Below is my column in the Hill on moves by some states to create greater choice and control for parents over the education of their children. The move to use funding to change the status quo could soon be used in higher education. Not only are alumni beginning to withhold contributions to schools with little or no diversity or tolerance on their faculties, but states could reduce their levels of support.
Here is the column:
What if they offered public education and no one came? That question, similar to the anti-war slogan popularized by Charlotte E. Keyes, is becoming more poignant by the day.
This month, Florida is moving to allow all residents the choice to go to private or public schools. Other states like Utah are moving toward a similar alternative with school vouchers. I oppose such moves away from public schools, but I have lost faith in the willingness of most schools to restore educational priorities and standards.
Faced with school boards and teacher unions resisting parental objections to school policies over curriculum and social issues, states are on the brink of a transformative change. For years, boards and teacher unions have treated parents as unwelcome interlopers in their children’s education.
That view was captured this week in the comment of Iowa school board member Rachel Wall, who said: “The purpose of a public ed is to not teach kids what the parents want. It is to teach them what society needs them to know. The client is not the parent, but the community.”
State Rep. Lee Snodgrass (D-Wis.) tweeted: “If parents want to ‘have a say’ in their child’s education, they should home school or pay for private school tuition out of their family budget.”
Now legislators are moving to do precisely that — but with public funds. It could be a game-changer. Parents overwhelmingly appear to support a classical education focused on core subjects rather than “social change.” They overwhelmingly support parental notice when their children engage in gender transitioning or other major decisions.
Many parents also are angered by teachers, unions and boards shutting down schools during the pandemic despite other countries keeping them open and studies that showed children were not at high risk. The United States experienced soaring mental illness rates and plunging test scores.
Parents who questioned those policies were treated as extremists.
Michelle Leete, vice president of training at the Virginia PTA and vice president of communications for the Fairfax County PTA, said parents would not force them to reverse their agenda: “Let them die. Don’t let these uncomfortable people deter us from our bold march forward.”
Many of us have advocated for public education for decades. I sent my children to public schools, and I still hope we can turn this around without wholesale voucher systems. Yet teachers and boards are killing the institution of public education by treating children and parents more like captives than consumers. They are force-feeding social and political priorities, including passes for engaging in approved protests.
As public schools continue to produce abysmal scores, particularly for minority students, board and union officials have called for lowering or suspending proficiency standards or declared meritocracy to be a form of “white supremacy.” Gifted and talented programs are being eliminated in the name of “equity.”
Once parents have a choice, these teachers lose a virtual monopoly over many families, and these districts could lose billions in states like Florida.
While I remain concerned how vouchers could be the death of public primary and secondary education, I believe states need to use the power of the purse to reform higher education.
Despite years of complaints over a rising orthodoxy at schools, most universities have reduced conservative and libertarian faculty to rare oddities. Some schools have virtually no Republican faculty. Faculty have created political echo-chambers that advance their own views while excluding alternative voices. As a result, polls show a high number of students are fearful about sharing their views in classes.
I oppose laws prohibiting certain theories from being taught in universities, but I also believe academics can no longer show open contempt for the half of this country with conservative, libertarian or independent views. At many public universities, the message is that you need to give universities not only total deference but total support in excluding conservative views and maintaining intolerant ideological environments.
It may be too late for private universities, which are likely to continue to exclude all but a tiny number of conservatives or libertarians. They have the support of many in the media. Above the Law’s senior editor, Joe Patrice, defended “predominantly liberal faculties” and argued that hiring a conservative academic is akin to allowing a believer in geocentrism — the idea that the sun orbits the earth — to teach.
While some private schools like the University of Chicago have stood firm in support of free speech, most of the schools on the top of a recent ranking were public universities. That is no surprise. As state schools, these universities are subject to First Amendment protections and there is greater ability to contest the current academic orthodoxy. Indeed, courts repeatedly rule against universities. Yet administrators have an incentive to yield to the mob, even at the cost of millions in litigation costs. And few academics have an incentive to fight for greater political diversity on campus and risk being tagged in cancel campaigns.
This is why public universities could be the final line of defense for free speech in higher education.
States are no more captive to these schools than are parents. Why should conservatives and independents continue to pay taxes for universities that actively exclude faculty who share their values or viewpoints? Half of this country funds schools that have little tolerance for their values or voices; they can reduce their support and let such universities seek private funding if they insist on making a “liberal education” a literal goal.
We need public universities to offer a free-speech alternative. If we can maintain that protection, we may find that public universities become the primary choice of many who want to learn in politically diverse, tolerant environments.
