UFT Survey Finds Increased Class Sizes And Dwindling Budgets, Echoing National Trend:

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UFT Survey Finds Increased Class Sizes And Dwindling Budgets, Echoing National Trend

Posted: 11/1/11 07:24 PM ET

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Budget Cuts , Education , Education Reform , Recession , Michael Mulgrew ,New York City Department Of Education , P.S. 1 , Education News , Education Recession ,School Supplies , Schools , Science Class , Education News

NEW YORK -- By the end of this year, Seung Lee, a science teacher at lower Manhattan's P.S. 1, expects to have spent $500 from his own pocket on school supplies.

"And that's a conservative estimate," said Lee, who has taught at P.S. 1 for nine years. "I'm afraid to tell my wife."

Lee's nine classes are exploding, some with 32 students. "Every desk is full. There's no space for anything," he said.

All this complicates the lab work he hoped to pursue. While his recent lesson on earthworms proceeded, he lost the ability to delve into the material. "With 32 kids, you spend a lot more time making sure everyone is doing it right, but not necessarily learning."

P.S. 1 is located in Chinatown, and serves many students who speak English as a second language. Over the last few years, though, its budget has been