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| What's the value of education? |
I suspect that most of us would agree that education is priceless.
But we do live in a world with real dollar costs and I don't think school boards( or other public service bodies) do a particularly good job of informing parents and/or community members of the value of education in a way they can relate to.
For example, our school district's annual budget is now over $800 million. That number is so large that there's no way the average person can comprehend it. But what if we said to parents: the school board budget of about $800 million provides education for 80,000 students, or an average public investment in each child of $10,000 per year. Now we're at a number that people can get their heads around. In my discussions with parents, few have any idea of this per/student cost, since education is mostly "free" to them. If we did explain it like that, I think there would be a lot less grumbling when people consider their tax obligations, and perhaps a bit more gratitude for the value of the public services they receive.
This is truly the miracle of public education: by pooling our collective resources( i.e. taxes) we can ensure a quality education for every child.
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