Large classes - Low achievement? Class sizes and historical knowledge in fifteen countries

The relationship between class size and students' achievement is a matter o f enduring discussion; Based on a large data set of ninth graders (665 clas ses from 15 different countries), the relationship between class size and a chievement in the subject "History" was investigated. Contrary to the often held opinion that pupils attending smaller classes display higher achievem ent, the averaged (corrected) correlation between class size and students' tests results did not differ from zero (R-12 = -.01; range: -.37 < R-12 < . 32).