School Funding Inequalities

School Funding Inequality “One of the most powerful tools for empowering individuals and communities is making certain that any individual who wants to receive a quality education can do so” (Christine Gregoire). Everyone deserves an equal education regardless of where they live or who their parents are. Children are facing the consequences of decisions they can’t make. The current way public schools are being funded is not working effectively, students are suffering and there needs to be a change. Basing school funding on property tax leads to unequal opportunities and environments for students, even though the government may claim it is not up to them, there needs to be a drastic change. Currently, taxes collected from the surrounding community

As technology increases, textbooks are becoming more obsolete, but can still be used in classrooms. Textbooks are a resource that can benefit students greatly, but there are school districts throughout America that simply can’t afford new textbooks. “The court noted that ‘they go to the very heart of education,’ and that they ‘are the most essential tool of education since they contain the resources of knowledge which the educational process is designed to exploit’” (Merjian 12). Even though the courts agreed that the textbooks are a benefit to students, they feel as though it is up to the school districts to provide them. Which leads to the major problem, some school districts can’t afford them. Schools in low income areas already don’t have enough money to cover their expenses, let alone enough to cover the expenses of new textbooks. Ultimately, the people who suffer the most are the students. Noal Cochran, the Superintendent of the school district in Richton, Mississippi, struggles with the decisions of distributing money. When faced with the decision on which subject got new books he chose history, because science textbooks would need less updating (Mader). Richton is a small town that doesn't receive much funding, this causes problems because now the science students suffer with old textbooks. It is impossible to please everyone with this method of funding, at least one

Whether it be simply the location or the physical condition of the school, the students safety should be the first priority. Studies have shown that students don't work as well in buildings that are too small, or that are situated on busy streets. They achieve less in buildings that are not well maintained (Merjian 17). Students should have a clean facility in which they can learn properly, but sadly this isn't the case in low income school districts. Instead, their buildings are falling apart and are overcrowded. This leads to low self worth among the students. How are students supposed to get an equal education if their school is falling apart while others are brand new. Many students face conditions that are unfit for anyone to try and receive a proper education. “27.6% of teachers (representing 1.7 million students) reported evidence of cockroaches, rats, or mice in the past year; 32.3% reported that their classroom was uncomfortably hot or cold; and 16.6% complained of student bathrooms not working or closed” (Merjian 18). Students are being forced to share their classrooms with rodents and pests. Any rodents that are in the school could drastically affect the concentration of the students. Students should not be put in that predicament. Also, uncomfortable temperatures can lead to concentration problems. If the classroom is so hot the students are unable to work, there is a problem. If