Hawaii Reporter
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Dispelling the Urban Myths of Public Education in Hawaii

By Laura Brown, 10/7/2002 3:27:07 AM

An urban myth is something that has been said so many times no one bothers to check the source or accuracy of the information. They hear it, believe it and repeat it. Urban myths give ready-made excuses to politicians and bureaucrats as to why public education can't change. Here are a few of my favorites:

Urban Myth #1: Hawaii's Department of Education has only 2 percent administration

This myth is wrought from the idea that the DOE budget category EDN 300 for state and district administration is 2 percent of the entire DOE budget or $29 million. The breakdown of DOE employees as reported to the federal government can be reviewed at the National Center for Education Web site. The DOE reports there are 10,676 classrooms and 261 schools statewide, as well as the following information:

5,983.9 elementary teachers; 4,896.4 secondary teachers; 47.0 ungraded teachers; 10,927.3 Total
1,316.4 instructional aides; 445.3 instructional coordinators; 627.5 counselors; 291.0 librarians; 63.5 library specialists; 136.4 district administrators; 250.3 district administrator support; 474.8 school administrators; 682.2 administrative support; 818.2 student support; 2,319.7 other support; 7,425.3 Total "Other than teachers"

According to the Census Bureau, staffing at Hawaii public schools increased to 25,378 from 22,900 full-time equivalent positions and payroll has increased to $67,101,646 a month from $55,274,256 a month between 1997 and 2001. (The number of full-time equivalent employees is compiled by taking the number of hours worked by part-time employees divided by the hours in a full-time work week and adding the equivalent full-time positions to the number of full-time workers.)

Urban Myth #2: Education in Hawaii is under funded

The Department of Education's budget with fixed costs is approximately $1.47 billion FY 2002. Based on the census figures above, 2001 payroll figures equaled $805,219,752 per year. FY 2002-2003 budget for operating costs is $929,885,433. The necessity of the above listed personnel must be determined and the question must be asked, "Why are Department of Education costs and personnel expanding at a rate that far exceeds any other department, while student enrollments are consistently dropping?" The excuse is always "Felix," although the consent decree is 8 years old and the state has been found in "substantial compliance" by the federal court. The inclusion of debt service is the more likely culprit for spiraling costs.

Urban Myth #3: Hawaii's public school student low scores are due to a high percentage of English as a Second Language students and/or poverty

The total public school population in SY2002 is 182,798. Total number of reported Limited English Proficient (LEP) students is 12,718, less than 7 percent of DOE school enrollment. Other states, for example, California (24.6 percent), Texas (13 percent), Utah (8 percent) have higher counts of LEP students, but higher scores than Hawaii.

Poverty is often cited as the second excuse for poor student performance. Approximately half of Hawaii's public schools are listed as high-poverty, meaning 45 percent of the student body in each school is eligible for free or reduced lunch. ($18,000 or $32,000 annual income limits for a family of four.) Approximately 120,000 children under the age of 18 in Hawaii live in poverty.

Poverty and poor education are linked, as one tends to beget the other, but a Pacific Research Institute's Center for School Reform found that the lowest-income schools in California using direct-instruction teaching methods, such as the Open Court phonics-based reading program, have the highest scores. Research points to faulty curriculum as the leading cause of poor academic performance.

Urban Myth #4: Large, centralized school districts lead to parity and efficiency

Nationally, the trend toward larger school districts reversed by 1987, according to Politics and Policies in States and Communities. Research on the effects of centralized bureaucracies began in 1975 and all studies concluded that smaller districts are better for student learning than larger districts; in fact, there is an inverse relationship between size and student achievement. State level control results in more spending, more bureaucracy, increased inefficiency and loss of local control. However, it is far easier for unions to lobby one state Legislature and one school board versus many local school boards. Parity is often cited as a benefit of Hawaii's centralized educational system. One need only compare Kaiser High School with Waipahu High School to see that not all schools are created or treated equally. A printout of expenditures at Holomua Elementary in Ewa reveals per pupil costs of over $9,000 and Mililani Middle School at almost $7,000, but schools in Waipahu or other impoverished areas hover closer to $3,000 per student.

Replacing these urban myths with hard-core facts should give the public a shot of sobering reality and the impetus for immediate change.

Laura Brown is the education writer for HawaiiReporter.com and a parent of children attending public school in Hawaii. She can be reached via email at mailto:laurabrown@hawaii.rr.com

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