A new study says Arizona has the worst public schools in the nation. There is a way to change that.
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Congratulations to the Arizona Legislature.
After decades of neglect and outright contempt, our leaders have finally achieved their goal.
When it comes to public education, we’re No. 51!
This, according to a new study by Consumer Affairs.
The consumer research company analyzed data from all 50 states and Washington, D.C., and concluded that public education in Arizona is the worst in the nation.
I envision the Republicans who run the Legislature popping champagne corks.
Arizona has stiffed public schools for decades
For decades, they’ve stiffed the schools while cutting taxes. They’ve worked tirelessly on schemes to divert ever larger amounts of taxpayer money into private and religious schools under the banner of “choice.”
Well, congratulations.
Public school teachers are quitting faster than the pipeline can supply replacements, and classrooms are now packed to the gills as Arizona’s educators struggle to do right by Arizona’s children.
Meanwhile, tens of thousands of upper middle-class students are fleeing to private schools — and getting taxpayer money to do it.
Do you suppose our leaders’ commitment to public schools will improve once all their suburban constituents’ kids have snagged an Empowerment Scholarship Account and left?
The Consumer Affairs study analyzed public education in all states and D.C. in four key categories: K-12 performance, school funding, higher education quality and safety.
Put them all together and we’re rock bottom.
“Arizona, which scored last in our total ranking, had consistently low scores across the board and was at the bottom in pupil-to-teacher ratio, earning the distinction of having the most crowded public school classrooms in America,” the report said.
Arizona gets a lot for the little it pays teachers
Arizona’s public schools ranked 50th in funding in 2022-23, the year studied.
But they ranked 40th in performance — based on an analysis of seven metrics including graduation rates, average SAT and ACT scores, and average National Assessment of Education Progress reading and math scores for fourth graders and eighth graders.
That tells me we’re getting some decent bang for the buck.
Arizona lowered the bar for teachers: Then made the shortage worse
But, as the study pointed out, the states in the nation’s educational sub-basement — Arizona, Alabama, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Idaho — all had one thing in common.
“These states have relatively low average teacher salaries and low math and reading test scores among fourth graders and eighth graders (with the exception of Idaho),” the study said. “Perhaps more importantly, these states also spend less on K-12 students.”
Put another way, if we want to invest in the state’s future, then we’ve got to invest in the state’s children.
Want more? Vote that way in the election
And we’ve got to invest in leaders who are interested in working with the public schools to make them better.
Sadly, our leaders seem to spend the bulk of their time obsessing about school bathrooms and book bans and “woke” teachers. About how to grow the state’s ESA program.
You want a Legislature that devotes less energy to figuring new and creative ways to divert public money to private and religious schools? One that will instead work on ways to improve the public schools the vast majority of Arizona’s children attend?
Did I mention there’s an election coming up in just seven weeks?
Reach Roberts at laurie.roberts@arizonarepublic.com. Follow her on X (formerly Twitter) at @LaurieRobertsaz and on Threads at @LaurieRobertsaz.
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Publish date : 2024-09-17 07:15:00
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