For elementary, middle and high schools, voucher programs may allow parents to speak with their feet. I hope we do not come to that — but the opposition to vouchers is telling. The alarm is based on the recognition that, given a choice, many families would not choose what public schools are offering. This includes many minority families who want to escape from a cycle of education that leaves many students barely literate and lost. They likely would prefer an alternative to a system like Baltimore’s, where a student failed all but three classes and still graduated in the top half of his class.
I worry about how voucher systems will impact public schools because many districts would fare poorly in a competitive market. However, these proposals are a shot across the bow to all such districts. They could easily find themselves with an agenda-packed curriculum but far fewer students to teach.
Jonathan Turley is the Shapiro Professor of Public Interest Law at George Washington University. Follow him on Twitter @JonathanTurley.
“An eye-opening read on the evolving landscape of education. The shift towards giving parents choices in schooling is a bold move. It’s crucial for institutions to prioritize academic excellence and inclusive learning environments. The debate on vouchers and the future of public education is a conversation we all need to engage in. 📚✨ #EducationRevolution #SchoolChoice”
Raven
https://mymmjdoctor.com/
“I oppose such moves away from public schools”
Government-run education constitutes a violation of the First Amendment. Since education is inextricably coupled with religion (i.e. worldview), Government-run education is an establishment of religion. I’m rather shocked that Jonathan Turley doesn’t understand this.
Read “Disestablishment a Second Time: Genuine Pluralism for American Schools”, McCarthy, Skillen, Harper.
Also read “Politics, Markets, and America’s Schools” Chubb and Moe.
That is the most laughable argument I’ve seen with regards to public education and the Constitution. Education isn’t a religion no matter how many silly hopes you try and jump through.
“I oppose such moves away from public schools”
Government-run education constitutes a violation of the First Amendment. Since education is inextricably coupled with religion (i.e. worldview), Government-run education is an establishment of religion. I’m rather shocked that Jonathan Turley doesn’t understand this.
Read “Disestablishment a Second Time: Genuine Pluralism for American Schools”, McCarthy, Skillen, Harper.
Also read “Politics, Markets, and America’s Schools” Chubb and Moe.
“While I remain concerned how vouchers could be the death of public primary and secondary education…”
What is problematic about that? Many of these schools are already dead, demonstrably failing students & parents.
https://foxbaltimore.com/news/project-baltimore/state-test-results-23-baltimore-schools-have-zero-students-proficient-in-math-jovani-patterson-maryland-comprehensive-assessment-program-maryland-governor-wes-moore
There is no higher virtue than killing a bad school, and we should not be shy or apologetic about that in any way. How many generations of kids have already been sacrificed for the corrupt monopoly of public education? Too many. How many more should suffer this fate? Not a single one.
Let’s give them some options: full school choice. Fund the child, not the system.
free speech ok-fine but literacy, mathematics, the sciences…why go to college if they’re just going to talk politics all day the heck with that. The problems facing america today very much beg things like a full degree in one of the sciences, and medicine, and so on. I think higher ed should be apolitical, 60’s are over, take your protest sign and hit the bricks thanks
Why can’t communities make their own small schools? 200 students tops. Government gives each school same funding from taxes. Each school decides. Parents have a say.
“Sold a Story: How Teaching Kids to Read Went So Wrong”
https://features.apmreports.org/sold-a-story/
While Professor Turley sees the voucher system as the destruction of the public school system, he might not realize the extreme urgency parents of schoolchildren feel about school choice now.
The only leverage there is to excise far Left, self-destructive political rhetoric, and strengthen academics, is for the states to require change. That means there is no hope that public education will improve in deep blue states like CA.
Public schools still teach the failed literacy philosophy of Whole Language and Blended Learning, which produces about 40% of students reading below grade level. Democrats have total control over public education in America, yet they fight the science of reading, and meritocracy in teachers. They fight school choice, vouchers, and charter schools, knowing parents will leave if allowed to do so. They fight to maintain a captive audience of students. There are frequent efforts to either ban charter schools and homeschooling, or to require the same curriculum. This is how Common Core became required in private schools, despite studies showing the standard made students less prepared for college. That’s okay, as the Democrats in control of universities simply remove the SAT test, grading, and the rest of the meritocracy.
Parents discover that their children are taught in schools to hate their country, their parents, and themselves. Young boys and girls are taught that gender is a state of mind, and there’s no downside to transitioning to a different gender. This puts kids on the path to sterilization, castration, mastectomies, and suicide.
