Parents should be able to send their children to the school of their choice. And they do, but the public should not be expected to pay for their private choices.
The public has a civic obligation to support public education. Even if you don’t have children, you pay taxes to educate the children of the community. Even if your children are grown, you pay school taxes. Even if you send your children to private school, you pay school taxes. Public schools are a public responsibility.
If you don’t like the public schools, you are free to choose a private school, a charter school, a religious school, or home school. That’s your choice. But you must pay for it yourself.
We all pay for police and firefighters. If you want a private security guard, pay for it yourself. We all pay for public schools, even if we don’t patronize them. They belong to the community. We do so to invest in the future of our society. It is a civic obligation.
We all pay to support public libraries. If you never use the local library, you still have to pay the taxes to support it. If you prefer to buy books instead of using the free public library, don’t ask taxpayers to subsidize your private choice. Buy your own books. Pay for it yourself.
The taxes you pay support the common good, not your private preferences. They pay for highways you may never drive on, fire departments you may never call on, beaches open to all that you may never set foot on, public parks, and a range of services and facilities open to all without fee.
When it comes to education, there is a simple rule: public money for free, democratically controlled schools, private money for private, privately-controlled, and religious schools.
Hear, hear! I could not have said it better.
Is there even an argument against this? I mean, that’s valid?
This infographic shows some of the differences in thinking between conservatives and liberals.
However, I’m with you all the way on what you said Diane.
Except that this isn’t really accurate. The right likes to interfere with people’s personal/social lives as much as the left, just for different reasons (“morality” vs. “safety”, generally speaking). The right wants to limit reproductive choices, marriage choices, end of life decisions, substance use, etc.
Not to mention that many Democrats these days are just as hopped up on “choice schools” as Republicans are. There’s really very little difference between the parties these days. It all comes back to money.
Clear and articulate, per usual. We must continue to work against the privatization movement that has taken over the prison system and other public agencies and programs.
Ed reformers are celebrating the realization of Milton Friedman’s vision for “public” education.
“Building on the conceptual foundation of vouchers economist Milton Friedman established in 1955, universal education savings accounts are, to date, the ultimate in school choice because they enable all students to have access to a top-notch, customized education that meets their unique learning needs.”
Remember when this was a “conspiracy theory”? 🙂
They just wanted better public schools! They weren’t privatizing the whole system! Perish the thought!
What a shame. 150 years to build the one and only universal public system in the US, 15 years to tear it down.
Reckless.
http://dailysignal.com/2015/06/09/the-difference-between-education-savings-accounts-and-vouchers/
Chiara, what was or is “universal” about US K-12 public education? The last time I checked there were ~14,000 school districts in the US, each with its own set of rules and regulations, each of them distinct to some degree or other. There are wide variations in funding, facilities, student demographics, and outcomes. Most of those 14,000 districts will not accept children who live outside district boundaries.
The public school experience completely depends on where a kid lives. There never would have been a reason for anyone to dream up alternatives like charter schools if the experience was “universal.”
And where you live is where you vote. Democracy can be a good thing.
I agree that parents should pay for private schools for their children if they so desire. The problem is that most middle class people and those who are unfortunate enough to make even less can’t pay anywhere between $20,000-50,000 or more per year for a fantastic education from Phillips, Emma Willard, Waring, Middlesex, Concord Academy, etc. Look at the curricula for these schools and see the depth and breadth of exciting courses. Teachers are well rounded and have variety in their educations and experiences. They aren’t limited to being certified by the state and constrained to teach only certain courses. They aren’t bound by testing and teachers (and students) aren’t disrespected with unfair evaluation plans. They are free of the discipline problems of public schools. They seek to provide a well-rounded education of academics, experiences, athletics, and activities. It’s too bad that many public schools don’t seem to enjoy this as well.
Well,surely the public knows they aren’t getting THAT with a 5k voucher.
In a fragmented, privatized system they’ll get less with 5k, because they won’t have economies of scale. They’ll be replicating everything at each school.
