Reviews Ohio's data-collection process and makes recommendations for developing a school-level data-collection system that gives stakeholders a clearer picture of resource-allocation/utilization patterns and of school operations' adequacy and efficiency. Various process and methodological issues must be tackled before instituting such systems. (35…

Demonstrates how data analysis has been used in a number of recent court cases in the area of school finance. (Author/IRT)

Presents state-level analyses of revenues and expenditures for the 1997-1998 school year, using both unadjusted and cost-adjusted dollars. Data are from the National Public Education Financial Survey, part of the Common Core of Data. (SLD)

The purpose of this study was to investigate the problem of "underfunding" of the public schools in majority black districts both before and after desegregation. A research design was developed to answer the following three questions: (1) Does the problem of underfunding exist? (2) If the problem exists, is the problem limited to…

In recent years, educational policy makers have expressed increased interest in information about private elementary and secondary school expenditures. However, there is currently no national data collection of the finances of this school sector. A study was initiated for three main purposes: to determine the extent to which expenditure data are…

Relatively little is known about private school finance in the United States. Since this lack of data impoverishes educational policy discussions that compare public and private schools, a strategy, was developed to collect finance data from private schools. High-quality data can be used to determine the total amount spent on elementary and…

Results of an analysis of equity in school finance in Norway and Sweden are presented and their implications for American policy are discussed. Four major types of decisions which have to be made in an equity analysis are identified. (RL)

A study of primary school finance by the Centre for Educational Research and Innovation (CERI) suggests many countries have concerns regarding financial equalization of educational opportunity. This study tests the CERI project's conclusions to determine whether some of the more equalizing finance systems might serve as models for other countries.…

The future financial picture of American education will by affected by: increased demand for schools, higher concentrations of children with special education needs, constrained revenue bases, and increased competition for relatively stable public sector resources. There will be wide variability both among states and among school districts within…

Data on private school finance are not available to inform educational policy discussions about private education. Because of interest in private school finances, the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) contracted with the Pelavin Research Center of the American Institutes for Research to explore the feasibility of collecting data…

This report compares elementary and secondary schools in the United States to schools in 11 other countries. It analyzes the role of schools in preparing students either to continue their education or to enter the labor force. It addresses such questions as "Are there more children in poverty in the United States than in other countries?" and…

This report discusses the possibility of expanding the resource and finance data to be collected as part of the 1999-2000 Schools and Staffing Survey (SASS) of the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). The proposal under consideration, which is being field tested in the fall of 1998 and winter of 1999, has two major components. The…

This paper, the second in an Education Commission of the States (ECS) series, focuses on the planning and financing of dropout prevention programs. Designed as a resource guide, the paper consists of three parts. The first section presents questions asked by policymakers, discusses the process of determining the resources required, and suggests…

This paper was part of a symposium examining, from a multiple perspective, the lessons to be learned from the past decade of school finance reform and outlines a research and political agenda for state and federal activity in the 1980s. The issues that school finance litigation has addressed during the 1970s are reviewed, the current cases and…

This paper describes the research that has been required to develop the factual evidence for challenges to inequitable school finance laws and for defenses of school finance reform legislation in Oregon and Wisconsin. Both the challenge to and the defense of school finance legislation use an analytical framework that focuses on the following…