Combs, Julie P.Clark, David MMoore, George W.Onwuegbuzie, Anthony K.Edmonson, Stacy L.Slate, John R.2021-04-122021-04-122011Combs, J. P., Clark, D., Moore, G. W., Onwuegbuzie, A. J., Edmonson, S. L, & Slate, J. R. (2011). Academic achievement for fifth-grade students in elementary and intermediate school settings: Grade span configurations. Current Issues in Education 14(1), 1-45.https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11875/2947Article orginally published in Current Issues in EducationFew researchers have addressed student achievement outcomes as a function of grade span configurations for older elementary-aged students. Thus, this study was designed to determine differences between students’ Grade 5 reading and mathematics achievement in elementary schools (K–5) as compared to intermediate schools (Grade 5, 5–6) for 5 academic years. Using archival statewide data, researchers used a rigorous five-step distance-based formula to match elementary schools to intermediate schools on four demographic/school characteristic variables. Students in K-5 settings attained statistically significantly higher levels of reading and mathematics achievement than did their counterparts, with moderate mean effect sizes of 0.37 and 0.47, respectively.achievementgrade configurationelementary schoolsgrade spanmiddle schoolsintermediate schoolsschool settingsArticle