Report faults states' funding, help for local schools

"A recent report commissioned by Congress found that states don’t fund education fairly across jurisdictions, need to do a better job intervening in struggling school districts and encouraging better-qualified teachers to enter the profession — and stay," Ben Wieder reports for Stateline. The problems are often worse in poor, rural districts.

As he released the report, Education Secretary Arne Duncan said, “In far too many communities, in far too many cities, in far too many states, there are inequities.” The report " calls for tying federal aid to requirements that states adopt more equitable funding formulas, promote greater diversity within all schools, train and retain better teachers and provide quality preschooling to all students," Wieder reports.