Without a voucher system, and the proliferation of education alternatives, by what leverage shall public schools change? Low test scores didn’t do it. Low international rankings in literacy, math, and science didn’t convince Democrats to change course in education.
Democrats have total ownership over the poor public school performance in the US. If you think education is failing, talk to Democrats and demand change. Break the money cycle of taxpayer dollars paying teachers, in the Teachers Union, which automatically deducts money to donate to Democrats, who then vote to make the TU more powerful. Teachers Unions are mega donors to Democrats. They don’t care about parents’ complaints as long as they still get paid. In fact, they’ll direct the FBI, also controlled by Democrats, to target parents as terrorists.
“Public schools still teach the failed literacy philosophy of Whole Language and Blended Learning”
Maybe the ones in your area do, Karen. There are many schools that got rid of those awful modes of teaching. They finally figured out phonics are a must. And that Explicit/Direct and Systematic Instruction, particularly for reading, is a must for most kids, too.
Prairie Rose:
I live in CA, where many schools are just awful. Whole Language and it’s slightly less incompetent iteration, Blended Learning, is still taught in too many school districts in the US.
I am sorry it is so bad in CA, Karen. They seem to latch onto fads and refuse to let go out there.
I grew up in IA and was taught phonics. Phonics are being taught in my and area districts in PA.
I am sure whole language and blended learning are still being taught elsewhere. Education, too often, has an unfortunate tendency towards fads and trends. Such problems are mitigated if the population and school boards are fairly sensible and perhaps a bit traditionalist.
Prairie Rose:
In most school districts, phonics, though reintroduced, comprises a small percentage of the literacy program. This is true in most US states. You should check out these two articles:
https://www.apmreports.org/episode/2018/09/10/hard-words-why-american-kids-arent-being-taught-to-read
https://features.apmreports.org/sold-a-story/
There are some school districts which have fought the system and now subscribe to the science of reading. If you are lucky enough to live in one of those districts, then you are blessed. Some states are fighting the status quo to improve education standards. CA, regrettably, is not one of those states.
You can tell what style of literacy curriculum your local schools use if they use 3 Cueing, with strategies such as look at pictures, or try to figure out what word makes sense. If they emphasize getting the gist of the text over sounding each word out, then it’s likely Blended Learning. Hopefully you’re right and your area hasn’t succumbed. If you check out the links above, you’ll understand how poor the education is for many students in America, which might explain Gen Z.
You can Google “Blended Learning” to see how prevalent it is in the US education system, but be sure you search literacy programs. The phrase was recently used to describe a mix of in-person and online learning during the Covid shutdowns.
Where does Responsive Literacy fit in?
I homeschooled my kids through elementary and we most definitely used phonics and I structured our reading around the sounds they were learning.
They use Fundations in my district, but what else I am not sure.
“by what leverage shall public schools change?”
Parents and taxpayers demanding changes at the Federal, State, and local levels. Some issues are local. Some are coming from the State. Some are coming from the Feds.
ONLY when funding is attached to students and NOT the system.
I disagree. Taxpayers should still retain control of their money. They lose control of the use of their money when it is attached to the student. The students and families get to decide how other people’s money is spent at that point.
Perhaps that is how it should work in other arenas? Money gets attached to corporations and they decide how the money is spent? I, mean, gee, corporations are people and all.
Kinda destroys the system of representational self-governance and our republic. Who needs representation at that point? Just put it all at the Executive Branch and let them dole out the dough. Egad.
Taxpayers need to be responsible for determining the use of their tax dollars!
Prairie Rose:
You make an interesting point about taxpayers controlling the money, rather than the end user, the family.
Do you think a taxpayer should decide where a student attends school, since it’s taxpayer funds? That’s a line of thought I haven’t much explored, but will have to think about.
You have remarked that parents and taxpayers can demand change. They can certainly elect a new school board, although the problem is that an entire community elects the board, not just parents. Parents might want change, while most of the community members who don’t have children at the school might have no idea there’s even a problem. Parents have to convince an entire community to change a school board.
From what I’ve observed, both personally and through the news, is that most school boards do not change their policies based on parental complaints, even when it comes from a majority. They call the FBI to designate parents who complain about masking or upcoming child vaccine mandates as terrorists. My local school barred the public from attending their meetings, and simply posted them online.
If a parent has serious objections to a school, they can apply for a district transfer, apply to a charter or private school, or homeschool. A district transfer, charter, or private school is no help if the policy comes from the state or the DOE. Complaining to a school board does not seem to lead to change.
