By Jennifer Hiller
Advertiser Education Writer

I know you have an opinion, but how much do you really know about Hawai'i schools?

Think carefully before answering.

Everyone, it seems, is an expert on education these days. But while many people know everything about their child's education, school or a particular issue that gets them hot under the collar, few people know education by the numbers.

The Hawai'i Educational Policy Center at the University of Hawai'i-Manoa has published a report called "Just the Facts ... A Citizens Primer on Hawai'i K-12 Public Education." It's an excellent resource for anyone trying to figure out that mysterious and usually confusing entity known as the Hawai'i Department of Education.

Jim Shon, associate director of the center, said the report is meant to help the public, candidates for office, policy makers and the average Joe in their discussions about ways to improve the school system.

So, with apologies to Shon and his colleagues, here are a few of the questions from the quiz that appears at the front of their report. Answers are at the bottom. And here's a hint: The answers may surprise you.

1. In January 2002, the number of people employed by the Hawai'i State Department of Education was:

a. 50,234
b. 10,927
c. 21,614
d. 37,899

2. The percentage of the Hawai'i DOE budget spent on instruction is:

a. 62.8 percent
b. 52.8 percent
c. 42.8 percent
d. 32.8 percent

3. Nationally, the highest percentage of the budget any state department of education spends on instruction is:

a. 67.8 percent
b. 87 percent
c. 75.4 percent
d. 54.9 percent

4. Of the 184,360 public school students, how many received lunch subsidies in 2000?

a. 12,837
b. 20,138
c. 46,522
d. 74,558

Answers:

1. c. Of the 21,614 employees, 1,231 work in the state or district offices; the rest are in the schools. Teachers make up 60.7 percent of the Hawai'i DOE employees, the second-highest percentage in the nation behind Rhode Island, which is at 61.6 percent.

2. a. 62.8 percent. Hawai'i ranks 13th nationally in the percentage of money spent on instruction. The national average is 61.7 percent.

3. a. The state spending the largest chunk of its budget on instruction is New York at 67.8 percent. Washington, D.C., spends the least, at 45.3 percent.

4. d. The number of students receiving lunch subsidies has been rising for the last decade. The 74,558 students who get lunch for free or at a reduced price represent about 40 percent of the students in the public school system. Because high school students are often reluctant to fill out the paperwork for the lunch program, there are probably more students who would qualify.

Some other interesting facts in the report: Native Hawaiians make up 26.1 percent of the public school population, with 48,078 students enrolled; the state spends 44.7 percent of the education budget on teacher salaries, and Farrington High is the state's largest public school, with 2,455 students.

Data for the report came from several national sources, such as the U.S. Census Bureau and the College Board, as well as the Department of Education, the Office of Hawaiian Affairs and Kamehameha schools.

You can find the complete quiz and the "Just the Facts" report at www.hawaii.edu/hepc. Click on "publications" and then on "policy reports."