines the relationship between a school’s grade configuration and student performance in Louisiana. Student performance was measured by academic achievement (standardized test scores) and student persistence (attendance, suspensions, expulsions, and dropouts)…. For grades 9–12, the K–12 school was more beneficial to students than the traditional secondary school, particularly in the area of student persistence or conduct.”
The Reference Desk also found this organization and these resources to be helpful in learning more about
grade configurations in general:
- Grade Configuration: Who Goes Where? Paglin, C. and Fager, J.; 1997; Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory; 43 pages.
According to the introduction, this booklet “is meant to increase awareness and understanding of grade span as an issue, provide examples of ways schools have addressed concerns associated with particular grade spans, and suggest avenues for further inquiry.”
- National Clearinghouse for Educational Facilities (NCEF)
This topic page on the NCEF website provides: “Information on how changing grade configurations impacts educational facilities planning.”
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