End experiment with children of Kansas

Adequately and equitably funding schools is perhaps the most important task of state government. Yet during Gov. Sam Brownback’s term in office, the Legislature, under his leadership, has failed to provide necessary support to accomplish that task.

In the past two years, enrollment at the suburban school in which I teach has ballooned by about 100 students. Since we have no additional funds due to the block grant, class sizes and total student loads (the number of students each instructor teaches) have both increased.

If teachers were merely lecturers who gave multiple-choice or true-false assessments, this would not be a difficult problem. But our ability to have quality classroom discussions, small group work, science lab experiments and writing instructions has been severely eroded.

Elective classes in core-area classes also are disappearing, because teachers must teach more sections of required classes. Our classroom textbooks are falling apart, and we have postponed purchasing new ones indefinitely.

There are more diverse situations across the state. Some rural schools, because of decreased enrollments, are struggling to stay open.

Urban areas, such as Sedgwick and Wyandotte counties, struggle with poverty and overcrowding. People of color are disproportionately represented in these urban settings, and the lack of equity provided by the state is shameful.

Removing due-process protection for teachers was a contributing factor (along with class size, student load, low salary and high insurance costs) to the shortage of certified teachers in the state. Not surprisingly, there are fewer teaching graduates from our universities. Restrictions on hiring retired teachers also exacerbates the problem.

It is not hyperbole to suggest that, over time, these conditions will decrease standardized test scores. Any new formula needs to provide a mechanism to recognize annually increasing costs, whether they be due to increased enrollment, insurance premiums, utilities, technology purchases and infrastructure, books, fuel, transportation or inflation.

The tax breaks that were supposed to act like a “shot of adrenaline” have acted more like a shot of Novocaine.

It’s time to end the experiment with the children of Kansas. The tax cuts have had plenty of time to do their magic and have failed miserably.

Lawmakers need to do what’s right for Kansas students.

This story was originally published January 29, 2017 at 5:01 AM with the headline "End experiment with children of Kansas."