I went to school in a poor country, and live in the US. The education budget was very low when / where I grew up, and it is pretty hefty where my kids go to school. I occasionally visit their school and volunteer to help. That has given me a good frame for comparison.
The quality of education my kids are getting is pure trash compared to what I receieved.
The problem is not the budget. It is the lack of real teachers, as well as a perpetually experimental curriculum. The "modern" methods that I have seen their teachers practice (which confuse the teachers, too, by the way; the teachers all have said that), are very visibly wrong. So wrong that even I can see all sorts of flaws, despite not having any background in education science. The curriculum is predictably set for failure.
I strongly believe technology, and AI in particular, can be a major enabler in improving education. However, for early education (first 5-6 grades), I think absolute lack of technology (except maybe a big e-ink class whiteboard, or some such) would be far more beneficial. Kids can learn to type very quickly when needed (ideally 6th / 7th grade). They can't learn thinking-while-writing, as quickly. They have to slowly build up that mental muscle. Let them have a few years of building structure and core understanding, then get exposed to tools for doing things faster.
> The problem is not the budget. It is the lack of real teachers, as well as a perpetually experimental curriculum.
Taking this at face value: how are you teasing apart "lack of real teachers" from the budget? You don't think you'd get real teachers if there was a higher budget to pay them well?
> The quality of education my kids are getting is pure trash compared to what I received.
How are you doing this comparison? Have you adjusted for cost of living and the alternative opportunities available to good teachers and such? I ask because usually people compare absolute amounts of money, which distorts the picture.