August 31, 2011
Vouchers for Private School Are Only Fair (and a Smart Way to Save Money)
There is absolutely nothing wrong with this:
Weeks after Indiana began the nation's broadest school voucher program, thousands of students have transferred from public to private schools, causing a spike in enrollment at some Catholic institutions that were only recently on the brink of closing for lack of pupils.It's a scenario public school advocates have long feared: Students fleeing local districts in large numbers, taking with them vital tax dollars that often end up at parochial schools. Opponents say the practice violates the separation of church and state.
As a society we've determined that public money should be set aside to ensure a minimally educated population. In a voucher system, the parents receive some of that money and determine where to direct it. "Separation of church and state" should apply such that schools that are accredited for that objective should not be penalized just because they also provide religious instruction.
In a recent conversation with a woman who's renting a property on which I've been working, she mentioned that she'd transferred her children from a Catholic school to the public schools in her town for various reasons. We're not talking one of the elite private schools, by any means, but still, her son's commentary on fourth grade in the public school was that it was like going back to kindergarten. I've had similar experiences with my own children and have heard other parents express agreement.
Yet, the teachers at this particular school make less than half of what public school teachers make — with the comparison becoming even more imbalanced if we factor in benefits. That fact should shame public school teachers and spark a revolution at the voting booth.
Even if parents could receive back the portion of their own taxes that goes to educating their children, the education system couldn't help but become more efficient and achieve better results as a whole.
I sent my daughter to an "elite" private school in Cambridge. From the teachers point of view, the salaries did not compare favorably with Cambridge public school salaries.
Now, the politics imbued in her,that is another matter. The headmaster was convicted of concealing child abuse by a sports coach. The faculty backed him "1000% per cent", but he was gone the next year.
I was semi amused that the school operated on an "Honor Code", but did not have an "Honor Court". It did not seem to have a punishment, usually "expulsion", for violation of the honor code.
When a meeting of parents was called to be told that 3 "units" of American History were being deleted to add "units" of African History, myself and several others objected. We were warned that "if the students were not supported at home, their grades might be degraded".
Posted by: Warrington Faust at August 31, 2011 8:12 AM"[H]er son's commentary on fourth grade in the public school was that it was like going back to kindergarten."
I was in a private middle school in Providence until I became frustrated with the religious component (they like you to ask questions, but not too many) and moved to RI public school in 8th grade. They put me in all of their "honors" courses. I went from around 2 hours of homework per night to literally 5-15 minutes of homework that I completed on the bus to school in the morning. Sometimes I just didn't do the homework and there was no penalty, or the teachers would grumble a bit and that would be it. Studying for tests became redundant. I'd just walk in and ace them; usually just our worksheets with key words whited out. The teachers seemed not to care, about much of anything. We got a lot of unscheduled "study halls," i.e. free periods, when the teacher was out or needed to get work done. It was like a big vacation. Getting highest honors each term was not in the least bit difficult.
Sometimes I wake up in a cold sweat, thinking about what my life would be like if I had been forced through that failed socialist experiment since kindergarten. I don't see how I possibly could have made it as far as I did when my parents yanked me back out and sent me to a private high school. While consistently testing well, I wasn't exactly self-motivated - I mostly just wanted to catch frogs and build forts out of things. I'd probably be working retail right now and be bored out of my mind.
Posted by: Dan at August 31, 2011 8:19 AMThe opposition of public school teachers, union leaders, and progressives to school choice is in many ways analogous to the difference between the free and totalitarian coutries of the world. Free countries need fences to keep people out; totalitarian countries need fences to keep their people in.
Posted by: Dan at August 31, 2011 8:41 AMI'm all for school choice but opposed to vouchers. I don't think parents who send their kids to other schools should get money back any more than taxpayers who don't have kids should get money back. All of our tax dollars go to support the public school system whether you use it or not.
If I am employed at the Johnston Landfill and I choose to bring my trash to work with me every day, I don't expect to get a rebate on my property taxes for the value of my trash pickup. If I don't have kids in the schools, I don't expect to get that portion of my money back and I'm not a senior citizen, so I don't expect to get a rebate on the portion that supports the senior citizen activity center in town.
Posted by: Patrick at August 31, 2011 9:02 AMPatrick writes:
"I don't think parents who send their kids to other schools should get money back any more than taxpayers who don't have kids should get money back."
This does not account for the savings effected by removing a child, I doubt the amount of the voucher covers it. It also does not mean you will be relieved of taxes for the period that you live there.
About my daughter in private schools. There was no way that my blonde daughter was going to Cambridge public schools.
Posted by: Warrington Faust at August 31, 2011 1:16 PMTo clarify and further my earlier point, if I am a 70 year old retiree living in a town with a senior community center and I instead choose to sign up for an individual YMCA membership, should I be able to get a voucher to help pay for my membership if I'm not using the community center?
How is that different from the school system?
Posted by: Patrick at August 31, 2011 1:31 PMMy interpretation of vouchers was more along the lines of "the money follows the student" concept - with the parents making up the difference between what the state or municipality would have spent to educate the child in a public school and the cost of the tuition for the private school. I don't think anyone should get "money back" but I don't have a problem with the idea of education funds being portable to any accredited school of the parents' choosing.
I attended Catholic schools and lived within walking distance, so my parents paid (for three children) tuition and books for years on top of the taxes that supported the public schools. They didn't complain, it was a choice they made, but it certainly affected their budgets and spending decisions (it was one of the reasons my mom eventually chose to go back to work).
I think it would be great if parents were empowered to choose their children's school based on what they determined to be in their best interest, as opposed to being consigned to a particular school based on geography.
Posted by: Bucket Chick at August 31, 2011 6:29 PMPatrick writes:
"To clarify and further my earlier point, if I am a 70 year old retiree living in a town with a senior community center and I instead choose to sign up for an individual YMCA membership, should I be able to get a voucher to help pay for my membership if I'm not using the community center?"
Patrick, there seems to be so many differences. Is your community center "broken" in the way so many school systems are? Do you see any connection between the community center and your children's future? Can you analogise your situation to that of lower income residents of Providence who know their chidren are not getting what they need, but cannot afford to buy their way out of it? Do you see your decision to use the "Y" as likely to effect change at the Community Center as would a number of parents taking vouchers to remove their kids from what they see as a failing system?
Posted by: Warrington Faust at September 1, 2011 8:30 AMThe opposition by unions and "Progressives" to school choice is worse than described above. It is a variation on the "Jim Crow" system that prevented black Americans from exercising their rights as citizens.
Posted by: BobN at September 1, 2011 9:34 AMThe opposition by unions and "Progressives" to school choice is worse than described above. It is a variation on the "Jim Crow" system that prevented black Americans from exercising their rights as citizens.
Posted by: BobN at September 1, 2011 9:35 AMBobN
You accuse Progressives and unions of being racist.Since you're the expert will you comment on this;
About my daughter in private schools. There was no way that my blonde daughter was going to Cambridge public schools.
Posted by Warrington Faust at August 31, 2011 1:16 PM
Dead silence. What a surprise.
Posted by: Phil at September 4, 2011 9:16 PM