Chapter 6: Governance and Finance of U.S. Schools

Concerning political interest groups, professional teachers recognize that______.

A. They have much to gain from becoming politically involved.

One characteristic of successful schools is ____.

A. a close working relationship with parents

State- appropriate funds to cover the costs of educating students with special needs are known as ____.

A. categorial aid

The governor has the power to do all of the following except ______. A. determine the cap on teacher salaries B. appoint or remove educators at the state level C. appoint the chief state school officer D. use veto power to influence laws related to education

A. determine the cap on teacher salaries

At the local level, most funding for schools comes from _____.

A. property taxes

The executive, legislative, and judicial branches of the federal government influence education in all of the following ways except _____. A. providing funding to schools when they fail to adopt federally endorsed programs, methods, or curriculum B. exerting moral influence on the development of a vision and the promotion of educational goals for the nation C. providing categorical aid to assist school systems D. funding educational research related to federal goals for education

A. providing funding to schools when they fail to adopt federally endorsed programs, methods, or curriculum

Funding for schools has often been offset by all of the following except ______. A. rising student dropout rate B. inflation C. rising enrollments D. the need to update facilities

A. rising student dropout rate

Shared governance, administrative decentralization, teacher empowerment, professionalism, bottom-up policy-making, school based planning and school-based management are all examples of ____.

A. school restructuring

All of the following are advisory functions preformed by state boards of education except _____. A. selecting state department of education personnel B. advising the governor on educational issues C. identifying both short- and long-range educational needs D. hearing all disputes arising from educational plicy

A. selecting state department of education personnel

Over the past decade, corporate contributes to education have ____.

A. significantly increased

Should a dispute arise within a state regarding a law related to education, the body charged with the power to decide on the reasonableness of the law is the ______.

A. state court

Within a state, the body usually charged with the day-today- implementation of educational policies is the ______.

A. state department of education

The majority of funding for schools is provided by the _____.

A. states

An approach whereby parents are given money by the state to enroll their children in the school of their choice is called a(n) _____.

A. voucher system

Allocating funds according to legitimate educational needs such as low-income students or students with limited English proficiency is called ____.

B vertical equity

An influential and extensive federal education program signed into law by President Roosevelt in 1944 is the ____.

B. G.I. Bill of Rights

According the the 2007 Phi Delta Kappa/Gallup Poll, public attitudes toward school choice programs that would allow parents to choose a private school to attend at public expense revealed ____.

B. a significant majority in opposition

DUring President CLintons term of office (1992-2000), the federal government ______.

B. assumed a more active role in ensuring equal educational opportunity

All of the following statements concerning the financing of education in the 50 states are generally correct except _____. A. the states have similar regulations for funding schools B. education money is unequally distributed across districts C. only a small fraction of education dollars support regular classroom instruction D. significant amounts of money are spent in schools but outside classrooms

B. education money is unequally distributed across districts

Supplemental programs to help meet the needs of special school populations are called ___.

B. entitlements

Most school-based management (SBM) programs have all of the following components except _____. A. power and decisions are delegated to teachers, parents, community members, and students B. final decisions of major issues rest with the local school board. C. a decision- making body implements the SBM plan D. SBM programs operate with the endorsement of the superintendent

B. final decisions of major issues rest with the local school board

All of the following are true of the New York City school system except ______. A. it serves more than a million pupils B. only the Los Angeles Unified School system is larger C. more than 66,000 teachers work in the system D. it has total annual expenditures of more than $12 billion

B. only the Los Angeles Unified School system is larger

All of the followin are responsibilities of the state department of education except ______. A. certifying teachers B. passing legislation related to education C. accrediting schools D. distributing state and federal money to school districts

B. passing legislation related to education

The federal government initiative known as the Lanham Act provided funding for all of the following except ______. A. the training of workers in war plants B. postsecondary schooling for workers C. the construction of schools near military installations D. childcare for working parents

B. postsecondary schooling for workers

The body that determines how taxes will be used to support schools, what will or will not be taught, and the length of the school day and year is the _____.

B. state legislature

The responsibility for maintaining schools is primarily a function of the ______.

B. states

All of the following are responsibilities of the chief state school officer except ______. A. selecting state department of education personnel B. supervising superintendents throughout the state C. ensuring compliance with state school laws and policies D. reporting on the status of education to the governor

B. supervising superintendents throughout the state

In one of the nations most dramatic education reform efforts, the Kentucky Education Reform Act (KERA) required each of the state's schools to form a school-based management council to set policy in each of the following areas except _____. A. curriculum B. teachers' salaries C. discipline D. extracurricular activities

B. teachers' salaries

By 2008, the total expenditure for public elementary and secondary schools in the United States was approximately ______.

