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  • Innovative school funding models based on learning growth could help incentivize academic achievement and help schools thrive.<\/li>\r\n \t
  • How can donors support funding that encourages student development? What are the equity concerns with funding based on school attendance?<\/li>\r\n \t
  • Read more about impactful education funding.<\/a><\/li>\r\n<\/ul>","intro":null,"content":"Michigan\u2019s state funding has long been tied to a single count day, which occurs on the first Wednesday of October. This year, that means that for each student in attendance, each school will receive roughly $9,150\u2014the base funding in the state\u2019s budget.For states that have such count days, it\u2019s so important that some schools I\u2019ve researched outside of Michigan hold pizza parties to ensure students attend. Of course, pizza and food would likely drive Jewish students away while fasting on Yom Kippur.Five districts in Michigan that don\u2019t hold school on Yom Kippur because they have large Jewish populations have received waivers from the state to use the following day as the count day instead. Yet districts in session, like Ann Arbor, must create workarounds.Even if one grants that Michigan\u2019s policy stems from innocent, obtuse bureaucratic policies rather than something more pernicious, the reliance on a single count day to determine a school\u2019s funding is a sign of more serious problems.Funding schools based on attendance on a single day \u2014 or in other states, based on their average daily attendance or the number of minutes students sit in class over the course of a year \u2014 incentivizes schools to focus on what\u2019s known as \u201cseat time,\u201d but not learning.In other words, rather than pay for learning, public schools are paid based on enrollment. It\u2019s no exaggeration to say that we\u2019re paying schools based on the wrong end of the student. Small wonder that the focus on learning is so variable and results poor.A better funding model would tie some portion of the money to learning progress\u2014measured in terms of mastery\u2014that each individual student makes over the course of the fiscal year. Such a model would incentivize learning, not just attendance.Read the full article about funding schools by Michael B. Horn at Christensen Institute.Read the full article","html_content":"

    Michigan\u2019s state funding has long been tied to a single count day, which occurs on the first Wednesday of October. This year, that means that for each student in attendance, each school will receive roughly $9,150\u2014the base funding in the state\u2019s budget.<\/p>

    For states that have such count days, it\u2019s so important that some schools I\u2019ve researched outside of Michigan hold pizza parties to ensure students attend. Of course, pizza and food would likely drive Jewish students away while fasting on Yom Kippur.<\/p>

    Five districts in Michigan that don\u2019t hold school on Yom Kippur because they have large Jewish populations have received waivers from the state to use the following day as the count day instead. Yet districts in session, like Ann Arbor, must create workarounds.<\/p>

    Even if one grants that Michigan\u2019s policy stems from innocent, obtuse bureaucratic policies rather than something more pernicious, the reliance on a single count day to determine a school\u2019s funding is a sign of more serious problems.<\/p>

    Funding schools based on attendance on a single day \u2014 or in other states, based on their average daily attendance or the number of minutes students sit in class over the course of a year \u2014 incentivizes schools to focus on what\u2019s known as \u201cseat time,\u201d but not learning.<\/p>

    In other words, rather than pay for learning, public schools are paid based on enrollment. It\u2019s no exaggeration to say that we\u2019re paying schools based on the wrong end of the student. Small wonder that the focus on learning is so variable and results poor.<\/p>

    A better funding model would tie some portion of the money to learning progress\u2014measured in terms of mastery\u2014that each individual student makes over the course of the fiscal year. Such a model would incentivize learning, not just attendance.<\/p>

    Read the full article about funding schools by Michael B. Horn at Christensen Institute.