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The quality of public school systems varies widely from state to state, and recent research shows that California will fit in the middle of the pack when it reaches its best in the country.
According to Wallethub, a research firm for personal finance, many American families cannot afford to send their children to private schools, particularly due to recent rising costs and inflation. This leaves public schools as the only option for most students across the country, Wallethub researchers explained in their study.
When it comes to the quality of public school systems, much of it depends on funding, the study found.
“Public and secondary education money usually flows from three sources: federal, state and local government,” Wallethub says. “The states contribute roughly as much as local governments, but the federal government supplies the smallest share. Some researchers have found that more resources or taxes are usually paid,” according to the U.S. Department of Education.
Considering 32 different metrics, the researchers concluded which states have the best public school system, including performance, funding, safety, class size, and instructor credentials. The study found that the East Coast dominates when it comes to the best public school systems, with the top five being Massachusetts, Connecticut, New Jersey, Virginia and New Hampshire.
Golden State is ranked 30th on the list of the best public school systems, Wallethub found. The most important aspects of the study (overall quality and school safety) were ranked 29th and 37th, respectively.
ANAHEIM, CA – August 8: Teacher Sylvia Orbol will read to second-grade students on the first day of class at Price Elementary School in Anaheim, CA on Thursday, August 8, 2024.
When it comes to spending, California ranked 17th in the nation. California also finished second in the proportion of high school students who were threatened or injured, behind Delaware. Based on the researcher’s methodology, California’s public school systems fall into the “high spending and weak school systems” category.
Other states in that category include Louisiana, Oregon, Alaska, Minnesota, Colorado, Hawaii and Wyoming.
Wallethub found California tied together with Connecticut and Washington, DC, along with the highest median ACT score in the United States.
Methodology
To determine the best and worst states in public schooling, Wallethub used 32 related indicators to compare 50 states and the District of Columbia compared two important aspects: quality and safety. Each metric is rated on a scale of 100 points, with a score of 100 representing the highest quality public K-12 education.
The weighted average of each state across all metrics was then calculated to find the overall score.
You can read the complete research and see a detailed breakdown of the methodology here.
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