Do more financial resources equal greater academic success?
One of the ongoing debates in education stems from this question: Can a school guarantee better results if they have more resources?
For many, the initial response may be a resounding “Yes!” However, it’s not that clear cut across the board. For instance, during the 2006-2007 school year, New Jersey spent an average of $14,998 per student and had the highest graduation rate in the U.S. at 91%, but that’s where the obvious correlation seems to end.
The rest of the findings don’t support the idea that more resources equal higher success. For instance, Utah spent $5,243 per student—the least in the nation—but had an 83.3% graduation rate overall, second in the nation.
Although New York and the District of Columbia spent $14,998 and $13,848 respectively, neither is in the top three states for graduation rates. In fact, New York graduates between 61-70% of its high school students; the District of Columbia graduates 71-80%.
According to the U.S. Department of Education, the total percentage dropout rates for students aged 16-24 in 2007 was 8.7 nationwide. White students had an average dropout rate of 5.3%; black students had an average dropout rate of 8.4%; and Hispanic students had the highest dropout rate at 21.4%.
Another issue that educators raise is this one: Does the pupil/teacher ratio improve graduation rates? Again, many people argue that by decreasing the number of students per teacher in the classroom, graduation rates should improve overall. This does not appear to have a clear answer, either.
Rhode Island had the smallest pupil/teacher ratio overall at 10.1:1but did not place among the eight highest states for graduation rates. On the other hand, Vermont graduated more than 81% of its high school students and was second to Rhode Island in pupil/teacher ratio at 10.5:1. Utah had the highest pupil/teacher ratio at 24.3:1 yet was among the top eight states in the nation for graduation rates at 81%+.
It’s important to note that the definition of a dropout is not consistent in all districts. For instance, students who do not return to school after summer vacation may not be reported as a dropout. Although some districts follow up on students who do not return the following school year, others do not, thus skewing the dropout statistics. For some districts, quitting school to get married is not considered dropping out. Others may not count inmates who fail to complete their high school diplomas in the dropout statistics. Therefore, these findings may be conservative, at best.
What remains clear is that the answer to this question is not clear. Do more resources offer greater success? Sometimes. What is clear is that there seem to be discrepancies in what appears to be the correct answer to this question and what the findings tell us.
