(Nevada Policy) – If you look across the US education landscape, there are still plenty of people asking why students are not able to read or write.
There’s no shortage of people who can point to the problem; usually, the solution is blindly throwing more money at administrators hoping that they will fix it. What we’re seeing is a disconnect between Nevada’s relatively high education spending and its poor student outcomes.
Unfortunately for Nevada’s schoolchildren, that hasn’t worked. Nevada has increased its education spending, but for many students, they are reading at a 5th grade level while being in 8th grade.
Why hasn’t more funding led to better results? At Nevada Policy, we know that reforms are needed to ensure that our tax dollars are being spent effectively.
Higher Spending, Lower Scores?
Nevada spent close to $10,000 per pupil back in 2019. In 2021, that number increased to almost $12,500 per pupil.
Due to a $12 billion education funding bill passed in 2023, Nevada has increased its per-pupil funding for fiscal year 2025 by $2500.
Despite these increases, Nevada was ranked 48th in the nation for public school overall ranking in 2024. Nevada’s student success ranking was 45th.
Even though the state spent more than Alabama, Arizona, Idaho, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Tennessee and Utah per pupil in FY21, on the National Assessment of Education Progress reading test for 8th graders, more than half of those states outperformed Nevada, and most outperformed Nevada in math.
Where Does the Money Go?
One would think that as education funding increases, student performance would increase.
But are those education dollars being allocated to educate kids in the classroom? Or are those dollars going under the umbrella of education spending that never touches classroom education?
According to Robert Fellner in “Nevada’s Education Woes Reflect a Lack of Accountability not Insufficient Funding,” funds are not being used effectively due to political pressures and entrenched interest groups.
This means that adults’ priorities are higher than the needs of students.
For example, the Nevada State Education Association opposes including any measure of student learning in teacher evaluations. So, money spent on teachers and increasing their pay grades is not tied to teacher performance.
Common sense says that should be part of the evaluation criteria.
Teachers are rubber-stamped a passing grade on their evaluations, which helps adults. Not kids.
This policy most certainly is not in the best interests of students.
Reforms for Better Performance
There needs to be more transparency and accountability of our education dollars.
Too many resources go toward failing administrators and underperforming teachers. They should go towards classroom-level education.
This would make sure that our children aren’t robbed of opportunity.
Another reform focused on results would be expanding school choice. These programs give families access to schools beyond their local public-school option.
Because of this, underperforming schools would see an outflow of students unless they do something to improve academics and learning.
Stay Informed
Stay informed about the policies shaping Nevada’s future. Sign up to get Nevada Policy’s latest news, research, and action alerts delivered straight to your inbox. It’s the easiest way to stay in the loop—and make a difference.
