Districts Pay Less in Poor Schools, Report Says
By SAM DILLON
Published: November 30, 2011
Education experts have long argued that a basic inequity in American schooling is that students in poor neighborhoods are frequently taught by low-paid rookie teachers who move on as they gain experience and rise up the salary scale.
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Until now, however, researchers lacked nationwide data to prove it. That changed Wednesday when theDepartment of Education released a 78-page report.
Its conclusion: Tens of thousands of schools serving low-income students are being shortchanged because districts spend fewer state and local dollars on teacher salaries in those schools than on salaries in schools serving higher-income students.
“Low-income students need extra support and resources to succeed, but in far too many places, policies for assigning teachers and allocating resources are perpetuating the