Where does the money GO?

In California, about $7,000+ change is spent per student on average. In New York State, the average is $14,000+ change per student. The respective NEAP scores for the two states are virtually identical. I haven't heard that NY does all that better by other measures either (like SAT scores), but perhaps I'm missing something.

So, if the average is 30 students per teacher, then in California we are spending $210,000 per teacher, while in New York they are spending $420,000 per student. The starting salary for teachers in the San Fransisco Bay area is about $40K to $45K rising to as much as $90K after 20+ years. Split the difference and say that the average teacher makes $65K. So where does the remaining $145K per teacher go? Much more interestingly, where does New York's additional $355K (per teacher) after salary go?? $355K PER TEACHER ABOVE SALARY?!!?? OH MY GAWD!!!!

Now remember, NY State spends twice as much per student with the same NEAP. Suppose I were a billionaire and went into the typical school in California and said "I'm going to double your funding per student. What are you going to do with that money?" After erecting a statue to me in the parking lot and renaming the school in my honor they would go nuts funding arts and science programs, lowering class sizes, buying technology, updating the facilities, etc. But this would just raise them to the same level as New York. So are NY State schools rolling in extra arts programs, in marble-faced gleaming facilities, awash in technological amenities, with considerably smaller class sizes?

I can't say for sure, but I doubt it. So, we have just shown that while there is intuitively a certain minimum funding you need to provide an adequate learning environment, beyond that point, the money serves no quantifiable function.

Dicipline Problems in the Schools

I'm returning to the library the book "Solving Discipline Problems" by Charles Wolfgang. Excellent book. Clearly a text and since it is in its fifth edition clearly popular. In California there is no credential requirement that HS teachers take a course in "Classroom Management" (the euphemism for keeping the class under your control and not theirs). Pity, since not knowing how to control the class room is the main thing driving people out of the teaching trade. This book should be handed out to every teacher before they enter the class room.

Sympathy for the English Language Learner

I was looking at the Wikipedia entry for the English verb conjugation tables recently. There are a lot of verb forms in English! ESL students have my sympathy. The following plausible conversation between a preliterate American and his parent shows how a five year old American uses or understands 18 separate verb forms. Someone learning English as a second language has a lot of work to catch up to a five year old.

Parent: Do you wish to play with Jimmy? (infinitive)
Child: I love playing (gerund) but I play with Jimmy a lot. (simple present indicative) Let me play with Freddy today, puh-leease? (simple present imperative)
P: Did you play with Freddy yesterday? (intensive past indicative).
C: I was playing with him in the morning, but just a little. (simple past progressive indicative)
P: You would play with him every day if I let you. (simple present conditional)
C: Yes! I would have played with him all day yesterday if you'd let me. (present perfect conditional)
P: You will be playing with Freddy tomorrow. (simple future progressive indicative)
C: Really!? I will play with him tomorrow? (simple future indicative)
P: Yes! And then you will have played with him four times this week. (future perfect indicative)
C: Have I been playing with him too much? (present perfect progressive indicative)
P: You would be playing with him now if you could but I think that's okay. ( simple present progressive conditional)
(Later on the phone)
P: Are you playing with Freddy and his little brother now? (simple present progressive indicative)
C: We played with his brother but he's napping now. (simple past indicative)
P: Time to come home now. In another half hour you will have been playing with Freddy for 4 hours. (future perfect progressive indicative)
C: Awww! May I play with him some more? (simple present potential)
P: I think you might have been playing too much today. (pluperfect progressive potential)

I could probably add some more but my attention span has expired.

Half of All Teachers are Below Average!

I had a little laugh when I mentioned to a friend that half of all teachers are below average. She was so surprised and worried. "Something should be done!" was the general tenor of her reply. Her husband laughed and I gather he explained it later.