A Think Twice Review of:

The School Staffing Surge: Decades of Employment Growth in America's Public Schools

Think Twice - Dec 04, 2012

Publisher/Think Tank - The Friedman Foundation

Author(s) -

The report finds that although staffing in U.S. public schools dramatically increased, student achievement did not. The report concludes that more school choice would result in decentralized governance and a better allocation of resources – "so that individual parents, teachers and educators can decide how to best organize schools."

Reviewer(s) - Joydeep Roy, Visiting Professor Teachers College – Columbia University & Senior Economist for the New York City Independent Budget Office

A new review finds that the report does not further the public's understanding of the issue, and does not offer any guidance for policymakers. Furthermore, it is based on faulty premises, lacks any analysis of why school staffing has grown, and promotes choice without offering any evidence that it would have altered the trend.