Hot Topic: I chose to do my hot topic on class sizes.

I think this is a very important topic that seriously needs to be addressed. Students and teachers are becoming overwhelmed with the overcrowding in classrooms. Teachers struggle to teach and students struggle to learn. Here are some facts, and other information related to this hot topic: On July 3, 2013 Superintendent Pat Skorkowsky sated in an interview that reducing class sizes in CCSD is one of his top priorities Reducing class sizes in Southern Nevada to the national average would take $1.2 billion over four years, according to figures released by the Clark County School District. But it will take more than the will of the School District or its teachers union to bring class sizes down. The Nevada Legislature will have to agree and find a way to fund the effort. Currently, class sizes in Clark County are among the largest in the nation, according to the district. In the wake of the recession, the School District raised its student-to-teacher ratios to balance its budget. Although a 1989 plan to reduce class sizes has kept the average in first through third grades between 19 and 22 students, numbers in the other grades have ballooned with the growing population in Southern Nevada. The average class in kindergarten has 26 students. By fourth and fifth grades, that number has risen to 34. In middle and high school, the average class has 38 students. Some teachers in Las Vegas have reported classes in the 40s. At a time when tight state budgets are pushing schools to increase class sizes at all levels, some of the most powerful voices in educational policymaking are telling us that size doesnt matter. Unless, maybe, large classes improve student learning. According to recent statements by Education Secretary Arne Duncan and Bill Gates, for example, great teachers do just fine with oversize classes. So why not give as many students as possible a seat in their classrooms?

Most of the research done in the last 30 years argues against this notion, showing that small classes, especially in the primary grades, boost student achievement and that the benefits last through later grades when students are in ordinary size classrooms. Overall, this is a serious issue that shouldnt be taken lightly. While school districts focus on test scores they should be focused on better environments for students to learn in. Which in turn will improve test scores significantly.