They also won’t be able to plan budgets, invest prudently, plan for the future, because no one will be able to predict enrollment from year to year, which just plays havoc with budgeting.
Other essential features of private schools:
–at-will employment, maybe a one-year contract. No tenure, no collective bargaining, no inflexible work rules, no unions. School leaders meet the needs of kids first and assess the impact on the staff later.
–teachers get a 403b plan and pay a much higher proportion of their health care costs. No defined benefit pension and premium-free health care, either for one’s own immediate family or for one’s ex-spouse or cousin.
–the freedom to hire teachers without certification and/or a master’s degree. Private schools lean heavily on 20-somethings with only a bachelor’s who don’t plan to stay in the profession.
–the freedom to deny admission to or to expel students for almost any reason. SWDs and ELLs need not apply.
–the freedom from bureaucracy and mandates
When you call for a private school style education for all, these details cannot be glossed over. They are integral to how private schools operate.
I worked with a woman who received a letter from her private school all students below a C would be considered for expulsion. Try that in a public school.
If tearing down the public system and replacing it with a government-funded private system works toward equity, why isn’t the coilege and university system more equitable and why have public colleges and universities suffered so under ed reform leadership at the federal and state level?
Can we anticipate the same result under the federal and state push to privatize public schools? That more and more costs will be shoved off on students and parents?
Can we anticipate lower and middle income students and their parents loaded down with debt to (actually) “access” the K-12 system? These voucher amounts are very low. Isn’t this really just one more way for ed reformers to shift the cost of education from the broader public to those who can least afford one more financial hit amid stagnant wages, few or none legal or contractual protections for working people and huge income inequality?
Governor Cuomo, are you listening? Come in, come in Gov. Cuomo…..
I couldn’t agree more! I sent two of my children to private high schools and the third wanted to stay public all the way but I payed for those educations. It was my choice and the current saw that parents deserve a choice is really silly . They have always had a choice and public education has been a privilege paid for by tax payers. I taught in public school and continue to serve on the BoE and our public school was just ranked 4th by Business First rankings. The three high schools ahead of us…one was City Honors magnet school and the other two are private Catholic schools. We are not failing!! But we did cut back programs once again due to lack of funding. We are a tiny suburban district which struggles to make do financially and we are at the end of our rope. I have called legislators and let them know what an insult the tax credits are to public education. It is such a disservice to public ed and those of us who work hard to makes ends meet and still offer a solid education option.
Somebody sort this out for me…..”If you don’t like the public schools, you are free to choose *************, a charter school, ****************,**************,********That’s your choice. But you must pay for it yourself” versus “A charter school is a school that receives public funding but operates independently of the established public school system in which it is located.” Not all children seem to be able to make the choice of a charter school, (or the choice to remain in a charter school) according the the stats I have read.
The Post Dispatch in St. Louis does not have a forum for education.
I have urged them to have a forum about charter schools.
Some of what I said today: Somebody sort this out for me…etc. after including a link to “I Believe in Freedom of Choice”
I added this…
“I was talking to myself there, too. 47 responses, no reference to mine. And I am on their side of the issue.
I am not sure just how much of the population knows exactly what is meant by the term “charter school”.
I don’t.”
Reblogged this on Network Schools – Wayne Gersen and commented:
I wish that this view was held by a majority of our elected officials… but increasingly we’re witnessing a willingness of those who can afford private schools, private security, and private libraries to cut taxes and thereby cut services to those who cannot afford them. I have the good fortune to live in a college town that has great schools, a fully staffed and civic minded police force, and a wonderful library. Some in rural communities within an hour’s drive of here have none of the above. I know from living in other parts of the country that this kind of disequilibrium is widespread… and I know from what I’ve read of late on this blog and other progressive blogs that WI, NC, and MI are all diminishing funds that provide services and opportunities for those living in poverty while giving tax breaks to those in the top 1%…. and WI’s move toward vouchers for private and parochial schools is only one example of this. Let’s hope we get a chance to vote for a Presidential candidate in 2016 who explicitly and forcefully decries privatization of ANY public services.
