By PEDRO GONZALEZ
A new study published by Pink Storage on the best and worst states to study in the United States ranked Alaska the fourth-worst for education overall.
The analysis looked at several metrics, including graduation rates, college dropout rates, student loan debt, number of blue ribbon schools, and absenteeism.
Alaska tied with Alabama for second place for the lowest graduation rate. It came in third for the highest levels of absenteeism. The state tied with Delaware and Mississippi for the fourth-lowest reading scores in the country.
In August, Alaska’s Department of Education and Early Development revealed that most students are not proficient in reading, math, or science. Notably, that came after standards for the statewide assessment were lowered last January.
What’s the problem? It’s not like Alaska doesn’t throw money at the problem.
According to the Education Data Initiative, K-12 public schools in the Last Frontier spend $22,000 per pupil for a total of $2.88 billion annually. “K-12 schools in Alaska receive the most funding per pupil from the federal government,” the initiative reports.
Overall, Alaska ranks sixth in spending per pupil across the 50 states.
One obvious culprit is the lingering effects of the pandemic or, rather, the measures taken during that time that set children back in terms of educational development. The effects of that still aren’t fully understood or appreciated. Writing in Pediatric Research, a team of pediatricians noted that this period “had significant indirect effects on multiple areas of child development, school readiness, educational attainment, socialization skills, mental health, in addition to risks based on social determinants of health.”
The one bright spot on the education front is in Alaska’s charter schools, which topped a study released by Harvard researchers last year.
“Alaska stands first in math and third (tied for second) in reading performances,” they found.
Paul Peterson, director of the program on education policy and governance at Harvard University, told the Senate Education Committee at the time that “Alaska has higher-performing charter school students than Colorado and Massachusetts, who are well known to be strong in this sector.”
Addressing Alaska’s education woes, at least at the K-12 level, likely starts with understanding why these schools are so successful and building policy around that.
Pedro Gonzalez writes for Must Read Alaska.
The COVID effect should not be a factor all the states dealt with COVID the same as we did and we still came in damn near last in the study. Homeschooling and charter schools probably do much better because the parents are strongly involved in the kids education. My son did his last two years of high school during the COVID big lie. And he did just fine because I was there poking him in the ribs, keeping him awake while he was staring at his computer screen. Our schools need to stop trying to be social programs and get back to teaching basic education, reading, writing and arithmetic.
Simple solution, Begin reducing teacher pay on a sliding scale until they wake up and smell the roses.
Seems like the necessary rationale for school choice and jettisoning the teacher’s unions.
No more money for a failed experiment on kids that don’t know anything about being ponds in the money game.
The scores and research of our schools prove it
ponds? ?
What are ponds? You might wanna learn to spell Pawns before you comment on education buddy.
Very petty for a typo. Better ensure you never have one.
Sorry I am not perfect as I have dyslexia.
It causes problems.
Vote for Pedro!!!
Oh, we’ve still got a ways to go.
Democrats have this severely misguided, and backwards belief that throwing money at education budgets will make kids smarter. Just the opposite seems to be the usual outcome. Frugality, discipline and hard work always works better. And…….lots of discipline.
Having a homosexual superintendent, who openly promotes LGBTQ, doesn’t exactly work on the best interests of students.
It’s the price of eggs, I tell you! Trump’s fault!
Dysfunctional systems can’t be fixed. What other industry would be tolerate so many resources being put in for such poor results? It is collapsing and people recognizing the need for education will figure it out.
Given the juxtaposition regarding charter schools and the tried and true public school system results, you’d think that our educators and those pushing for greater education funding the only logical conclusion they’d come to is to fund more charter schools. Instead they want to go away from what is working and double down on what is not.
#AKDOGE
Great article. Sadly Alaska’s legislative election and Anchorage’s last two elections (assembly seat turnovers and the mayor) demonstrate irrefutably that the voters in this state are going the opposite direction of school choice. The voters WANT status quo in education. And the population of young parents who have school aged kids is leaving. Anchorage’s school-choice oriented families have relocated to Matsu, thus abdicating their control or possible influence over ASD. Likewise still more such families have left the state altogether. I’m a mom of two school aged kids and I can tell you I’m not happy with any of my options. We homeschool because even the private schools in Anchorage are barely acceptable. Other than moving away and finding greener pastures, homeschooling is the only good option. I know I can’t outvote the aged, arch liberal, and welfare addicted population that surrounds me.
Obviously, money is NOT the problem, nor is class size!
It is the administration that’s where the problem arises and their connection to unions. Money it’s always about money.
The model of goverment schools is a failure and needs to be ended. Homeschooling, charter schools, trade schools and other creative solutions are the order of the day. Empower parents by attaching money to their child so they may seek the best fit for them, instead of the corrupt cookie cutter approach we have now.
Loads of $ went to new curriculum. They threw out phonics and math that taught memorizing multiplication tables. When did this happen? . When did ASD put phonics back and delete the new math? Now, the new teachers weren’t raised on phonics and don’t know how to teach it! I’d love to see the graph showing these changes compared to proficiency outcomes.
Author: You say, “The state tied with Delaware and Mississippi for the fourth-lowest reading scores in the country.” I am not sure what document you are looking at but according to the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) Mississippi ranks much higher than Alaska. Mississippi ranks 10th in 4th grade reading while AK ranks 50th out of 51 states & territories. Mississippi ranks 17th in 4th grade math; Alaska ranks 50th in 4th grade math.
The other metrics you refer to have very little meaning. For example, graduation rates are a very poor metric because it can be manipulated to look as if a district is doing much better than it is. BTW, some kids graduate and cannot even read their diploma.
These other metrics, college dropout rates, student loan debt, number of blue ribbon schools, and absenteeism also have very little to do with student achievement.
Please put a link to the “Pink Storage” article- I cannot find it. Thanks
Apparently spending less and making public education 100% charter schools will fix our problems
As far as a school in every little village, especially when it’s 9-12 grades, that should end. If they can only centralize HS in the major hubs for the school year. Bethel Dillingham Nome etc, it would save
money. Video would still be an option for small villages.
Fetal alcohol syndrome which seems to be very popular here in Alaska results in kids with learning disabilities, some severe.
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