With vouchers, parents have more options. They might be able to enroll their child in a private school they could not otherwise afford. When parents vote with their feet, a school will either change, or close, when enough students leave. Currently, it’s like complaining about the DMV. They don’t care.
In my general area, the schools are low performing. There are hundreds of kids on a wait list for an excellent charter school a couple of towns over, but you have to live in the district to get on the list. In the next town, there is tremendous racism between black and Latino students, who frequently fight en masse until the cops are called. Helicopters frequently circle the schools. White students are mercilessly picked on at both the major high schools. There’s not that level of violence at my local school, but the academics are not that good. I supplement my child’s education at home. I dearly wish we could afford a private school. In the town in the other direction, the violence isn’t that bad, but drugs are worse. Parents complain that the far Left indoctrination is off the charts. I would like there to be a voucher system to open up more education choices. I worry that if I went back to homeschooling full time, my kid would miss out on interacting with his friends at school. It’s pretty sad that I don’t send him to school for the education, but rather the social connections. There simply are no public schools within easy driving distance that provide excellent education.
Karen,
Thank you for the thoughtful reply.
“Do you think a taxpayer should decide where a student attends school, since it’s taxpayer funds?”
Only to the extent that their tax dollars are used and controlled by them. If parents want to homeschool or send their kids to private school on their own dime, that is their choice. Tax dollars should stay within the control and oversight of taxpayers.
“Parents might want change, while most of the community members who don’t have children at the school might have no idea there’s even a problem. Parents have to convince an entire community to change a school board.”
I agree that this could be a problem, especially if the district is very large and relationships within the community are insufficient. When the district is not too big and the community is fairly close-knit, word gets around. People know each other. They talk at church, they talk at the grocery store, they talk at community organizations. Heck, they talk on Facebook. Sometimes there is a big bruhaha.
“From what I’ve observed, both personally and through the news, is that most school boards do not change their policies based on parental complaints, even when it comes from a majority. They call the FBI to designate parents who complain about masking or upcoming child vaccine mandates as terrorists. My local school barred the public from attending their meetings, and simply posted them online.”
Most is a strong word. I sadly suspect that in some places parental complaints stay in the kitchen or are groused about amongst one another rather than brought forth to the board. I do not think most districts called the FBI about parents. Those were outliers if it did happen. Keep in mind, you are in California. You might be one of the few sensible people living there. 😉 Most of the rest of the country thinks CA (and the East coast) has collectively lost its mind. I’m not discounting the damage of those letters suggesting it, by the way. Your local school board should be sanctioned by the public if they barred the public. Holding zoom meetings was a mostly reasonable and available alternative. My local district held some meetings outdoors and held them in a large auditorium with large amounts of space between people and held zoom meetings. I disagreed all that was necessary, but the public could still attend.
“A district transfer, charter, or private school is no help if the policy comes from the state or the DOE. Complaining to a school board does not seem to lead to change.”
I agree. Parents and taxpayers need to complain to their other elected representatives, too, about the nonsense coming from the state and federal governments. With email, sending a letter to all the representatives, not just your own, is easy. While the others might not listen to you (if you are not a constituent, why should they, you could say), they just might if you are reasonable and making cogent arguments. Representatives at all levels might not have discussed your particular perspective. It simply did not come up in the discussions.
School boards (not the superintendents)–school board members need to talk to their representatives, too. They are feet on the ground with a close view of what is going sideways in the district from State and Federal interference. They should speak up, too.
“When parents vote with their feet, a school will either change, or close, when enough students leave. Currently, it’s like complaining about the DMV. They don’t care.”
That is a poor use of taxpayers’ hard-earned dollars.
I do think most school board members care very deeply about public education, their districts, and the kids. Most may just not know what the problems are in a large sense. They cannot be everywhere at once, nor do they necessarily have an overarching vision of what a great education ought to look like. It is a messy and complicated problem with a lot of moving parts–what exactly is in the ESSER funds in terms of social policies versus just financial help? what exactly is the Next Generation Science Standards? what are all the mandates and which ones are funded versus unfunded and how does that affect the budget and development of policies? etc
“There’s not that level of violence at my local school, but the academics are not that good. I supplement my child’s education at home.”
Do you know in what way the academics are not good? Poor organization? Lack of crucial content? Low expectations? If you see how the academics could be improved, could you discuss what you see with the curriculum and instruction director, superintendent and/or school board members? You are well-educated, so you likely have a good idea where and in what way improvements could be made in kids’ education.
“I dearly wish we could afford a private school.”
Have you looked into scholarships? Even if you do send your child to private school, I hope you continue to advocate for better local public education. All the other kids in your area will be the future of your community, too. They need a rock-solid education to make the future a vibrant and pleasant place to be.