If someone had told me 20 years ago that federal and state lawmakers would replace the universal public K-12 system with a fragmented privatized system I would not have believed it.
I wouldn’t have believed it because they had our health care system to look at.
Inequitable, hugely expensive as far as bang for buck, fragmented and they’ve been trying (and failing) to “reform” it my entire adult life.
That the Best and the Brightest got together and made a conscious decision to turn the K-12 public school system into the (broken) health care “system” blows my mind. It’s tragic.
Dr. Ravitch, I so agree with you. In Arizona, it seems not many believe this or they don’t speak up about it. We have many retired people, and they don’t think it is their duty to help children that are not theirs. Their attitude is, “I raised my children, now you raise yours.” But, other people older than them paid taxes for their children. Now it is their turn. I am 64 and retired (forced out), but I feel it is my civic duty to pay taxes to help the children learning now. Of course, I wish I could control where my taxes went. They certainly aren’t going where they need to go. I am so ashamed of this state. We are now lowest in spending for children in the U.S. Teachers are leaving the profession in droves. Please see: http://www.kpho.com/story/29292218/az-teacher-exodus-leaves-more-than-1k-valley-classrooms-vacant
I keep blogging, commenting in our local newspaper, etc. It is so disheartening.
Thanks for defining “Choice ” could not have expressed it better as a PROUD PUBLIC SCHOOL PARENT!
It all comes back to that simple notion. I’ve followed this blog for three years now and every now and then it must be stated exactly like you just did.
In fact, it sort of stamps out the need for many conversations surrounding public education when we stick to the main idea: public education dollars are for public schools.
(But. . .charters ARE public schools. BUT. . .public schools are broken. . .BUT . . .many private contracts are used for public works. . .BUT. . .)
? I wonder if we’ll ever come back to the basic idea. We’ve strayed so far from it many places I don’t know.
I totally agree!
I think this is very well said. However, some of us work in public schools where discipline keeps getting worse and worse, without being addressed. It makes me crazy to watch kids who want to learn have their classes disrupted day after day by the angry students who want to do nothing but challenge. If I spend five minutes a period dealing with behavior problems, I lose ten percent of my teaching time.
And don’t blame me; we’ve had enough of blaming teachers. What should I do, forgo teaching all of my curriculum to spend more time on the disruptive students? Forgo teaching to entertain at all times? (Which doesn’t work with all kids, anyway.) And here’s where standardized testing is important, as well. You could probably deal with such problems more effectively if you simply give up part of your curriculum, but that’s not fair to the students who want to learn.
I think charters have a place. The problem is that our ultra-capitalistic, individualistic economic/social system is geared toward having a small number of winners (many of whom are vicious in their competitiveness and greed) and a large number of losers, and these people are driving the charter systems now developing, just as they drive our shameful joke of an expensive health care system.
It would be nice to see some real, dedicated educators starting good charters, including some that could take the biggest behavior problem kids and provide a better setting for them. It would also be a good idea to see unionized charters, which will show that unions do not exist simply to support “bad teachers” (which, of course, people have different ideas about – one man’s meat is another man’s poison, as the saying goes).
I’d also love to see charters that provide exercise and healthy food. Personally, I think it is a pipe dream to think public schools here can be great in lower-income areas, because parents who have plenty and want their kids to be able to get ahead in a society that values competition over cooperation and individual achievement and wealth over the collective good like their premium, superior schools. Why would they want more kids competing for Ivy League admission? This is our economic system. This is our national ideology. Schools in low-income areas will never thrive in such a system. It would take a revolution for us to develop a great system of schools. And, as you can see, we are heading in the wrong direction.
