Lost In The Averages

Very important new report (pdf) from U of W’s Roza about Title I funds. Punchline: Often rather than augmenting poor schools, these funds are merely compensating for inequitable intra-district resource patterns.

Says Roza:

The problem is two-fold: First, district funds-allocation practices are so murky and complex that it is difficult to determine how much money is spent at any individual school. The assumption that non-categorical funds are spent equitably is incorrect. Second, the spirit of the law—that these federal funds are used only to augment services for disadvantaged students—is easily broken. This is true even when school administrators are committed to the intent of the law and make every effort to follow it to the letter.