Healdsburg High Among Highest in Class Size in Sonoma County

Class sizes at traditional Sonoma County high schools push past the statewide norm but continuation high schools boast below-average class sizes, recently released figures from the 2011-12 school year show.

In light of these, Healdsburg High has nothing to be too proud of: We come in second in highest pupil-to-teacher ratio (23.9), just behind Rancho Cotate in Rohnert Park (24.4).

Healdsburg High also reported the second highest average class size in the county: 28.3 kids per classroom, just a tenth of a point behind Rancho Cotate, at 28.4.

Sonoma Valley High had the lowest pupil-to-teacher ratio of any traditional high school in the area, at 20 kids per teacher. The state average is 22.7.

Sonoma Valley and Petaluma High schools both reported an average class size of 26.6 students, the best for traditional high schools in the county. 

The state average is 23.6, according to the statistics published on the Ed-Data website.

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

Carpe Diem High*

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 sizes at Sonoma County high schools are too high? How does this impact students' learning? Tell us in the comment section below.