Since we see the greatest failure of education in places where social circumstances define choice, and you want to end the abuse of taxpayer money, it seems logical you should be demanding that we separate education from the government.
Government-run schools without competition fail in those places that need education the most and have no alternatives to the schooling being deprived to them by our public system where there is no choice or competition.
Your concerns have to do with communities of thousands, while mine are concerns of communities of hundreds of thousands with limited opportunity.
Yep. The public schools are so far down the rabbit hole that I am not even sure the big city ones are worthy of saving. The big education unions do NOT care about the kids at all. They care about money, power, and forcing their political and social beliefs on students. Schools had been gradually getting worse, but covid policies accelerated it and made it far more noticeable. In Wisconsin, the public schools performed pretty well in 2000. The students had a rate of about 85% of students being proficient in English and math. Now? That number is down to 35% and in Milwaukee Public Schools “MPS”(which by the way did NOT participate in the ACT 10 school union legislation enacted by Scott Walker) they are performing at………wait for it…….7% proficiency. SEVEN flipping percent!!!!! And before anyone says, well those schools need more money, the MPS receives the highest level of funding in Wisconsin. Those schools are overwhelmingly filled with black students. So, not only do the democrats NOT care about students, they really don’t care about black students.
Horrific. I can’t imagine what it’s like to be a concerned parent in those districts. Some like that in CA, too. I think money following the student is ESSENTIAL to giving parents a choice. Certainly, as your number show, these public schools cannot do much worse. They have a monopoly enforced by the gun of the state–just try NOT paying the share of your taxes that go to schools and see what happens. At least with vouchers, there’s some form of competition.
The US Department of Education has twice studied sexual misconduct in schools and has found, both times, that 1 in 11 children will subject to some from of sexual-misconduct from a teacher or staff member public schools. Add in that the average teacher is, frankly, not very bright or well-educated (I found that the Magnet School teachers that taught my daughters were poorly educated) I see no reason to defend Public (or Private) schools.
Homeschooling is vastly better. I prepped my girls for college.They both finished in the Top-2% on the ACT. The oldest graduated college Magna Cum Laude, the youngest Summa Cum Laude. The oldest went on to graduate school, the younger is in graduate school.
We only spent two-to-three hours a day on course work. Simply put, much of the instructional time is wasted.
My concern is once tax dollars are used for private schools, there will be strings attached. Not only in academics but disciplinary issues.
Not an unreasonable concern. There are always strings attached.
This will be the greatest advancement in education in generations. Students and parents treated like valued customers from service providers competing to give the best product and service.
With other people’s money. Who elected them to make decisions with their neighbors’ money?
“With other people’s money.”
Parents don’t pay taxes?
And by what right do you loot money from some to pay for the education of others?
Maybe not all parents do.
And, it isn’t looted. We decided as a community that taxes should be levied to pay for the education of the community’s children because having a well-educated population was good for the future of the community.
We elect representatives to vote on how that money should be used and other decisions for the school district. They are our representatives. In order to effectively represent all of us community members, we need to communicate with our elected representatives individually or as a whole by attending school board meetings. We need to know what our representatives are having to consider, what is coming to them to vote on by organizations, the State, the Feds. What are the administrators recommending? What are our thoughts on all these issues and points of discussion? What decisions would we prefer our elected representatives make? There is a lot to consider, a lot to read, a lot to research. What expertise or perspectives might you, a taxpayer, have that might help your representative make more informed and well-considered decisions?
“Maybe not all parents do.”
Name a single parent who does not pay property taxes, either directly or indirectly.
“And, it isn’t looted. We decided as a community . . .”
Looting is looting, whether done by a single person or a vote of the majority.
Stop treating parents and their children as a means to your collectivist ends. Their children are not your property or the government’s property.
Stop treating parents and their children as a means to your privatized corporatist ends. My taxes are not your property.
By your own logic and the current system, your taxes are not your property either. Stop treating parents & children as a means to your collectivist ends to extract monopoly rents while promulgating a demonstrably failed & politicized educational system.
My only disagreement with Mr. Turley is his preference that “we can turn this around”. We can’t. Our country needs free market education and choices. Parents do a great job. Systems do not. We need this for the good of our youth and the future of our country.
If parents did a great job, schools would not be in the state they are now.
