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Chapter 1

Chapter 1. Misconceptions about School Finance. Education has never been a high prestige, high paying profession in the United States.

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Chapter 1

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  1. Chapter 1 Misconceptions about School Finance

  2. Education has never been a high prestige, high paying profession in the United States. Teaching has always been a difficult, demanding, and poorly resourced profession that swayed in local, state, (and increasingly since the 1980s) national political winds. Education’s “Good old days” never existed beyond the founding fathers’ dreams. The Truth Is…

  3. Federal Involvement in Education has been Supportive • Public education’s importance to our national agenda and economy makes it a logical political focus • Federal involvement in schools, however, is largely subject to political winds

  4. 1999-2000: Operating budgets of all public K-12 education totaled more than $373 billion. Employing approximately 3,000,000 teachers. Also, in Fall 2001: 1.6 million administrators, counselors, paraprofessionals, or support staff. 53.2 million public school students. American Public Education is Big Business* * U.S Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, “Revenues and Expenditures for Public Elementary and Secondary Education: School Year 1999-2000.” http://www.policyalmanac.org/educationa/archive/doe_education_spending.shtml.

  5. K-12= 4.3% GDP* K-16 = 7.1% GDP American Public Education is Big Business *GDP= Gross Domestic Product – the total output produced within a country during a year.

  6. With 4.6 million employees, public education has 5 X’s MORE than those working for GM, GE, & IBM COMBINED!!! If Public Education Were a National Company, in 2001… [1] U.S Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, “Revenues and Expenditures for Public Elementary and Secondary Education: School Year 1999-2000.” http://www.policyalmanac.org/educationa/archive/doe_education_spending.shtml.

  7. Education-BashingHas Become Fashionable The data show that American schools have never been asked to do more with fewer resources under a higher level of public scrutiny – and with a higher level of expectations – than any other time in our history*. *Bracey, G. Setting the Record Straight: Responses to Misconceptions About Public Education in the United States. ASCD, Alexandria, 1997 and Berliner, D., Biddle, B. The Manufactured Crisis: Myths, Fraud, and Attack on America’s Public Schools, 1995, Longman, New York.

  8. 1950: 33% of US population were high school graduates 12.6% African-American Males 14.7% African-American Females Few special needs students TODAY: All students More diverse students – Ability Race Ethnicity Special Needs Low SES And so on…. The “Good Old Days”?

  9. 5 Misconceptions About Education Finance: • Our country spends more on education than any other country. 2. Education costs have recently skyrocketed. 3. Spending more money on education does not mean better student achievement results. 4. Education salaries are high in relation to other similarly trained professions. 5. Education today employs too many administrators.

  10. This is not true for public education (K through grade 12). It is only true if you look at total dollars spent including higher education. MISCONCEPTION #1 – THE UNITED STATES SPENDS MORE ON EDUCATION THAN ANY OTHER COUNTRY.

  11. Placing “Dollars” Into a Cultural Context Figure 1.1 - Educational Expenditures per Student in Relation to GDP per Capita, by Level of Education for Selected OECD Countries: 1998

  12. Comparing total dollars spent on education without equalizing dollars for cost of living is not comparing “apples to apples”. What Should Be Said…

  13. To Compare “Apples” to “Apples” Examine not the actual dollar amounts spent for education on a per pupil basis, but the percent those dollars represent as a portion of the entire country’s economy.

  14. GNP – Gross National Product: The total value at current market prices of all goods and services that a country produces during a year. GDP – Gross Domestic Product: The total value of all output by all factors owned by the country regardless of where the production takes place. Equalizing Currency

  15. Examine not the actual dollar amounts spent for education on a per pupil basis, but the percent those dollars represent as a portion of the entire country’s economy Another way to equalize dollars and make reasonable international comparisons Understanding Spending in Its Relative Place

  16. To compare U.S. dollars to the equivalent currency in Mexico, Poland, Hungary, and the Czech Republic (see next slide) would be inaccurate and inappropriate. Relative Standards of Living

  17. Educational Expenditures per Student in Relation to GDP per Capita Figure 1.1 - Educational Expenditures per Student in Relation to GDP per Capita, by Level of Education for Selected OECD Countries: 1998

  18. U.S. Education Spending is Comparable* to Other “First World” Countries’ Spending *Without the RED boxes which represent post-secondary (college) education.

  19. Unless these dollars are equalized to account for a relative standard of living, the comparisons will not be valid Variations in costs of living in different countries National vs. local salary schedules Local wealth in suburban, urban & rural communities Geographic location Comparing International Spending: Salary Differences

  20. Virtually no other country provides a free and appropriate education to all of its children from kindergarten through grade 12 and from ages two to twenty-two for students with special needs. That alone will increase the average spending per student on a per capita basis in comparison with other countries. It is Important to Remember…

  21. U.S. GDP is far ahead of most other countries. This indicates that our relative wealth and standard of living is high in relation to the other OECD nations. U.S. education spending is not commensurate with our relative wealth. Education Finance in a Cultural Context

  22. The United States spends approximately 5.1% of its gross domestic product on education We rank 10th among seventeen “First World” OECD countries listed with the data These 17 countries’ mean education expenditure is 5.4%. The US Makes an “Average Effort” to Finance Education

  23. % of GDP Spent on Education France – 6 % Japan - 4.2% U.S. - 5.1% United Kingdom - 4.9% Mexico - 4.2% Sweden - 8% Canada - 5.7%

  24. Wealthier countries tend to spend more on primary, secondary, & postsecondary students than do less wealthy countries. A Positive Correlation Between GDP per Capita & Education

  25. 1998, OECD Members Secondary, per pupil Elementary, per pupil Switzerland $9348 Denmark $6713 USA $6043 USA $7767 Poland $1438 Mexico $863

  26. As Measured by GDP, The U.S. is among the lowest spenders for secondary education. Our financial effort is relatively low while our financial capacity is very high.

