Project Activities
Research question
- How did schools implement the three key steps of departmentalized instruction, including selecting a staffing model, developing a schoolwide schedule, and assigning teachers to subjects?
- Were teachers' experiences implementing departmentalized instruction consistent with the potential benefits and challenges?
Structured Abstract
Design
This descriptive study shares lessons about the implementation of departmentalized instruction under challenging circumstances. A total of 90 elementary schools in 12 districts across the country were initially recruited to participate. All schools used self-contained classrooms during the 2018–19 school year. In the 2019–20 school year, approximately half of the schools switched for up to two years to departmentalized instruction in fourth grade and fifth grade and the others continued to use self-contained instruction. Because the coronavirus pandemic subsequently disrupted both departmentalization efforts and the administration of state academic assessments, the study focused on the implementation experiences of participating schools and teachers. Data collection included: principal interviews to learn how teacher assignments were made and departmentalization was structured; school and teacher administrative data; and a teacher survey.
Key findings
Key findings from the report include:
- Schools implemented key steps needed to departmentalize instruction, but some faced scheduling challenges. Schools that departmentalized instruction mostly assigned teachers to math and English language arts in ways aligned with their relative strengths, an essential feature of departmentalized instruction. But developing a teaching schedule that accommodated those assignments was difficult for some schools even before the switch to remote learning.
- Departmentalized teachers' experiences were consistent with some, but not all, of the potential benefits and challenges of using departmentalized instruction in elementary schools. For example, departmentalized teachers spent more hours per week than other teachers planning for each subject they taught, and they were more satisfied with what they taught. However, departmentalized teachers also reported spending less time meeting with students and their parents, which might make it harder for teachers to understand students' needs and adapt their instruction to meet those needs.
- The effects of departmentalized instruction on student achievement and teacher retention remain unclear. This study was unable to assess the effects of departmentalized instruction on student achievement and teacher retention. Other recent studies found that students taught by departmentalized teachers had lower achievement than those taught by self-contained teachers, but those studies had some shortcomings that limit whether conclusions can be drawn with confidence.
People and institutions involved
IES program contact(s)
Products and publications
A report, titled Evaluation of Departmentalized Instruction in Elementary Schools: Exploring Implementation Experiences was released in July 2024.
A restricted-use file containing de-identified data is available for the purposes of replicating study findings and conducting secondary analyses.
Publicly-available instruments used to collect study data are available here (PDF: 1.6MB).
Questions about this project?
To answer additional questions about this project or provide feedback, please contact the program officer.
