September 2024 Research Rundown
By Madie Spartz
September’s Research Rundown—our curated list of recent, relevant research we think is worth adding to the education equity conversation——is focused on funding, schools that outperform averages, and nationwide student data. We’re sharing articles about:
- The impact of additional funding & budget flexibility on test scores
- Schools that are outperforming averages on results for students who are behind
- New, nationwide data on COVID recovery
The Impact of Additional Funding on Student Outcomes: Evidence from an Urban District Using Weighted Student Funding and Site-based Budgeting
Annenberg Institute at Brown University, August 2024
This study examines the effects of a large urban school district switching to site-based budgeting with weighted student funding. In site-based budgeting, school principals, rather than district leaders, make the decisions about how to spend their school’s money. Weighted student funding means that student populations with greater learning needs receive more education funding– in this case, it’s low-income students, English language learners, and students with disabilities. The authors explored the effects of this targeted, flexible funding on test scores, discipline outcomes, and student attendance.
They found that test scores increased for English language learners and low-income students at schools that received the additional funding, equivalent to 16-27% of annual learning gains in math and 20-33% in reading. Based on interviews with principals who either received additional funding or did not, the authors suggest that the flexibility given to principals was a key driver of these gains. Principals who did not receive extra funding described serious limitations in their ability to provide additional academic support to students. It’s important to note, however, that students with disabilities did not realize the same academic gains. Furthermore, the additional funding did not have a significant effect on discipline referrals or student attendance.
Why This Matters in Minnesota
While Minnesota has a complex school funding system, at the state level we do allocate additional dollars for certain factors like English language learners or geographic sparsity, for example. (You can read about our state system here.) This helps ensure more funding gets to the students who need it, though we still have gaps to close at the state level. Moving toward a more straightforward weighted formula could help create a more streamlined, flexible system. From there, districts still have some discretion about individual school funding practices that should consider these findings—both around how funds are distributed and giving more budgeting responsibility to building principals.
The Opportunity Makers: How a Diverse Group of Public Schools Help Students Catch Up—and How Far More Can
TNTP, September 2024
This report analyzes nationwide testing data to identify the top 5% of schools in learning gains for students who are behind academically. Researchers identified over 1,300 schools who consistently help students gain 1.3 years of academic progress in just one school year, and chose 7 of those schools to profile. Through their qualitative and quantitative research, they identified three factors that enable these schools to serve students so well: belonging, consistency, and coherence. Schools in the top 5% ensure they have a welcoming climate that caters to students’ emotional needs, deliver consistently strong, grade-level content for all students, and their instructional program is consistent throughout the school building.
The authors also make four recommendations for schools looking to replicate these strong results: create a supportive ecosystem, reorient to the student experience, choose a small number of focus areas & do them well, and manage ongoing change. Finally, it’s important to note the diversity of the schools represented in the sample. They are urban, rural, spread across geographic regions, and serve a wide variety of student populations. The majority of students at the identified schools are low-income and/or Black and Latino.
Why This Matters in Minnesota
Our state is home to deep disparities in student achievement, both academically and in areas like discipline and school attendance. There is ample evidence and discussion about the problem, but far fewer resources are available to address how it can be changed. This report offers concrete examples of schools that are getting it right and provides a roadmap for replicating those results at scale. Furthermore, the data in this report dispels the notion that students from disadvantaged backgrounds can’t learn or are doomed to attend “failing” schools. Rather, with intentionality to disrupt the systems that perpetuate learning disparities, schools can and do achieve stellar outcomes for kids.
The State of the American Student: Fall 2024
Center for Reinventing Public Education, September 2024
This report provides updated data on academic performance post-COVID, the teacher workforce, student engagement with school, and more. It paints a bleak picture, with achievement gaps widening, teacher morale at historic lows, and more students disengaged with school. While the data may sound unfortunately familiar, the authors argue it’s critical that we don’t lose sight of COVID’s impact on our public education system, as the pandemic fades from public consciousness but its effects linger.
The report does also highlight bright spots, including the fact that we increasingly know what works for learning recovery: tutoring, extended instructional time, and high-quality curriculum are all proven strategies for helping students catch up. Furthermore, students are showing signs of recovery: the average student has made up a quarter of their pandemic learning loss in reading, and about a third in math. While this is important to recognize, it’s not enough. The authors highlight standout programs and schools that are beating averages, as well as provide recommendations for school leaders, advocates, and policymakers.
Why This Matters in Minnesota
Echoing the sentiment in the report, it can seem like Minnesotans are moving away from a lens of COVID recovery to a resigned acceptance of current academic performance as our “new normal.” Data like what’s highlighted in this report is disheartening, but it’s also a reminder that we must do better by our students, and importantly, we have the tools to do so. Policymakers should focus on proven strategies to improve learning outcomes for all students, such as high-dosage tutoring. The solutions are already there– they just require the leadership and investment to enact them.