  27. U.S. spending on K-12 education in equalized dollars is less than that of sixteen other industrialized countries An equalized comparison would show that in terms of wealth, as measured by GDP, our spending places us 10th – below the average – of 17 OECD countries. US Does NOT Spend More

  28. MISCONCEPTION #2 –EDUCATION COSTS HAVE SKYROCKETED WHILE TEST SCORES HAVE GONE DOWN

  29. U.S. education costs in real and constant dollars have increased, but so have enrollments We have also decreased class size, resulting in an increase in teachers and subsequently, costs Education Costs Are Up Because Enrollments Are Up

  30. Teacher Salaries in Real Dollars Have Increased Salary scales pay teachers for years of service and earning advance degrees. In constant dollars, however, their salary’s purchasing power is almost flat.

  31. Greater Variance In Students’ Needs Costs More • 1975, Education for all Handicapped Children Act • From the 1976 school year until the 1999 school year, public schools served an additional 2.5 million special education students

  32. The lower student/teacher ratio and additional resources required to appropriately educate special needs students necessarily requires larger expenditures. Special Needs Students

  33. Special Education Costs In 1988, it cost $2500 to educate each regular education pupil while it cost $17,600 to educate each special education pupil. Bracey, G.W. (1991, October) “Why Can’t They Be Like We Were?” Phi Delta Kappan 73 (2): 104-117, p. 112.

  34. Special Needs Students Served as a % of Enrollment • 1976-77 3.6 million 8.32% • 1980-81 4.1 million 10.14% • 1989-90 4.6 million 11.32% • 1994-95 5.3 million 12.19% • 1999-00 6.1 million 13.22%

  35. SAT scores have NOT declined during a period of increased expenditures. Test Scores are NOT Declining

  36. In High-Scoring SAT States, Virtually No One Takes the SAT State% of 1993 HS Seniors taking SAT • Iowa 5% • North Dakota 6% • South Dakota 5% • Utah 4% • Montana 10% • New Jersey 76%

  37. Making judgments about the inverse relationship between money input & student achievement output is simply invalid. We do not have a level playing field because of the vastly different student populations taking (or not taking) this particular college admissions test. Looking at Test Scores & Expenses

  38. PLUS, SAT Scores are NOT Decreasing! On the SAT from 1991 to 2001, all* ethnic groups showed an increase from 3 to 20 points on Math and a 2 to 21 point increase in Verbal. * Only Mexican Americans showed a 1 point drop in Math and a 3 point drop in Verbal.

  39. SAT Scores are Increasing ! The average increase for all college-bound seniors was a 14-point increase in Math & a 7-point increase in Verbal. .

  40. In spite of the fact that minorities traditionally score lower than white students, they consisted of more than 1/3 of all SAT takers in the class of 2001. SAT Scores Went Up Between 1991 & 2001

  41. Converting to scaled scores can confuse the general public One incorrect answer can account for about 10-scaled score points on the test Miss 1 question on the Verbal part & lose 50 scale points for that one error, earning a score of 750 rather than 800 Statistical Issues Confuse SAT Results

  42. Achievement scores are NOT going down To a case, where states have implemented high-stakes testing programs, test scores have increased, especially for disadvantaged and minority students.

  43. The SAT began in 1926 as a way to distinguish among applicants for selective colleges. Norms were established on 8,040 students entering private colleges, mostly in the Northeast; students were 98% white, 60% male, 40% attended private high schools. SAT’s History Helps Explain the Change in Scores Over Time

  44. Likewise, the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP – “The Nation’s Report Card”) scores from 1971 to 1999 (latest data available at the time of writing) show that student scores are increasing. Other Achievement Scores Increasing

  45. Increasing NAEP Scores 1971 – 1999 Average Student Reading Proficiency by Age: 19711999Change 9 year olds 207.6 211.7 4.1 pts. 13 year olds 255.2 259.4 4.2 17 year olds 285.2 287.8 2.6

  46. Test Scores Do NOT Compare “Apples with Apples” • US has open public education for all students, including special needs. • US does not track students into early career decisions and apprenticeships and out of college preparatory education. • All US students can be tested. • Tests’ contents do not closely match what most students learn in U.S. classrooms*.

  47. European & Asian students have a longer school day (average 6 hours to our 5.2 hours) & school year (200 to 225 days compared to our 178 days). Many European nations have a national education system (& a consistent school finance structure). Other Cultural Differences that Impact Test Results

  48. Cultural Differences Impact Test Results A growing underclass & at-risk population present in U.S. public schools: • 40% Free & Reduced Price Lunch • More than 50% of American students live with a single head of household • American students average 3.5 hours of TV viewing • A less stable and experienced U.S. teaching force for neediest students

  49. Educational costs in the U.S. may be so variable as to insufficiently support many of the neediest students, leaving them less prepared to perform well on rigorous tests. The variance ranges from a high of more than $9,500 per pupil in the four highest spending states to a low of between $4,001 to $4,500 per pupil in Utah Comparisons within states frequently show even greater variance than state comparisons Differences in National Education Spending Are Misleading

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