How much does money really matter in the quest for educational quality?
And if it matters so much, as supporters of higher spending argue, why do taxpayers and the public seem to flinch when they鈥檙e confronted with the tab?
This second installment of Quality Counts 2019 examines that question and more. The Education Week Research Center and school finance reporter Daarel Burnette II dig into the policy and political debates over K-12 funding, and tally how the nation and the states stack up, complete with scores, rankings, A-F grades, and expert analysis.
To catch up on the first installment of Quality Counts 2019, which measured how the nation and states fared on Quality Counts' "Chance for Success Index," click here.
- Education Funding Inside School Finance: A Special ReportThe second installment of Education Week鈥檚 annual Quality Counts series examines how much the nation and the states spend on public schools and how fairly that money is spread around.Education Funding Big Disconnect Between How Much Money K-12 Gets and How Fairly It's SpentThe nation and many states are doing a better job in finding the money for public schools than assuring that it鈥檚 spent in an equitable manner across all districts, federal data show.Every Student Succeeds Act Student Outcomes: Does More Money Really Matter?Fresh research bolsters the case for more public school funding鈥攂ut debate rages on how to spend it in a way that boosts achievement.Federal Public Torn Between Support for School Spending and Actually Paying the TabPolicymakers feel the squeeze as popular support for increased education funding collides with an aversion to taxes and the education bureaucracy.Every Student Succeeds Act What Researchers Wish They Knew About School FinanceThe field may be swimming in data, but there鈥檚 still blank spots when it comes to assembling a complete picture of how $600 billion in public school funding gets spent.Education Funding How Each State Performed on School Spending and Equity (Map and Rankings)Examine the grades and scores that states earned on school funding and equity in Quality Counts 2019: School Finance with this interactive map, grade-summary table, and top-to-bottom ranking.Education Funding Map: How Much Money Each State Spends Per StudentView the state-by-state landscape on how much actually gets spent on K-12 education.States From Our Research Center Quality Counts 2019: State and National Highlights ReportsThe Quality Counts 2019 Highlights Reports capture the key data you need to assess your state鈥檚 performance.Education Funding A User's Guide to the Grading and MethodologyHere's a quick and easy guide to the grading scale and each of the indicators that go into making up the 50-state grades for school finance.
In March 2024, Education Week announced the end of the Quality Counts report after 25 years of serving as a comprehensive K-12 education scorecard. In response to new challenges and a shifting landscape, we are refocusing our efforts on research and analysis to better serve the K-12 community. For more information, please go here for the full context or learn more about the EdWeek Research Center.