If you are mystified at why civil rights groups support testing and charters, Diane, I think this is part of the piece that you’re missing. There is a plethora of terrible behaviors in low-income schools (including lying, cheating, stealing, violence, bullying, threats, and general lack of self-control – and teachers are victims as well as students), with unethical parents backing students with the worst behaviors, and indulgence on the part of the schools. I can understand why some people feel that some kids escaping is better than all kids being forced and subjected to such a learning environment day after day for years.
If more progressive thinkers hope to counter the privatization movement, it is going to have to address some of these hard issues, or start the revolution.
I know the kids with chronic bad behaviors need help. So what’s the public school plan? Who is going to help them, and keep them from disrupting others? How? How will this be funded? Finding answers and providing (buzz-word alert!) scalable models is a first step. But the public schools are being dismantled so fast; we are like bugs in front of steamrollers. And I don’t know about others, but my job leaves me so exhausted that I am capable of doing little else. I don’t know how I’m going to even keep up the job for much longer.
I agree 100% with your comments about discipline in public schools. I don’t think most people really have an idea about what teachers are up against every day in terms of discipline, student motivation, poverty, illness (physical and mental), let alone the political aspects of what teachers are dealing with. This takes a huge toll on teachers.
Thank you.
Justateacher, I found this blog in June 2012. I had just retired from a similar situation here in AZ. Every year, it seemed as though I was getting more and more children with behavior problems and little help was offered. In Jan. 2012, I lost my Jeff. Our son and I could not save him. It was devastating. I threw myself into my work with my class two weeks later. I was determined to do the best I could do with this class. I tried to get my kids help through the process you have to follow to get them tested. Most of the time, I was told to go back and try more techniques, which, of course, did not work. Title I funding had been cut back, so public schools began testing only the most severe problems. Why did we have so many in our public school classrooms? From this blog, I began to realize that charters don’t have to take children with behavior problems. Public schools do. I have seen the debates that charters do have to take them, but they get around it one way or another. They keep the “cream of the crop” to inflate their grades. I also began to realize that it wasn’t my fault. That I wasn’t a bad teacher. I was a caring, concerned teacher who spoke up for my students–much more than my administration wanted me to. So, I was “excessed” three times farther and farther in to the inner city. I was worn down. After the second time, I did get a lawyer, but in a right to work state, there is little the lawyer can do. Our system is a mess, and I feel for you. Do the best that you can do. I also had to leave for my health and have been diagnosed with a rare disease that can be made worse by stress. Your health is too important, so do what is necessary. But, start doing your research. Charters are not the answer. They are taking funding away from public schools. Vouchers are, as well. I believe this is a way to get rid of public schools. Many charters do not care about children, they care about profit. Rest this summer!
Thank you. I appreciate your understanding. However, I am absolutely NOT for for-profit charters. I think we need a long-term plan to fix public schools. However, there are some seemingly-insurmountable problems, and meanwhile many kids are living in a really dysfunctional system. Do you have any suggestions?
Yes, I am starting to really worry about my health, but I don’t have the money to leave.
Parent choice is a sacred neoliberal duty when it involves undermining public schools and promoting charters, but is a clear sign of captivity by “special interests” – read teachers unions – when it involves opting out of tests.
“The Fine and Dime”
Charters are fine
Just pay your way
No public dime
For private hay
Parents choosing schools for their children is very highly over-rated. Only people who live in densely populated areas have many of the choices discussed. People living in small towns are lucky if there is one high school, or one middle school. Often towns share schools. There is no viable choice other than to move to a new community for these folks.
Then, even in highly populated areas, the schools even in the same district are not open to choice. If there are, say, four high schools and one of the four is outstanding and one very poor, what do you think will happen? All of the parents will want their kids to go to the really good school. The whole point of there being four high schools is that four need to exist to handle all of the students. A more equitable way to go is to assign students randomly, so each school hets one quarter of the very good students, the very-poor students, one quarter of the rich parents, one quarter of the active parents. Maybe then, the schools would receive the attention they need.
