Funds should go into investing for learning rather than guns

Funds should go to improving education instead of guns. Public school teachers are grossly underpaid. On average, public school teachers earned just under $60,000 in 2018, according to the National Education Association. Teachers also end up shelling out their own money for supplies to make learning as enjoyable as possible. According to a federal Department of Education survey released in May 2018, 94 percent of public school teachers in the United States reported paying for supplies without reimbursement in the school year that straddled 2014 and 2015.^[1] There is also a lack of proper infrastructure in U.S. public schools. According to ASCE’s (American Society of Civil Engineers) 2017 infrastructure report card, it would take $380 billion over the next decade to overhaul the thousands of public schools where nearly 50 million K-12 students spend eight or more hours per day, five days of the week.^[2] Education also needs to be worked on for special kids. They not only require access to public schools but also need evidence-based programs and high-quality teachers. For this, a proper funding model is necessary. Under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), the federal government promised 40% of special education funding, of which it’s only paying 16%.^[3] Therefore, the focus of funding should be on creating a robust learning environment for the students instead of guns.