Many of us who observe public policy, and public reaction to it, might be discouraged by public opinion polls finding Americans believe 23% of the federal budget goes to foreign aid, when less than 1% actually does.
Question for you: does the fed. govt. commit more money to foreign aid or public education? (Answer after the fold.)
- We don't spend enough on education in our country.
- Most people assume we spend more on the education of our fastest, deepest, and most emotionally engaged learners (the gifted) than we actually do.
My intention here is not to make the most compelling argument possible for either (that would take too long), but to present data to dispel many of the myths that complicate honest discussions of both.
After all, the first step to clarity is admitting that there is a problem.
So, let's get to dispelling, shall we?
Myth #1:
2% of the federal budget is spent on education. That is all the educational efforts of the federal government: preschools, elementary schools, high schools, vocational education, community colleges, colleges and universities, job training efforts, educational research, and Dept. of Education infrastructure and bureaucracy. All of that adds up to 2% of the federal budget. Not 5%, not 10%, not 20%.
What does get 20% of the federal budget?
Social Security = 21%
Defense/National Security = 21%
Medicare/Medicaid/CHIP = 20%
Of all money spent on education in the United States, that 2% of the federal budget accounted for only 7.8% of all money spent on k-12 education in fiscal year 2008-09. The remaining 92.2% came from state and local budgets (yes, taxes and levies), and other (private) sources. A breakdown can be found in this Dept. of Ed. pdf file.
The perception that the federal government contributes more than 7.8% of school budgets, however, is pervasive.
The answer to that intro teaser-question is, therefore, more than twice, but when your original number is less than 1, that's not a whole lot to brag about.
Myth #2:
Head Start is administered by the Health and Human Services Department. School lunch programs are a function of the Agriculture Department. The Department of Education has only been a cabinet level post since 1980, even though there have been statistical reports issued by an "office of education" since 1867.
4,199 people work for the federal Dept. of Education this year. 7,528 did in 1980.
The cost of running the dept. is less than 2% of its overall budget. Nearly 99% of all dollars allocated to it are spent or loaned in direct support of education at all levels.
Myth #3:
Since I'm taking direct aim at this myth, I thought I'd state it explicitly:
Public schools spend enough, and maybe too much, on educating students identified as gifted.
American schooling is compulsory and universal (the 1st nation-state in the world to do that by law, by the way). The schools are tasked, by law, with providing an appropriate and challenging education for every student.
Some students learn more slowly than others. Some more quickly. Educators of "at-risk," "disabled," "special education," and "spectrum" students have budgets and educational programs that are mandated and protected by law. Therefore, while the above argument that we don't spend enough on them and their students applies, they rarely have to defend their very existence in the schools in which they teach.
Teachers who specialize in meeting the needs of gifted students do, nearly every single day.
I'm not writing here to repeat, or make their arguments for them, however. If you'd like to take that up in the comments, I'll be happy to join you there. The rest of the body of this diary, instead, is a presentation of the facts of state funding for gifted programs in the United States.
(Zero) State Funding of Gifted Programs
These states require neither identification of nor services provided for gifted students. While local districts may distinguish themselves by choosing to create their own programs, according to these states' laws, there are no gifted students within their borders:
Alaska
California
Delaware
Illinois
Indiana
Massachusetts
Michigan
Minnesota
Missouri
Nevada
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New York
North Dakota
Rhode Island
South Dakota
Tennessee
Vermont
Washington
Wyoming
West Virginia is a special case. In WV, schools must provide services, but are not required, by law, to make any effort to screen or identify students. (I ask: So, how do they know who to provide the legally mandated services to?") If anyone knows...please comment below!
These states budget $0.00 for gifted education (the states in bold require id and services, but provide no $ to schools for either, the classic unfunded mandate):
Alaska
Delaware
Florida
Illinois
Missouri
Nevada
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New York
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
South Dakota
Tennessee
Vermont
West Virginia
Wyoming
State Budgets for Gifted Programs, K-12
This spreadsheet compares states that provide funding. They are listed here in order of smallest allocation to largest. The largest two may surprise you. They did me, at least.
From left to right, the columns are:
State, Mandated Identification, Mandated Services, # of students identified as gifted in that state, # of total students in that state, Percentage of students in that state identified as gifted, State allocation, and Dollars allocated per gifted student.
How does your state rank?
Sources hereand here.
Federal JavitsGifted and Talented Education Grants
In the 2011 Federal Budget Proposal, the Obama administration has requested $7.5 million for gifted education programs, teacher professional development, and funded research.
This is the only federal funding source for gifted education. For several years, the Bush administration requested $0.0 for funding Javits programs. Congress inserted between $11 and $7.5 million in the final budgets, essentially overriding the Bush requests.
"I never guess. It is a capital mistake to theorize before one has data. Insensibly one begins to twist facts to suit theories, instead of theories to suit facts." - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
TWLTW
- Sonia Manzano (Maria from Sesame Street) is a cat-person. She's written two children's books, "No Dogs Allowed," and "A Box Full of Kittens."
- Bees survive the winter by raising the internal temperature of the hive to 92 degrees F. They vibrate the muscles that control their wings, without actually moving their wings when they do it. In other words, bees survive the winter by shivering.
- Vocabulary
- Entelechy: Maximization of the potential of something, the highest state of possible actualization or achievement. Completeness of effort.
- Acedia: a form of spiritual funk that involves a disinterest in daily activity and inability to perform work and/or personal tasks. Associated with depression, but not considered to be the same thing.
- Last night's NCAA championship game had 15 lead changes, 5 ties, and the lowest winning score in nearly 20 years. Coach Krzyzewski and Adolph Rupp are now tied for most coached championship teams, with 4 each. Coach K. got his first in 1991.
- Howard Taft was the first U.S. President to throw out an opening day baseball pitch. He did it 100 years ago. (JFK was criticized after being caught practicing before his.)
- It takes 30 to 40 gallons of maple tree sap to boil down to one gallon of maple syrup.
What Did You Learn This Week?
CLARIFICATION: To advocate for more than 2%, click "OK." To advocate for less than 2%, click "NOT OK." For pie, click "PIE."
:-)