Interesting findings from The Wisconsin Institute of Law and Liberty.

Some of the findings include:

1. When compared to neighboring states, Act 10 had no significant impact on the number of students per school teacher.  Put another way, changes in classroom size did not differ significantly from changes in neighboring states.

2. When compared to surrounding states, we did not find any significant effect by Act 10 on school district spending on teacher gross salaries (incl. bonuses, some pay for performance, and stipends).  We did find an effect by Act 10 on base salaries.  We suspect that this reflects the new marketplace for teachers post-Act 10 where districts are moving towards pay-for-performance, bonuses, and stipends, as described in a previous WILL study.

3. There was little difference in the change in average teacher experience before and after Act 10.

4. There was little difference in the change in racial makeup of the teaching workforce before and after Act 10.

5. Wisconsin’s teacher decline began well before the implementation of Act 10.