NewsOK
Published: October 22, 2010
Bob Crofford, Warr Acres
Proponents of State Question 744 say that our students are falling behind, so we must increase spending to meet the regional average. Making our students competitive with other students in the region is important. Perhaps this could be brought about through more spending, but linking Oklahoma's education spending per student to that of other states is a fiscal mistake.
Consider the analogy of a neighborhood. Walking outside one morning, you see that all the neighbors have nicer cars than you. One of them is riding around on a new lawn mower while another is having a new large-screen TV installed. Filled with jealousy, you decide that you'll increase your own spending in order to buy a new car, riding lawn mower and plasma TV. You change your budget to reflect the budgets of your neighbors. As you start to spend more money on the things that are important to your neighbors, you end up having less money for the things that matter most to you. You might even end up maxing out credit cards and taking out loans.
Setting your own budget based on what your neighbors spend doesn't make sense; for Oklahoma to link its own budget to its neighbors also doesn't make sense. Rather than seeking to be average in terms of educational expenditures, Oklahoma should strive to be superior in efficiency. Our educational system must be improved, not inflated.
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Posted on
Fri, October 22, 2010
by Crystal Drwenski