Instead we segregate students geographically. Other than bus trip time, what does this criterion mean regarding the ability to educate kids? What it means is if we can discriminate about where people live, we can discriminate who goes to which school, and that is about all.
School choice is a bogus issue. It is an option for the rich (who can move) or send their kids to private schools. For the rest of us, it keeps us busy arguing about things that mean absolutely nothing.
Generally agreed. And, as I mentioned, more privileged parents want their children to have superior educations. Many have no interest in improving low-income schools; they just buy in better neighborhoods and feel that you should have, as well, if you wanted a good school, and if you couldn’t afford it, you should not have had kids. I must say that I see their point; however, the students are there, they exist, and they are a part of our society, so we need to do our best.
But I don’t see winning this battle. My guess is that, at best, a small number of students might escape and do better than they would have otherwise.
Reblogged this on History Chick in AZ.
If you think that privatization is the solution to the problems facing public schools, try replacing public education with the name of your current free-market telecommunication provider in terms of the satisfaction, ¢o$t, and responsiveness regarding the service you are receiving.
Ms Ravitch wrote…
” public money for free, democratically controlled schools, private money for private, privately-controlled, and religious schools.”
Does your call for the stopping of public money extend to private colleges\universities which receive federal student aid and to privately run early childhood education programs funded with state subsidies?
BRAVO!!!!!
Diane, Freedom of choice is good, and yes, we have a civic obligation to support the common good of public education. But fortunately, “We the people” create and define a good public education system within legal bounds. You have drawn nice bold black lines when some lines are “shades of grey.” Though you are right in saying that citizens often must pay taxes for things they don’t want or like, this does not mean that our system of government run “common” (secular) schools is the ONLY model to choose as a public education system! We could institute a “plural” system of public education similar to most of the western world that allows families to pick between diverse government approved religious and secular schools. You say that religious schools must be paid for with “private” funds, but this is not been accurate for over a decade. The Constitution (and increasingly the laws of states) allow public money to flow to religious schools when the “religious choice” is made by a private individual.
The real issue behind the school-choice issue is not whether or not “choice” exists apart from public money, but “What kind of public education system should American tax dollars support?” This opens a healthy discussion! Here, I find that our current public education model is severely hampered by church-state limitations that have led to a lack of philosophic depth in the curriculum, shallow school community, and the poor moral development of our children. As long as our public schools are government run (and thus subjected to First Amendment restrictions associated with ideological neutrality), this can not change, and we will continue to have schools that reduce education to the teaching of knowledge, skills, and a common morality.
Our nation and public education system were founded upon teaching many ideals that our schools can no longer address. In the transition, progressive thinking supposed that these ideals did not need to be “taught” or that they were unnecessary to public health. The truth of this is open for debate, but the point is, we can shape our concept of public education within legal parameters in diverse ways. I for one believe the “public good” necessitates that the education day reflect deep philosophic meaning and value (which have “religious” foundations). Since government run schools can only poorly address these issues, and since citizens have diverse religious and “nonreligious” views, this necessitates a “plural” public education system. You might say my “private choice” can accommodate this belief, but this is not true. If the public good is our standard, then public money should be utilized to support the “system” that best supports the public’s educational interests.
Public schools used to be presumptuously defined by their public governance and funding structure. They should more accurately be defined as “schools that serve the public’s educational interests.” All these schools should be accessible through public funding. As you say, we have long had a form of “freedom of choice” in education, but the real issue is whether our “common” (secular) model of public education is the best choice to be exclusively aligned with the public’s good. I hold that it is not. A plural model of public education can address not only the basics, but the ideals.
I must say that one of the more depressing aspects of my life is being part of a system that is so woefully dysfunctional as to shock many people who are either deluding themselves or are very insulated, and never have to actually experience it.
