Too Crowded? Compare Class Sizes at Local High Schools

Class size at Half Moon Bay High School pushes past the statewide average but has a lower pupil-to-teacher ratio than other California high schools, recently released figures from the 2011-12 school year show.

Half Moon Bay High School, with 935 students, boasts slightly lower class sizes than Pacifica public high schools at 27.6 students per class. The state average is 23.6, according to the statistics published on the Ed-Data website.

Terra Nova High in Pacifica comes in with the biggest average class size: 28.7. It also has the largest pupil-to-teacher ratio, with 24.5 students per educator.

Check out area high schools here or do your own comparisons on the Ed-Data website:

School Class Size Comparisons, 2011-12 School Enrollment Average Class Size Pupils per Teacher Number of Teachers

Aragon High

1499 29.2 22.1 76 Half Moon Bay High 935 27.6 22.1 45 Hillsdale High 1318 26.9 19.1 77 Oceana High 613 28.2 22.7 29 San Mateo High 1373 28.0 20.1 76 Terra Nova High 1230 28.7 24.5 52 Statewide Average n/a 23.6 22.7 n/a

The statistics are published by the the Ed-Data website, a partnership between the California Department of Education (CDE), EdSource, and the Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team to provide data about K-12 education.

There's a longstanding debate surrounding the importance of class size. A report issued two years ago by the Brookings Institute indicated significant class size reduction—along the lines of seven to 10 students—had the biggest impact on student achievement, but this was much more pronounced in younger students than at the high school level.

Do you think average class size at Half Moon Bay High School is too high? How does this impact students' learning? Tell us in the comment section below.

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