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> Given the small pool of money in the US for public education Is this true? My understanding is that the US spends large amounts on public education when comp

by Permit 5y ago

> Given the small pool of money in the US for public education Is this true? My understanding is that the US spends large amounts on public education when compared to other industrialized nations. I have only a surface level understanding, but this seems to suggest they spend the fourth largest amount: https://nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/indicator/cmd https://nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/indicator/cmd

colinmhayes 5y ago
It is important to normalize for purchasing power in these discussions, but yea the US spends a decent amount on education. The biggest problem imo is that the money is all from local property taxes, which means the poor kids who need the most help get the least money.
- HideousKojima 5y ago
  Parental involvement in the child's education is far more strongly correlated with educational attainment and success than school funding is. Abbott districts in New Jersey receive more funding per student than districts in the richest parts of the state, but the gap in their educational results has actually widened in spite of the funding: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abbott_district https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abbott_district
  - colinmhayes 5y ago
    Definitely true which is why I said poor kids need the most help. Doesn't mean funding doesn't matter though.
Loughla 5y ago
The problem is that list includes post-secondary data about costs for the US. I do not have a source for primary and secondary schools on their own. But, colleges and universities will absolutely skew the data. This conversation is regarding K-12 schooling, not K-12 and post-secondary. Edit: I'm real dumb and looked at the table without reading the paragraph on top. Ignore and move past. HOW DO I DO STRIKETHROUGH ON HERE
- deleted 5y ago
  [deleted]
Karrot_Kream 5y ago
This is a complicated topic, but mostly boils down to how _many_ schools are funded by property taxes, which means that growing up in a property-poor area often leads to underfunded, dilapidated school experiences. I grew up in a ghetto and went to a school that ran classrooms in trailers and had dilapidated power delivery and sports facilities. See my comment here https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=28450844 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=28450844 for more depth.
- Permit 5y ago
  You've ignored your own advice and based your take on your own personal experience! (I'm just kidding, I think your personal experience is valuable in this context). It really doesn't make much sense to me to fund schools based off local property taxes. At the very least, it seems like they should go into some state-wide fund that is evenly distributed to schools.
  - Karrot_Kream 5y ago
    > You've ignored your own advice and based your take on your own personal experience! (I'm just kidding, I think your personal experience is valuable in this context). Heh I'm trying to be careful to not prescribe any solutions here because I honestly don't have one. I have pretty mixed feelings on this post as a whole, because I'm trying to see it from both my own perspective and the perspective of others.

by Permit 5y ago

colinmhayes 5y ago

It is important to normalize for purchasing power in these discussions, but yea the US spends a decent amount on education. The biggest problem imo is that the money is all from local property taxes, which means the poor kids who need the most help get the least money.

HideousKojima 5y ago
Parental involvement in the child's education is far more strongly correlated with educational attainment and success than school funding is. Abbott districts in New Jersey receive more funding per student than districts in the richest parts of the state, but the gap in their educational results has actually widened in spite of the funding: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abbott_district https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abbott_district
- colinmhayes 5y ago
  Definitely true which is why I said poor kids need the most help. Doesn't mean funding doesn't matter though.

Loughla 5y ago

The problem is that list includes post-secondary data about costs for the US. I do not have a source for primary and secondary schools on their own. But, colleges and universities will absolutely skew the data. This conversation is regarding K-12 schooling, not K-12 and post-secondary. Edit: I'm real dumb and looked at the table without reading the paragraph on top. Ignore and move past. HOW DO I DO STRIKETHROUGH ON HERE

deleted 5y ago
[deleted]

Karrot_Kream 5y ago

This is a complicated topic, but mostly boils down to how _many_ schools are funded by property taxes, which means that growing up in a property-poor area often leads to underfunded, dilapidated school experiences. I grew up in a ghetto and went to a school that ran classrooms in trailers and had dilapidated power delivery and sports facilities. See my comment here https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=28450844 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=28450844 for more depth.

Permit 5y ago
You've ignored your own advice and based your take on your own personal experience! (I'm just kidding, I think your personal experience is valuable in this context). It really doesn't make much sense to me to fund schools based off local property taxes. At the very least, it seems like they should go into some state-wide fund that is evenly distributed to schools.
- Karrot_Kream 5y ago
  > You've ignored your own advice and based your take on your own personal experience! (I'm just kidding, I think your personal experience is valuable in this context). Heh I'm trying to be careful to not prescribe any solutions here because I honestly don't have one. I have pretty mixed feelings on this post as a whole, because I'm trying to see it from both my own perspective and the perspective of others.