The effect of smaller classes on infection-related school absence: evidence from the Project STAR randomized controlled trial.

ABSTRACT:

Background

In an effort to reduce viral transmission, many schools reduced class sizes during the recent pandemic. Yet the effect of class size on transmission is unknown.

Methods

We used data from Project STAR, a randomized controlled trial in which 10,816 Tennessee elementary students were assigned at random to smaller classes (13 to 17 students) or larger classes (22 to 26 students) in 1985-89. We merged Project STAR schools with data on local deaths from pneumonia and influenza in the 122 Cities Mortality Report System. Using mixed effects linear, Poisson, and negative binomial regression, we estimated the main effect of smaller classes on absence. We used an interaction to test whether the effect of small classes on absence was larger when and where community pneumonia

SUBMITTER: von Hippel PT 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10765901 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature