There are no data yet on the effects of the recession on measures of inequality, but historically the effect of downturns is to increase, not decrease, class polarization.
The University of Wisconsin at Madison has been cutting undergraduate enrollment in the last five years to decrease class sizes and make the school more selective.
A coalition of groups has joined the New York City teachers' union in calling for a ballot initiative that would require the Education Department to decrease class size throughout the school system.
"Research suggests it may be better for students if we invest in increasing the quality of teachers, including through salaries, than on decreasing class size," says Albiser. "The quality of an education system cannot exceed the quality of its teachers".
(One that does seem to work is decreasing class size in the lower grades — but the size has to fall by a lot, more than is practical for most school systems).
SUNY officials have said the additional money would be used to decrease class sizes, hire more full-time faculty and maintain existing classes and programs.
Advocates said that Mr. de Blasio and Mr. Cuomo would have to work to decrease class sizes, improve curriculum and raise salaries for prekindergarten classroom aides, who are not paid the same as teachers.
Gore is in favor of high standards -- if any national figure isn't, he hasn't stuck his head up yet -- but he also wants to spend more money to fix crumbling school buildings and to hire more teachers to decrease class size.
Ravitch would like to see Duncan devote the resources at his disposal not to free-market experimentation but to "common-sense, real-world things," like enriching curricula, decreasing class sizes, maintaining school buildings, improving (rather than closing) low-performing schools, and working with social-service agencies to make sure schoolchildren are healthy enough to learn.
Decreasing class values drop also in thiscase.
