Today’s article from Intellectual Takeout Dale Farran spent a decade studying over 1,000 kids who went to a state-run pre-kindergarten—and a control group of kids that wanted to, but didn’t get in. She is shocked and dismayed by what she discovered: By 6th grade the pre-K kids were doing worse all around: worse reading, math and science scores; more learning disorders; and more discipline problems, including serious ones that got them suspended. “It really has required a lot of soul-searching,” Farran told Anya Kamenetz on NPR. Now she’s pondering “what were plausible reasons that may account for this.” One theory she has is that the free pre-K doesn’t look like pricey … [Read more...]
Fully funding K-12 education is a pipe dream
We hear all sorts of comments about the need to “fully fund” K-12 education. It’s a pipe dream and fantasy. Why? Read on… The state's funding formula for K-12 education is called the Prototypical School Funding Model. The Washington State Basic Education Act of 1977 originated the funding model and outlines the definition of Basic Education in public schools. This model determines the base amount of funding each district receives per student based on a fixed theoretical school size enrollment. The model establishes minimum staff-to-student ratios for various positions such as principals, teachers, custodians, nurses, and more. The funding received by school districts based on this model … [Read more...]
National and WA State 8th and 4th grade test results
Brought to you by the good people at Edunomics A timely update from the Edunomics Lab at Georgetown’s McCourt School. Today’s NAEP scores provide a reckoning of sorts. In contrast to each state’s annual assessments, the NAEP enables a comparison of student learning across states and over time. These last two years in public education have been unlike any before. Students were emerging from deep pandemic-era learning losses just as $190B in relief funds began to rain down on schools. Now for the truth bomb: In states like KY, LA, MS, TN, and WV that answer is yes. Students in these states saw real (even if modest) score gains … [Read more...]
$190 billion in Fed Ed funds did what?
During the Covid debacle some $190 billion in relief funds rained down on public schools. See that the results are....then go get your favorite adult beverage and take a shot. This article can be found at: Edunomics Take a moment and look at Washiongton State...spending up 2x and test scores in freefall. More money is NOT the answer. A timely update from the Edunomics Lab at Georgetown’s McCourt School. Today’s NAEP scores provide a reckoning of sorts. In contrast to each state’s annual assessments, the NAEP enables a comparison of student learning across states and over time. These last two years in public education have been unlike … [Read more...]
Union contracts are keeping kids from learning
From American Thinker. Please note that Chris Reykdal is running for his 3rd term as the State Superintendent of Schools. He owns Washington States poor test scores and among the best (highest) paid teachers in the United States. He's asking for another $3-$4 BILLION dollars! Last year, only five percent of Detroit Public Schools Community District students scored proficient, even as 99% of teachers were rated “highly effective” or “effective.” Baltimore Public Schools had a similar story: in 23 schools, not one student scored proficient in math. Yet, these schools and districts continue unchanged today. These two examples might seem extreme. But they are not the exception. Sadly, … [Read more...]
Why WA school budgets are getting tighter, and what can be done about it
Jami Lund pointed this article out in social media. The original article was published July 24th in Washington State Standard by Marguerite Roza and Aashish Dhammani. Talk about a thankless job. In Washington state, school district budgeting has suddenly become much more difficult. After more than a decade of strong revenue growth, districts are facing deficits. In 2013, the average expenditure per student in Washington was $9,600. Since then, the Legislature has steadily increased funding for schools. Then came federal pandemic relief funds. In this last school year, Washington schools averaged over $18,000 per student. That’s an 89% increase (far outpacing inflation at … [Read more...]
Study: Historic Drop in U.S. Reading and Math Scores Since Common Core ‘Debacle’
When we started this blog nearly 4 1/2 years ago our first focus was on Common Core. Indeed, we have run over 220 articles on the subject: https://swweducation.org?cat=61 Today we bring you a new study that, again, shows conclusively, that Common Core has been an unmitigated disaster by harming the education of our children while running up billions of dollars in expenses. This study was published at the Pioneer Institute on April 27, 2020: https://pioneerinstitute.org/academic-standards/study-finds-historic-drop-in-national-reading-and-math-scores-since-adoption-of-common-core-curriculum-standards/ What does the study bring to light? The pdf version of the study can be downloaded at … [Read more...]
Over the years the legislature has added billions to school spending, but student learning remains flat
Liv Finne, with the Washington Policy Institute, shared some facts and thoughts about the K-12 education funding and outcomes in a blog article. It's short and to the point and makes the situation crystal clear. Please take a few minutes to read her blog article. Here are our take-aways when we read it: Public schools in Washington State have had a 75% increase in funding since 2009-11 which equals $9.7 billion. Inflation in that time was 19%. Total funding $22.6 billion. The most recent school property tax the Democrats put in place represents a ~17% increase in one (1) year for the median priced home owner. Teachers unions (led by the WEA) led to strikes across the … [Read more...]
Washington State Testing Scores – 2017-18
The latest test scores for Washington State K-12 were released by OSPI on September 10th. The scores are ranked with four (4) levels of results: Level 1 = Fail; Level 2 = Below level; Level 3 = Above level and Level 4 = Exceeding level. The "cut scores" are the break points between the different performance levels. The State Board of Education adopted the "cut scores" in January 2015 and claim NOT to have changed them since. The full details can be found at: http://www.k12.wa.us/assessment/StateTesting/ScaleScores.aspx If you open the link you will also be able to get information on: Test question examples Information on how to get your child/ren(s) scores Testing results data … [Read more...]
The cost of McCleary compliance
We've shared some thoughts on how McCleary has impacted education in Washington State. We've also shared some data on the financial impact on taxpayers and school districts. Today we bring you an article from The Lens and TJ Martineli. You may also be interested in the data we accumulated on this topic at our page: https://swweducation.org?page_id=4732 Washington state has increased basic education spending by $9.5 billion since the 2011-13 biennium. Although high school graduation rates have improved since, student proficiency in math and reading have stagnated or fallen. With another billion in new basic education spending for teacher salaries included in the 2018 … [Read more...]