The peripheral learning that goes on in my school and many others is that bullying of your peers is effective (they will even lie for you!); that blaming others for everything is a winning strategy; that bullying teachers or threatening to bring lawsuits is more efficient than doing homework or studying; that nobody can really do much of anything about your bad behavior until you reach the age of majority; that only smarter kids matter; that the system will pass you along to the point that you are lost at the next level or eventually (and the answer is to then blame the teacher and insist on being passed again); and so on. I could keep writing about this all day, but I don’t have the time or inclination.
Beyond the daily struggle just to teach, I am sickened by being part of such a system. These systemic problems are simply not being addressed.
Ok, do you then agree the taxpayer should then have a say in how plural schools are run? In other words, if my tax money is funding a private school, I want a say in what is taught, how the money is spent, and who is hired. Taxation WITH representation.
Craig you say:
We could institute a “plural” system of public education similar to most of the western world that allows families to pick between diverse government approved religious and secular schools. You say ( referring to Diane Ravitch) that religious schools must be paid for with “private” funds, but this is not been accurate for over a decade. The Constitution (and increasingly the laws of states) allow public money to flow to religious schools when the “religious choice” is made by a private individual.
Craig. I am sorry that you did not cite the Supreme Court decision bearing on the Cleveland voucher scheme and a host of other rulings bearing on religious practices in public schools.
I have no earthly idea what you mean by “GOVERNMENT APPROVED RELIGIOUS SCHOOLS” Wow.
There can be no doubt that there is a strong impulse in the United States to break down the wall of separation between church and state, and that seems to be what you are advocating.
I have been working on behalf of public education for half a century. I have witnessed the truncating of education in public schools to strictly academic instruction, with the public school no longer one of the key institutions inducting each student into civic life– small scale democracy–not just instruction in the formal architecture of governance in the United States, but the quaint idea that each generation should be induced into the practice of civic virtues and especially First Amendment rights, the five freedoms.
There can be no doubt that teachers in public schools have been subjected to direct or implied threats to their freedom to teach, including teaching smack at the center of this nation’s basic freedoms.
At the risk of boring the readers of this blog who may think all good things flow from customer choice, consider the following principles for school governance and civil conduct which have been undermined for a couple of decades now by the presumption that improving public education is just a personnel and management problem, and easily “solved” by external turn-around specialists who have a “theory of action” and targets to be met by a date certain.
Which of these five freedoms are not respected or taught under this strictly managerial reform model?
1. Religious liberty — freedom of conscience — is an inalienable right for all human beings. Our schools have a special public duty: they must protect the religious-liberty rights for people of all faiths, and none, and also prepare students to responsibly debate their differences in the public square.
2. Freedom of Speech. Our schools should teach students to speak with both passion and respect. Schools must not only give their students a voice; they must teach them how to use their voices responsibly. A school community that values the voices of its students…and its teachers…gives those young people the tools they need to develop informed opinions and respect the rights of others.
3. Freedom of the Press. A free and informed school press is one avenue to a free and informed student body. Students need to understand what is necessary for a free and responsible press. That curricular and co-curricular project encourages students to think critically and weigh the potential influence of their reporting. Think “persuasive essay” if you must but this generation needs to learn about the responsible use of “social media” as well.
4. Freedom of Assembly. The right to peaceably assemble is one of the foundational freedoms of democratic participation. From school-wide special assemblies to community-wide town hall meetings to school board meetings, to electioneering. Schools must find ways to involve students in the rudimentary exercise of active debate; open, yet respectful exchanges of ideas; the virtue of making informed choices. An example of this is the “refuse the test” movement.
5. Freedom to Petition. The right to petition for a redress of grievances is the first step toward respectfully advocating for change. Schools support this principle when parents and citizens are free to exercise that right, especially when there is the promise for better education and stronger school and community.
Enough for me–just a long timeworker in arts education where freedoms to think, imagine, act, and make waves hinges on all of these freedoms.
For those interested in the religious freedom issue: here is a chronology of Supreme Court Cases.
