Students in Underfunded, High Need Schools Show Much Steeper Decline
(New York, NY) Across New York State student test scores dropped precipitously under the new regimen of Common Core tests. However, the scores dropped much more dramatically in schools with high rates of poverty where school funding is significantly lower. While schools in the wealthier (low-need) districts saw a 33 percent drop in student English Language Arts scores, schools in the highest need districts saw a drop ranging between 44 percent and 63 percent.
There is a close correlation between the degree of the drop in student outcomes and the spending per pupil. Schools in the state’s wealthiest districts spend $8,601 more per pupil than the neediest schools. The higher need schools have seen much greater classroom cuts in recent years due to inadequate state funding. This has meant cuts in the quality of the curriculum, tutoring, library and guidance services, as well as increasing class sizes. The dramatic disparity in the drop in student scores correlates with the disparity in cuts to educational opportunities as a result of New York State policies.
“The plunge in student test scores reveals, yet again, the growing opportunity gap in this state between the haves and the have nots,” said Billy Easton, Executive Director of the Alliance for Quality Education. “The moral compass of this state has been clouded not only by the test obsession but also by the complete neglect of some students in this state. Albany needs to stop spinning the tired mantra that money does not matter because there is a very close correlation between how far test scores dropped and funding levels—the more underfunded the district, the more dramatic the drop.”
In New York City, there is also a huge disparity in the test score drop. Schools with higher rates of student poverty, which are more likely to be underfunded, saw a 15 percent higher drop in scores.