The public school system has been facing a lot of criticism lately and it’s not surprising that public school teachers are twice as likely as others to send their own children to private schools. Even Diane Ravitch, a strong advocate for public schools, sent her children to private schools. At the heart of the matter, parents love their children and want the best for them. Unfortunately, it seems like public school teachers and administrators often don’t feel the same way and their actions, like embracing school lockdowns during the COVID pandemic, show that they may not have the students’ best interests at heart.
Parents are the ones who truly care about their children and that’s why the best solution might be to abolish government education and let parents buy education services like they do with other essentials like food, housing, clothing, and medical services. This way, we can ensure that the graduation of illiterate students from high school will come to an end. As kids grow up and enter the real world, they’ll realize that about half of the people they meet will have different opinions than theirs. I believe that this lesson should start right from the beginning of their education. Unfortunately, today, we’re seeing a lot of college students and even grown adults who’ve never faced opposition before, having a hard time dealing with it when they do. It’s important to be prepared for different perspectives.
“that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom — and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.”
I’m sorry, Abe. I’m sorry, Ben.
We had a republic and if we give in to this push towards privatization, then we could not keep it.
We will be truly owned by the corporations.
Backroom corporatist deals with legislators and a too complacent citizenry has and is breaking everything.
The criticisms of the public school system are numerous and damning. Public school teachers know this, and are twice as likely as other parents to send their children to private schools. https://tenneyschool.com/why-im-a-public-school-teacher-but-a-private-school-parent/ It was revealed today that Diane Ravitch, a leading advocate for public schools, sent her children to private schools. https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11698631/NYU-professor-says-send-kids-public-school-admitting-sends-private.html It is really simple at bottom. By and large, parents love their children. In contrast, public school teachers and administrators generally hate, and often fear, their students. This is shown by the eagerness with which they embraced school lockdowns during the COVID madness, when they must have known that it would damage the students. Which of these two groups really have the interests of the children at heart? Obviously the parents. And that greater concern will lead to better decisions for the students. The best thing we can do at this point is to abolish government education and let parents buy education services in the same way they buy food, housing, clothing, medical services, etc. for their children. I think we can be sure that the graduation of illiterates from high school will stop.
“In contrast, public school teachers and administrators generally hate, and often fear, their students. This is shown by the eagerness with which they embraced school lockdowns during the COVID madness, when they must have known that it would damage the students.”
They do not.
That is not a fair argument.
I protested the masks and lockdowns. And I have enough sense that people supporting them did so out of fear (as the media and public leaders so helpfully induced), not hatred.
Svelaz doesn’t like the potential of fraud at private schools. That’s reason enough to outlaw public school vouchers.
Those public schools have rigorous audit procedures to protect public funds.
https://legalinsurrection.com/2023/01/illinois-school-worker-allegedly-stole-1-5-million-of-food-mostly-chicken-wings-from-district/
Fraud in private schools? You must be kidding. The entirety of government education is fraud. It’s a large money laundering machine. Government schools must be abolished. For decades our children have been indoctrinated and dumbed down. These districts are highly political with no regard of anyone except themselves.
It is NOT a money laundering machine!
If kids have been indoctrinated and dumbed down it is the taxpayers and parents fault for not paying attention and exerting their authority!
It took porno books in schools before any parents bothered to go to school board meetings. They didn’t speak up and put a stop to No Child Left Behind or Race to the Top or Common Core or the myriad of other nasty little policies and degradation of the curriculum that creep and creep.
They said nothing when their kids stopped getting spelling tests or learning cursive or learning geography or reading the Great Works or knowing a decent breadth and depth of history and being able to communicate the underlying philosophies of the Founding of our Nation!
How hum. That’s the way society is headed. Isn’t it a shame!!
Like the one in Chicago that a lunch lady STOLE $ 1.500.000?
:That view was captured this week in the comment of Iowa school board member Rachel Wall, who said: “The purpose of a public ed is to not teach kids what the parents want. It is to teach them what society needs them to know. The client is not the parent, but the community.”” The purpose of public ed is to prepare the student to be able to join society, be an asset to society and have an education to be able to support him/herself, i.e. math/how to balance and budget; reading/understanding; history; science and that they can continue their education whether it be through college, trade school or by themselves. By reading a person can always learn something new. AND this really gets me “Michelle Leete, vice president of training at the Virginia PTA and vice president of communications for the Fairfax County PTA, said parents would not force them to reverse their agenda: “Let them die. Don’t let these uncomfortable people deter us from our bold march forward.”:–Referring to parents “Let them die” After reading this, I certainly would not want my child in any school system that she is involved with. I hope those parents join together in a peaceful protest. Also, giving parents the opportunity for school choice, maybe some will be able to choose a school in a better neighborhood that will better fit their child’s needs. Some public schools are just not good.
