Resource Allocation: U.S.
The United States deals with inequalities in resource allocation in schools despite its position as an industrialized world leader. To gain a better understanding of this dynamic in the U.S., I present Chicago as an example of a city where ethnicity and socioeconomic status appear to be the greatest factors in determining school resources.
Per-Student Spending The primary measure used by the U.S. to determine resource inequity between schools is the difference in per-student spending between wealthy and poor schools. The Chicago Urban League recently filed a lawsuit against the State of Illinois in which they cited a disparity of up to $20,000 per-student in spending between the wealthiest and poorest schools (1). In many cases, student achievement is closely linked to per-student spending since schools with greater funds can provide more learning resources to its students. With a disparity as large as $20,000, one can only imagine the magnitude of difference between the educational experience of a student at a poor school compared to a wealthy school. Local Taxes Per-student spending as a major source of inequity between schools is a result of the communities in which they reside. Since almost half of all funding for public schools in Illinois comes from local taxes, large differences in funding exist between wealthy and impoverished communities (2). Students who live in poorer neighborhoods are thus hit twice as hard; poor communities may lack community centers for youth to engage in after-school sports and extracurricular activities and students are receving less support in their schools due to low funding from local taxes. It seems that students who are most in need of additional resources are least likely to get them. |
Historical Events & Segregation
The division between wealthy and poor communities is grounded in historical events. In Chicago, these events are segregation and redlining. Redlining is the "practice of arbitrarily denying or limiting financial services to specific neighborhoods, generally because its residents are people of color or are poor” (3). The 1930’s began the era of redlining in American cities which led to housing discrimination among minority populations. This forced minorities into low-cost housing, often in city centers, while the wealthy white population resided in the suburbs. In recent years, busing laws have been created in some states in an effort to desegregate schools. These laws require some minority students to be transported to white-majority schools, while some white students are transported into minority-majority schools (4). However, this method has been met with great opposition and remains in debate today. Clearly, the dynamics of communities outside schools affect the learning environment within schools.
Teachers
This method of dividing cities has also resulted in a lack of quality teachers willing to work in city centers due to poor housing and increased violence. As is the case in many developing countries, this deprives the students most in need of high quality teachers from receiving these teachers. The lack of equity in both student spending and quality teachers amongst schools in Chicago is a product of past policies involving race and socioeconomic status.
The division between wealthy and poor communities is grounded in historical events. In Chicago, these events are segregation and redlining. Redlining is the "practice of arbitrarily denying or limiting financial services to specific neighborhoods, generally because its residents are people of color or are poor” (3). The 1930’s began the era of redlining in American cities which led to housing discrimination among minority populations. This forced minorities into low-cost housing, often in city centers, while the wealthy white population resided in the suburbs. In recent years, busing laws have been created in some states in an effort to desegregate schools. These laws require some minority students to be transported to white-majority schools, while some white students are transported into minority-majority schools (4). However, this method has been met with great opposition and remains in debate today. Clearly, the dynamics of communities outside schools affect the learning environment within schools.
Teachers
This method of dividing cities has also resulted in a lack of quality teachers willing to work in city centers due to poor housing and increased violence. As is the case in many developing countries, this deprives the students most in need of high quality teachers from receiving these teachers. The lack of equity in both student spending and quality teachers amongst schools in Chicago is a product of past policies involving race and socioeconomic status.
1. Chicago Urban League v. State of Illinois, Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois. (2008). Education Finance Statistics Center. National Center for Education Statistics, 1-40.
2. National Center for Education Statistics. (2000). The condition of education 2000. Washington, DC: Office of Educational Research and Improvement, U.S. Department of Education.
3. Hunt, D. (2005). Redlining. The Electronic Encyclopedia of Chicago (n.pag). Chicago, IL: Chicago Historical Society.
4. http://legal-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/Desegregation+busing
5. http://occupiedchicagotribune.org/2012/09/education-apartheid-the-racism-behind-chicagos-school-reform/
2. National Center for Education Statistics. (2000). The condition of education 2000. Washington, DC: Office of Educational Research and Improvement, U.S. Department of Education.
3. Hunt, D. (2005). Redlining. The Electronic Encyclopedia of Chicago (n.pag). Chicago, IL: Chicago Historical Society.
4. http://legal-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/Desegregation+busing
5. http://occupiedchicagotribune.org/2012/09/education-apartheid-the-racism-behind-chicagos-school-reform/