West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette, 319 U.S. 624 (1943)
Everson v. Board of Education of Ewing Township, 330 U.S. 1 (1947)
McCollum v. Board of Education, 333 U.S. 203 (1948)
Zorach v. Clauson, 343 U.S. 306 (1952)
Engel v. Vitale, 370 U.S. 421 (1962)
Abington School District v. Schempp, 374 U.S. 203 (1963)
Pickering v. Board of Education , 391 U.S. 563 (1968)
Epperson v. Arkansas, 393 U.S. 97 (1968)
Lemon v. Kurtzman, 403 U.S. 602 (1971)
Wisconsin v. Yoder, 406 U.S. 205 (1972)
Mt. Healthy City School District Board of Education v. Doyle, 429 U.S. 274 (1977)
Stone v. Graham, 449 U.S. 39 (1980)
Wallace v. Jaffree, 472 U.S. 38 (1985)
Edwards v. Aguillard, 482 U.S. 578 (1987)
Board of Education of Westside Community Schools v. Mergens, 496 U.S. 226 (1990)
Lee v. Weisman, 505 U.S. 577 (1992)
Good News Club, et. Al. v. Milford Central School, 533 U.S. 98 (2001)
Zelman v. Simmons-Harris, 536 U.S. 639 (2002)
Modified from discussion points at: http://www.firstamendmentschools.org/freedoms/religiouslibertycases.aspx
Hi Laura, Thank you for pointing out my lack of clarity. I believe that the best “public” education system (I’m redefining our public education model) will be one in which the public’s educational investment money is accessible by families to attend any school they choose from a long diverse list. This list will include private, charter, home and government run schools that demonstrate support for the public’s basic educational needs.
You are right in saying that the courts limit what government run schools can do related to religion… This is why the public must look beyond the preferential funding of ONLY government run schools (or secular charter schools). Ideologically based schools can address many human and social needs that government run schools cannot, and these concerns are vital to many families and to our national unity, values, economy, justice… etc.
This completely ignores the choice that people of means make when they decide which community to live in. If they have children, the quality of schools is frequently a determining factor.
So, you all support school choice, it’s just that you have to pay for it by affording rent or a mortgage near the school of your choice.
Many people don’t have that same option because they can’t afford it. It is *not* progressive to deny them choices for their education when they are not in a position to pay for them. All it is is putting the needs of the adults ahead of the kids.
Diane, your entire argument regarding charter schools seems to be that they are not run by democratically elected school boards. What do you have to say about places like Ramapo where that isn’t working? What should minority parents do when their school districts prioritize the needs of the majority over theirs?
Also, how much time do school boards spend talking about teaching and learning? And what’s the average tenure of an urban superintendent? The answers are <10% and about 2.5 years. That basically means little leadership on what is most important for students (and teachers for that matter).
Your point could be an argument for housing vouchers to allow people to live in any community of their choosing not just for better schools, but better public safety, parks, roads, etc. Think all these wealthy Reformers would agree to subsidize a low life teacher like me to live in their McMansions?
I agree with Dr. Ravitch that public dollars should go only to public institutions. That’s why, along with Ravitch and everyone else here, I vehemently oppose Pell Grants, food stamps, Section 8 housing vouchers, welfare, Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security. Why are we giving people so many public dollars that they can use at private institutions or businesses?
This is unconscionable. It is also unconscionable that we are talking so much about the relative pittance of school vouchers or even charter schools when the much greater evil is that we’re giving out trillions in Medicare and Social Security.
Many private institutions and businesses already have enough resources to make their own decisions. They can choose whatever people they want on education ‘business’ and select children they like based on their preference–grit, race, gender, pedigree, or whatever– unlike public schools.
Nice try for distortion.
Even as a teacher in a low income inner city Catholic School, I agree. Alabama’s Accountability Act allowing for tax credits and scholarships is just robbing Peter to pay Paul and hurts all of the public schools in the state, but most especially the ones who need funding help the most.
Extraordinarily well-put!