California’s Public Schools Are Doing More With Less Money*

Starting with the budget signed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger in February 2009, the revisions to that in July 2009 and the record 100-day late budget signed in early October, public schools have been shorted $12.1 billion.

And because  temporary tax increases enacted in February 2009 will trigger off, lowering the state revenue available to support public schools, the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2011 will be just as grim for the state’s 6.2 million pupils and 300,210 teachers.

According to the National Center for Education Statistics, a typical American school has 34 percent more teachers than California, 40 percent more school administrators and 75 percent more counselors. And twice as many high school teachers per student.

California already spends $825 less per pupil than the national average.

And yet in 2009,  the state’s Academic Performance Index shows 77 percent of schools in the top three levels, scores of 700 to 1,000, and 2.64 percent in the lowest three, scores of 200 to 500.

Ten years earlier, only 31 percent of schools were in the top three levels and 29 percent were in the lowest levels.

Here’s a look at some of the numbers graphically, starting with reading and math scores:

The number of students taking higher end math and science courses has increased over the past seven years.

And more students of color are taking higher levels of math, like algebra, and improving academically.

Finally, 93.4 percent of all students passed the high school exit exam in 2009. Nearly 90 percent of Latino students passdd, 96.2 percent of Asian pupils passed, 87.5 percent of African American students, 89.5 perdent of disadvantaged students and 78.4 percent of English learners. Nearly 98 percent of white students passed the test.

*(As the graphics show, this information was compiled by John Mockler. The sources of the information are also noted on each graphic.)

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