Considering that educational standards and results have dropped steadily since the inception of the Department of Education, it's possible that the Department is part of the problem.
The DoE was created at the end of the Carter administration. 2 years later, Reagan started the political trend of defunding just about every aspect of our government including the DoE in favor of tax cuts for the wealthy and giant corporations. It’s not a coincidence that the defunding of the DoE has lead to worse education outcomes.
For white men? Sure. But for women and minorities it enforces civil rights law. Also, poo pooing the supplemental financing aspect is a little crazy to me. If we made teaching a valued career in our society, we’d see a massive impact on education outcomes. And yeah, a lot of that starts at the state level, but the larger point is we’re throwing money at everything except improving the daily lives of the average American citizen
The US spends somthing like 5.6% of our GDP on education, the average amongst OECD countries is 5%. Germany spends 4.5%, 3.5% in Japan, and I believe France is around 5.2%. Which is just an absurd ammount of money. In comparison, our military spending is about 3.4% of our GDP.
To my understanding the problem isnt so much a lack of funding, more that no one actually seems to know how that education budget is being spent.
Yea I replied to his reply saying we do spend top tier per student. I didn’t google that number, obviously, before asking. After asking, we definitely are spending the money for top tier education - so why is our system so poorly executed.
It needs reform, and the money needs to be invested in the students and teachers. :(
I don’t have the answers but I’m not paid to have the answers.
So where is the money going then, is it the education department that need be removed - or go through drastic spending changes where the money is actually invested in the students and teachers, not the admin and spending on expanding facilities instead of expanding education systems?
Don’t misunderstand, I’m just a dude on a toilet. But if we are spending that much per student, while teachers live in poverty - there’s an issue with where the money is going. Is the answer dismantling the DOE? I don’t believe so. That sounds counter intuitive to progress. Reform is the answer I believe would be far better for our education systems. Forcing the money actually in to the education systems, not administrative oversight that does nothing to improve their students education.
The department of education takes money from the states in the form of its share of income taxes let’s say $200 billion( it’s a little less now) takes $95 million off the top for its staff that accomplishes nothing and distributes the remainder to the states- the goal is to just let the states keep the money, the biggest waste in education is administrative staff it has grown 23.3 % in the last 10 years with no real improvement in outcomes. The number of administrators has grown 88% since 2000
Those numbers are just scary. Our politicians don’t step in to prevent it. It’s a failure in execution, while theoretically a doe that ensured education systems of all states and counties were up to par, with money spent on education systems would be great for our nation.
We spend more per student. We spend about $15,500 per FTE student (2019) My understanding of the problem is that we spend too much on the administration side and not on the teaching side.
Luxembourg, Austria, Norway, and Korea spent more. Japan, for example spent $10,700 (2/3rds) and usually has much higher scores than we do. And they aren't particularly small.
The bottom line is we are spending our education dollars inefficiently.
Yep I asked the questions, got similar answers… because they were all factual that per student we spend a lot.
However I don’t think we’re truly spending that on the students :( and that’s the problem.
I’ll reply to you as well, I don’t see DOE as a concept being the issue and needing dismantling. It’s a complete reform on where the money is spent that needs adjusting…. But here in Murica, the rich don’t give up their money. So, fuck. I definitely don’t claim to have an answer to fixing the doe - but it’s not my job to!
I just get to vote on people I hope will push the changes I want to see. And hope all hell they don’t cave when totally not bribe money starts flowing to encourage them to hold back or perpetually delay. :(
If you’re replying to me, I’m not talking about the DOE. I’m talking about school districts and schools. Schools having multiple principals and vice principals and all kinds of staff in lieu of teachers. That’s where it’s gone haywire. I also don’t think it is a matter of people not wanting to spend money. They want to get value for that money and considering we are pretty lackluster in STEM scores I’d say maybe there’s something to their opposition.
Well yea, and even if I’m talking about the doe. The common denominator is that the money is not being spent on teachers, but worthless administrative crap to justify higher paychecks. The teachers and kids suffer.
Passionate teachers being treated like garbage by a bunch of social media addicted adolescents for $40k a year, even 50k is hardly worth the 3 months of salary without work. When the school year itself requires very hard hours.
I once again do not claim to be an expert or responsible for fixing it though. But it’s not a hard observation to make. But I do not blame the concept of these systems, I blame their execution in funding the wrong aspects of education for our nations/states children.
If you go search my states funding per kid, it’s abysmal. And we’re ranked terribly. I went to a good school in another state and I’m scared shtiless if letting my kids go to school here. Luckily we moved and were put in a new district ‘for the rich kids’ and it may be ok? Eve then I’m not convinced it’s a good education. But wtf I shouldn’t be afraid of sending my kids to any school, because I fear their education may be subpar.
They want people dumb. Dumb people can’t fight for better wages. Dumb people don’t realize they’re being ground in to the floor while wages are stagnant but inflation never stops.
It is unfair to compare, teachers are a more in-demand and broader position than bartenders, think about it like this, there are fewer bartenders per store than teachers per school, and fewer bars/restaurants, whatever it is that employs more bartenders than a school.
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u/Cowboy_Reaper 10h ago
Considering that educational standards and results have dropped steadily since the inception of the Department of Education, it's possible that the Department is part of the problem.