So why not are teachers contracts approved by the voters?
They are approved by their representatives on the school board. We are in a constitutional republic.
They are approved by their representatives on the school board.
FDR was against public employees forming unions. The reason is simple. The “employer” has no skin in the game. The Employer is negotiating with other peoples money.
The employer does have skin in the game–the use of their tax dollars. School board representatives pay tax dollars, too.
To be fair, though, I agree with FDR that public employees ought not form unions. The union can potentially act coercively with the public. Not good for relationships in a community.
my school here in CAL is currently working with $26,000 per student. how about just send that voucher amount to parents every sept 1 to be used for kids? at some point we must view parents as capable of deciding what they want for their little ones
Can actually answer that: because a very unhealthy percentage of parents would slide it right into their pocket. We tend to project our own values with this issue, and it’s a mistake. A whole lot of parents in this country don’t value education themselves, not even a little.
I hate to be antagonistic, but throwing money at the problem isn’t going to fix it, and a lot of charters are nothing more than money making schemes. Additionally, my wife taught at a private parochial school a few years ago; 60% of the students were Chinese (and we do not live on a coast). As in from China, on visas. None of these ideas are a panacea.
It does not change the fact that public education is virtually without merit in many places, but it is a very complex issue with no clear pathway forward. I think personally DeSantis is doing the best of anyone thus far by actually addressing standards and curriculum. The ignorant woke don’t stand a chance in the face of actually needing to have reading, writing, and arithmetic ability.
agree
Interesting that your wife was teaching so many Chinese kiddos
But not with other people’s money. Who elected them?
NO. DO NOT send the money directly to the parents unless the parent is homeschooling. Have the parent log onto to their local education website page (School board or other school official will have to create one) and type into that website the name, address and information of the private school the parent wants his/her child to attend AND THE LOCAL SCHOOL OFFICIALS will send the voucher money directly to that private school. ONLY if the parent homeschools, then the parent’s information is put into the school website page and the parent gets sent the school voucher money. If the parent finds a teacher who teaches a few students out of her home and the parents wants this for their, child, that teacher’s name/address etc is entered into school website and that teacher gets the voucher money. If the parents find a school with gun packing teachers and security is important to them, than that school gets the voucher money sent to them by local school. district. If a parent finds a school (or a teacher teaching out of home) that specializes in teaching advanced students in math or music or computers or languages etc. than that school gets the voucher. If a parent has a disabled child or one with behavior issues, or a learning disability and the parents find a teacher teaching out of her home who specializes in the problem the parent’s child has, then that specialist teacher gets the vouchers. With ON-LINE certified schools, if a parent finds a caretaker (for lack of a better word) whose job is to ensure children sit in front of a computer and do the on-line work, then the parent of such a child can choose to have either the caretaker receive the money from school district or choose to have the voucher money sent to the parent (to pay for the on-line school) and the parent then pays the caretaker out of own funds. The Supreme Court screwed the USA when they ruled PUBLIC institutions like emergency rooms and public schools HAVE to treat/teach illegal alien children. PRIVATE schools do not. So, USA citizens if that folflows suit will not be paying taxes to give vouchers for illegals to attend PRIVATE schools. Thus, CLOSE all the public schools and Jimmy Carter’s Federal Dept of Education and save taxpayers BILLIONS in heating/cooling / renovating/repairing and staffing all those public schools and no more paying public teacher/staff/whole dept of people’s salaries/pensions/healthcare etc etec and no more paying people cutting grass/shoveling snow of all those building either.
But not with other people’s money. Who elected them?
Yawn.
One can always run for membership on the local school board.
Sure, but when the university Education Schools are training new teachers to implement CRT, EDI, and all of their Marxist beliefs into the pedagogy, where in the world do you find competent teachers? The universities are not training anyone worth truly hiring and the state Department of Public Instruction mandates the qualifications of teachers. As to the school boards, it is something that far too many have ignored for too long. Many parents still thing schools are similar to when they attended. They are not the same. They have become extremely radical in many places.
Jonathan: The crisis in public education is not self-inflicted. It has been inflicted by those who been trying to politicize education. Public schools, all the way up to the university level, are in the cross-hairs of the “culture wars”. The GOP and other right-wing groups see education as a winning political issue. They are calling for more “parental control” over education, or the right to second guess educators. White parents who are nervous about their kids learning about slavery or about gay people and have been encouraged by politicians to organize and protest school curriculum. That campaign has been modestly successful. In Florida and other states subjects on race or gender have been banned. Books are banned on these topics in school libraries. It’s censorship but it is being pushed because some people think schools should only teach the 3-Rs and traditional notions of the ” unique American historical and cultural experience”–that largely excludes the experiences and contributions of Black people and how racism still permeates our society.
