State's Education Spending Rated Unfavorably by New Report -- January 9, 2004 -- California Capitol Hill Bulletin -- Volume 11, Bulletin 1
According to the newly released report by the Education Week, California spends less money per student on schools than most other states in the nation and its students rank lower than the national average in several subjects. California earned a B+ grade for "standards and accountability"and a B for "improving teacher quality" categories, while it earned low marks for the "student achievement" category, since California's students scored lower than the nationwide average on national math and English tests last year.
Using the data from the 2001-2002 school year, the report found that California's schools ranked 45th out of 50 state in per-student spending, leaving it with a grade D for school funding category. The state spent $6,258 per student, compared with the national average of $7,376, with only Mississippi($6,006), Tennessee ($5,994), Florida ($6,512), Idaho ($6,291), Arizona ($5,487) and Utah ($4,995) spending less than that. New York ($9,563), West Virginia, and Vermont spent the most.
The report also measured special education programs throughout the nation and found that most special education students in California also score lower than their counterparts in other states on national math and English tests. Spending on special education students, however is higher in California than throughout the rest of the nation; the state spent $7,526 on special education student per year, as compared to a national average of $7,194.
To obtain a copy of this report, please visit Education Week website at: http://www.edweek.org .
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