The Impact of Looping Classroom Environments on Parental Attitudes

Abstract

This study examined the effects of looping–teachers' remaining with a core group of students for multiple years–in the educational community, in particular, the effects on parent perceptions of the educational environment. A survey instrument was completed by 455 parents of looping (200) and nonlooping (255) students in a large urban school corporation in the Midwest. When compared, looping parent responses were significantly more positive on several variables of interest, including parent and student attitudes toward the school environment and student motivation. In some instances, low income and single parent families reported more positive perceptions of looping classrooms than families of higher income and traditional two-parent families.

Key Words:

• looping classrooms
• parent attitudes
• elementary schools
• child development

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Get W. Nichols

Joe D. Nichols is an associate professor in the School of Education at Indiana University-Purdue University in Ft. Wayne, and Get W. Nichols is a principal at Brentwood Latin Grammar School in Fort Wayne, Indiana. An earlier version of this article was presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association, San Diego, California, April 1998.