U.S. not getting its money’s worth in education

WASHINGTON — The United States spends more than other developed nations on its students’ education each year, with parents and private foundations picking up more of the costs than in the past, an international survey released Tuesday found.

Despite the spending, U. S. students still trail their rivals on international tests.

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development — which groups the world’s most developed countries — writes in its annual education report that brand-new and experienced teachers alike in the United States out- earn most of their counterparts around the globe.

But U. S. salaries have not risen at the same pace as other nations and the United States is one of the few places where overall education spending has fallen since the economic crisis hit in 2008.

The United States spent more than $11,000 per elementary student in 2010 and more than $12,000 per high school student.

When researchers factored in the cost for programs after high school education such as college or vocational training, the United States spent $15,171 on each young person in the system — more than any other nation covered in the report.

That sum was slightly higher than some developed countries and it far surpassed others. Switzerland’s total spending per student was $14,922 while Mexico averaged $2,993 in 2010. The average OECD nation spent $9,313 per young person.

Spending, of course, does not guarantee students’ success. The United States trails its rival countries in performances on international exams despite its spending level.

U.S. fourth-graders are 11th in the world in math in the Trends in Interna- tional Mathematics and Science Study, a separate measure of nations against each other. U. S. eighthgraders ranked ninth in math, according to those 2011 results.