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Research Report

Elementary School Grade Reconfiguration

At most public school districts, students attend elementary schools based on their neighborhood of residence. This report guides administrators deciding whether or not to re-assign students to elementary schools based on their grade.

At most public school districts, students attend elementary schools based on their neighborhood of residence. Under grade reconfiguration efforts, administrators could pursue elementary school reassignment based on grade level—all K-2 students attend one school, and all 3-5 students attend another. Our research guides administrators deciding whether or not reconfigure grades—based on potential implications for instructional standardization, operations, cost efficiency, and stakeholder response.

Reconfiguring grades leads to mostly positive results at small districts

At all profiled districts, administrators reconfigured K-5 or K-6 elementary schools into K-2 schools and 3-5 schools. While contacts at District B, District C, and District D report mostly positive outcomes and few drawbacks associated with grade reconfiguration, contacts at District A report entirely negative outcomes of grade reconfiguration. Notably, a higher total student enrollment and accompanying challenges such as the redistribution of a large number of students may have contributed to these negative outcomes at District A. Administrators at District A chose to revert to the district’s original grade configuration model several years after reconfiguring grades. Contacts at other profiled districts offer solutions to many of the negative outcomes reported by contacts at District A.

Reconfiguration standardizes grade-level instruction

Contacts at District B, District C, and District D report significant improvements to teachers’ opportunities to collaborate with their entire grade-level team following grade reconfiguration. Contacts at these districts report that this improved collaboration in turn improved instructional standardization across different course sections within the same grade—students are now more likely to learn the same content at the same time. Contacts at District D…

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