With state legislatures in session across the country, lawmakers are considering bills that would give parents more control over their children’s share of public school spending. historical progress last year. However, teachers unions and other groups opposed to educational choice programs may exploit public misconceptions about public school finance to argue against giving parents options other than the public school assigned to their child. expensive. Correcting that misconception should be a priority for school choice advocates in the new year.
A recent poll by EdChoice reveals the extent of public misconceptions and the importance of showing parents how public schools are funded.To summarize the poll results, Colin Ritter write“More than half of Americans say public school funding is too low until schools can show how much they actually spend.” Per-student spending is about $5,000, but the actual national average per-pupil spending is nearly three times that, at about $14,000.
This contradiction has important implications for the school choice movement. State education savings accounts, tax credits, and scholarship programs typically provide parents with much less than that $14,000, so the public would have a better understanding of how much public schools are actually spending. There could be increased support for programs such as: Give parents new options.
In 2024, state legislatures must continue to promote parental choice in education, but they also have a role to play in ensuring the public has timely and accurate information about public school spending. The new bill provides an opportunity to do just that. In December, the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee approved a bipartisan bill to update the Education and Science Reform Act, which authorizes federal education research, development, and statistics collection activities. Specifically, it would reform the way the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) collects and reports data. It is now up to the House Education and Labor Committee to develop its own legislation if the law is to be updated and reformed.
And reform is definitely needed here. Without timely information about surrounding schools, parents can’t make the best decisions for their children, but school financial data collected by the federal government is always years old.Census Bureau annual survey School System Finance and NCES Report school financial data, both from two years ago. The 2021 data was only released last year. That means the most informed discussions about K-12 education that rely on these data will be delayed by two years as well.
Why can’t NCES provide timely information about public school funding and other education data? Mark Schneider, director of the Institute of Education Sciences, recently asked: explainedLong time delays “often occur in the name of accuracy. But being accurate to five decimal places is false precision, and being years behind means that we It disqualifies us from much of what we’re researching and what we’re collecting data about.” The move from slow reports with unnecessary detail to quick reports with only relevant information gives parents more control over their children’s education. This will put you in a better position when comparing your options.
On the important issue of per-pupil spending in public schools, federal law requires each state to publish an annual report containing information on per-pupil spending in schools. This reporting requirement, established in 2015, provides sufficient information for NCES to publish timely annual estimates of per-student spending by state and district. Improving transparency around public school funding will help parents, the public, and state policymakers assess public school return on investment and give parents direct control over school funding. This will highlight opportunities to improve children’s education.
Understandably, conservative lawmakers may have limited interest in the potential for authorization or expansion of federal education programs. But greater transparency about American education, including school finance and public school spending, is part of conservatives’ broader education priorities, especially given that better information could increase support for school choice. They should match exactly. In 2024, the House Education and Workforce Committee will take up the reauthorization of the Education Science Reform Act, requiring the Department of Education to release more timely information and more information about how to improve American education. should enable public debate based on
Dan Lipps is director of policy at the American Innovation Foundation. Robert Bellafiore is a research manager at the American Innovation Foundation. They are co-authors of the new report.Reforming the Education Science Reform Act: Improving K-12 Education Through Federal Research and Development”
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