12/13/2007
Small-business wants to ensure current spending is preparing students for the workforce
A "costing-out" study intended to put a price tag on what it would cost to ensure every Pennsylvania student meets standards for academic achievement recommends Pennsylvania raise its annual funding commitment by an additional $5 billion. The report has raised serious questions within the business community. A recent U.S. Chamber report indicates Pennsylvania businesses and other taxpayers are receiving a poor return on investment when comparing academic achievement and the amount of money invested in state education.
The costing-out report issued by the state Board of Education cost nearly $600,000 to prepare and suggests Pennsylvania raise per pupil spending to $12,057. Currently, Pennsylvania invests on average about $9,512 per student. The proposed increase would raise the total spent on educating Pennsylvania students to $22 billion, up from the current $17 billion per year.
The report has been lauded by teachers unions, education advocates and some lawmakers, but has drawn criticism by some for its methodology. In particular, critics suggest the report failed to address the larger question raised by many small-business owners and others: What will it cost to provide a quality education to prepare students for the 21st century workforce?
Several critics suggest the results from the report demonstrate that more is not necessarily better. They cite two examples: the Cumberland Valley School District in Cumberland County and the Harrisburg School District in Dauphin County. As one of the top performing schools in Pennsylvania, the Cumberland Valley district spends $7,639 per student. In contrast, the Harrisburg School district spends $13,118 per student and is one of the worst performing districts in Pennsylvania. The education board's costing-out study recommends the already high-performing Cumberland Valley district should raise education spending by nearly $3,000 per student while the poor-performing Harrisburg district need only to raise spending by about $900 per student. Critics argue that doesn't make sense.
Many small-business owners worry our children lack the skills and knowledge they will need to compete in the highly competitive, global marketplace -- despite billions of dollars in public investments in education. Pennsylvania ranks among the top states in per pupil investments and teacher salaries. Additionally, the governor and state lawmakers in 2003 made unprecedented investments in early childhood education. But an educational effectiveness report card issued by the US Chamber noted that while overall student performance in Pennsylvania is slightly higher than the national average, student achievement is low relative to state education spending. The report card gave Pennsylvania a "D" for return on investment. The state also earned poor marks for the rigor of its academic standards.
According to Small Business Administration, those with more education are more likely to become entrepreneurs and more likely to open a business that creates jobs.
