. A 50 percent decrease in grants to cities and towns for teacher training and professional development.

. A $220,000 cut in administrative costs for the Department of Education.

Although Dukakis insists his spending proposals are appropriate, according to Ed Melikian, spokesperson for the DOE, "It's useless to talk about the numbers of the budget right now because everything is up in the air. Everything will be changed. It serves no purpose to talk about actual figures and spending before the legislature has revised the budget."

Both Barrett and Howat agreed that it was too early to predict which education programs will suffer most from the likely budget revisions.

Barrett said, "The whole budget process is topsy-turvy. You can't tell what's going to happen with particular programs."

"It's really tough now to say that one program is safer than another," Howat said. "It really depends on the entire legislature, the sentiments of 200 people. That we can't predict."

Because of Proposition 2 1/2, a referendum passed in 1980, the property taxes cities and towns can levy have been restricted. As a result, local funds for education have been smaller, and reliance upon aid from Beacon Hill has increased drastically.

Dukakis last month proposed an increase of $120 million in aid to local cities and towns, but tied it to approval of his controversial tax package. House Speaker George Keverian (D-Everett) said yesterday the aid package will most likely not pass the legislature.

Barrett said that local aid funds are of greater concern to state primary and secondary schools than general Department of Education outlays. "The DOE funds are really secondary. If local aid is cut, we're looking at enormous impact on education."

He added that when local aid funds are cut, which seems likely in the current squeeze, "local education will probably take it on the nose. Kids come last in local politics. That's the sad fact."