C. $596 billion

A federal prgram designed o provide preschool experiences to poor children is ____.

C. Head Start

According to the text, which of the following statements best describes the school-based management experiences of the City of Chicago Public Schools?

C. The overall effectiveness of this effort has been mixed.

Advantages of for-profit schools that proponents advocate include each of the following except ____. A. efficiency B. reduction of costs C. better public relations D. improved student achievement

C. better public relations

Since the 1939-1940, the number of school districts in the United States has _______.

C. decreased steadily

In a recent synthesis of research on school restructuring, all of the following structural conditions were found to enhance a schools "professional community" and increase students learning except ____. A.shared governance that increases teachers' influence over school policy and practice B. large schools in which communications and trust are less important to students' lives C. deregulation that provides autonomy for schools to pursue a vision of high intellectual standards D. parent involvement in a broad range of school affairs

C. deregulation that provides autonomy for schools to pursue a vision of high intellectual standards

All of the following would be a function of the school board except ____. A. approving personnel hired by the superintendent B. developing organizational policies C. evaluating probationary teachers D. determining procedures for program evaluations

C. evaluating probationary teachers

A national survey of the characteristics of school board members revealed all of the following except____. A. most members were male B. most members identified as being politically moderate C. most members were poorer than the general population D. minority membership was less than 14% of all members

C. most members were poorer than the general public

At the state level, most funding for schools comes from _____.

C. sales taxes and income taxes

The highest educational agency in a state is the _____.

C. state board of education

Within a state, the body usually charged with managing state monies appropriated for education is the _____.

C. state board of education

Ensuring that schools operate in accordance with federal and state guidelines is the responsibility of the_____.

C. superintendent

As a result of the Kentucky Education Reform Act (KERA), _____.

C. teachers' salaries and student/teacher ratios improved compared to national averages

Which of the following statements is true about the organizational structure of schools?

D. The larger the district, the more office administrators and support personnel are needed.

Critics of school boards point out that school boards are best described as agencies that ______.

D. are reluctant to communicate a vision of educational excellence

In most states, the head of the state board of education is the ______.

D. chief state school officer

The role of the regional educational service agencies is to provide assistance directly to districts and includes all of the following except ______. A. staff development B. program evaluation C. curriculum development D. contract negotiations

D. contract negotiations

The arena of educational politics refers to how people use all of the following except______. A. power B. influence C. authority D. emotion

D. emotion

Which of the following is considered to be one of the most controversial educational issues of the twenty-first century in the United States?

D. for-profit schools

Programs in which states set the same per-pupil expenditure level for all schools and districts are called _____.

D. full-funding programs

According to the text, all of the following are accurate descriptions of regional educational service agencies except ______. A. these agencies are the least understood branch of the state public school system B. these agencies provide local school districrs with economical and logistical support services the districts could not provide for themselves C. the primary role of these agencies is to provide assistance directly to districts in such ares as staff development and curriculum reform D. nearly all states have some form of intermediate or regional educational service agency

D. nearly all states have some form of intermediate or regional education service agency

An approach to school improvement in which teachers, principals, students, parents, and community members manage individual schools and share in the decision-making process is known as _____.

D. school-based management

An intermediate or regional unit may provide all of the following services except ______. A.education for students with disabilities B. education for students who are gifted C. computer education D. site-based administrative services

D. site-based administrative services

According to the text, all of the following are groups that have a keen concern for shaping educational policies except ______. A. businesses and corporations B. educational theorists and researchers C. minorities and women D. textbook publishers

D. textbook publishers

All of the following statements are true about the relationship between school boards and superintendents except ______. A.the relationship between the board and the superintendent is related to the size of the district. B. school boards in small districts are more effective when they oppose the superintendent C. school boards in large districts are more likely to be in conflict with their superintendent D. the relationship between the board and the superintendent is dependent upon the existing leadership style

D. the relationship between the board and the superintendent is dependent upon the existing leadership style

All of the following are powers of the states to maintain and support schools except _____. A. levying taxes for school support B. determining minimum standards for teacher certification C. identifying approved textbooks D. the right to fire teachers within local bargaining units

D. the right to fire teachers within local bargaining units