Within this context you say you support public education but everything in your column is just the opposite. You say “teachers and boards are killing the institution of public education by treating children and parents more like captives than consumers”. You even complain that NY city schools are giving students passes so they can join climate change demonstrations. What’s wrong with that? What’s wrong with students going on a field trip to learn about the dangers of climate change? What better way for kids to learn something about that existential threat to the human race? Maybe those same kids will grow up and actually do something about it. Our generation pretty much failed our responsibility to seriously address the issue.
And what is your answer to the so-called “crisis” in education? Put more money into education? Pay teachers a living wage? Nope. You want more “Republican faculty”–people who support your values–“conservative, libertarian or independent views”. You say: “Why should conservatives and independents continue to pay taxes for universities that actually exclude faculty (?)who share their values or viewpoints?” That’s non-sensical when you think about it. When we pay our taxes part goes to fund public education. We don’t get to choose to which institutions the money goes –and we don’t get to decide what programs are funded nor who is hired. Do you really think “conservatives” ought to be given the right to make hiring decisions at universities? Your argument stands as much chance of being implemented as me trying to get my state’s DOT to re-surface the street in front of my home every 5 years!
The real problem is that White “conservatives”, who control the levers of power in many states, want to turn back the clock on education–to a bygone era when kids were spared learning about the messy and embarrassing parts of our history (like the genocides committed against Native Americans) and when LGBTQ+ people were kept in the closet. Judging by the views of my 3 young granddaughters they don’t want to back to, what they call, the “olden days”. They would rather learn the truth!
Wow, are you out to lunch? Yes, you are. lol. And I will not waste brain cells responding to you except to say your reasoning is exactly why parents are leaving public indoctrination centers. And, BTW, you wouldn’t know the truth if it bit you in the a$$.
When children grow to the point they enter the real world they are going to find about half the people they meet hold views in opposition to theirs. That lesson and exposure should begin on day one of their education. Today we are seeing the fragility of college students and you adults who have never been opposed before having complete meltdowns when they get pushback for the first time.
“It has been inflicted by those who been trying to politicize education.”
You can always count on the Left for the following:
It’s okay to gore an ox, unless it’s my ox.
Yawnzzzzzzzzzzzz
Teachers work 2/3 of the year. Why should they get 100% pay?
Dennis:
You claimed white parents don’t want their kids to learn about slavery. Citation.
The history of slavery has long been taught in schools, and parents did not object.
What they did object to was the 1619 Project, debunked by prominent historians, being taught in public schools. They object to their children being taught misinformation, such as that the United States was founded to protect slavery. Nonsense. Slavery was ubiquitous at the time of colonial America, and there was no need to create any haven for slavers. The truth is that Western Civilization abolished slavery, which still exists in Africa. Cobalt for the batteries in electric cars is currently being mined by real slaves in Africa. Parents object to activist teachers convincing impressionable you g children that they were born oppressed or oppressor, based on skin color. They teach children to judge each other based on race and gender.
Pretending that objecting to racist teachings in schools is some sort of character flaw is an attempt to avoid debating the issue on the merits. When you have no argument, assassinate the character of your opponent.
Nice straw man arguments. It isn’t that white conservatives don’t want to have kids learn about those issues, but it would be nice if the actual truth would be instructed. You want to teach about the LGBTQ, fine. But, it is being instructed in a way that FORCES others to accept those views as normal. There is no such things as a trans youth. It is what gets pushed on them by those too lazy to actually investigate the underlying mental health issue they are experiencing. Slavery has been taught in schools. But it has been done in a way that most kids come away thinking slavery never existed before it was present in the US and it didn’t happen elsewhere. I was out of college before I learned that 95% of the African slaves shipped to the “new world” did NOT end up in the US but rather South America and the Caribbean. I was never taught in school about Wilber Wilberforce. I was never taught about the Rape of Nanking. The nonsensical CRT and EDI concepts are being used as a tool to force political ideology on kids then change the standards in favor of those less capable. And if a white conservative gets excluded in the process, well that is just a big bonus.
Most states do NOT have white conservatives in charge of education. And by more republicans/ conservatives hired or involved… in most cases that means the next republican hired would be the one and only one in a school district. The public schools are under complete control by democrats in WAY too many places. The whiny liberals hate that there is some push back and some of their crazy is being exposed.