Economics: School Spending (EduTech Specs)

Why do schools spend money? What informs their decision-making, and what do we know about about the patterns of U.S. schools and how they spend money on educational technology?

Since EduTech Specs is designed to be a research resource for those seeking greater insight into these topics, we will follow a template each week of identifying our Purpose, Scope and Research Questions before tackling those specific questions with data.

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Section #1 - Economic Data

Purpose: To understand the national trends affecting the implementation of innovative technology in the classroom.

Scope: K-12 School Systems (Primarily Public)

Research Questions:

1. Spending: How are schools spending their money when it comes to instructional technologies?
   
2. Trend: What is the trend of spending over time?​

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 Spending: How are schools spending their money (Regarding Instructional Technologies)?

According to Simba Information's 2016 K-12 Classroom Technology Survey Report and Data Appendix:

Personal Computing Devices for Students are a main priority.

• The average reported student-to-computer ratio in 2016 is 2.9:1 ("about 3 students to every computer").
• Of the teachers who did not report 1:1 ratios in their schools, the average time they reported they would meet this standard is 3.1 Years.
• iPads and Chromebooks top the lists of tablets and computer purchases, respectively.
• Teachers reported that their students spend, on average, about 2.2 hours per day on computing devices in school. 60% of these teachers reported that this number would be higher if students had access to additional devices.

Shifting to Digital Content is very important for some states and districts.

• 7 States have passed statutes requiring all instructional materials to have parallel digital instructional materials in the next five years.
• 5 States have policies in place regarding purchasing digital devices.

Digital Content and Software is being discovered ad hoc by teachers themselves.

• 40.4% of Teachers said their most common source for digital resources is discovering it online by themselves.

Trend: What is the trend of spending over time?

Spending on Professional Development is shifting focus but has plateaued.

• The value of the Professional Development market is estimated to reach $5.3 billion, a marginal increase from the previous year.
• Teachers are more likely to find their tech training and resources online.
• Disparity between the spending of school districts is increasing, as schools are greatly increasing or decreasing their budgets for technical training (usually in conjunction with 1:1 computing programs).

Assessment and Testing are gaining increased attention from districts.

• The factor that ranked most-highly in the teacher selection of new digital content was that it included assessment.
• The Testing Market will continue rising. Between 2015 and 2016 it rose to $2.6 billion, about a 2.8% increase.
• Purchases of State Level summative assessments grew by 2.9%, about $1.18 billion in sales.
• Online testing hit $1.4 billion last year, as schools attempt to move to 100% online assessment delivery.

Funding primarily comes from Districts, especially as 2017 brings uncertainties.

• 37.7% of Teachers reported that their primary source of funding was the district budget. The second-most was 9.6% reporting that the individual school was their primary source of funding (as well as 9.6% for the federal government).
• Most teachers reported their schools as being "uncertain" about funding for future purchases due to the ambiguities of the Trump Administration and its vague handling of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA).

Learn More

Simba Information's reports are made available to paying agencies, but students at participating universities can access their content for free. Click HERE if you are a current student at Syracuse University and would like to learn more.

What questions would you like to have answered about schools and technology? Leave them below in a comment, and I'll be happy to pick relevant questions as they connect to future topics of research!

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