10-17-2016, 05:03 AM
quote:
Originally posted by leilanidude
quote:
Originally posted by Chunkster
I did some more research and learned that a more fair comparison would be vs. other states. In that regard, Hawaii public school spending per student is about 40% above the national average and ranks 15th. Nearly all those that spent more were Northeastern states with Illinois and Wyoming being exceptions. When I looked at a variety of ranking studies, Hawaii's public schools consistently placed between 38th and 41st in the most recent measures. Even given the fact that our high living cost skews the expense factor, I still have to wonder if we are getting our money's worth from the public schools.
The comparison is quite valid.
In other words, throwing more money at education in Hawaii, is not the answer to better education of the students.
Administrative costs are very high here, there are layers upon layers of administration being supported before the first dollar reaches the actual classroom. According to a recent study (sorry no time to dig up the link) when the cost of living is taken into account Hawaii has the lowest paid teachers in the country and some of the highest paid administrators.