General Overview
The basic idea of vouchers is to allow underprivileged children the same opportunities that everyone else has. For example, a poor kid currently goes to an under performing public school. However, there is a really good private school that he could get in to, but he cannot afford it. What vouchers would do is allow that child to be able to go to that school or whatever school the parents of that kid choose. Vouchers, if they were implemented with pay for performance and accountability for teachers would really be the best scenario. That way the teachers and schools that are doing a good job would meet their payroll and the bad ones wouldn't therefore education quality would increase. Now that sounds pretty good, although it is a very simple version, however one group consistently opposes it.
Democrats on Vouchers
The one party that consistently opposes vouchers are the Democrats. This is for several reasons. One, a major group within the Democratic Party is the Teachers Union and groups like them. Because of this, and those groups fierce opposition to vouchers, the Democrats have to pander to them and oppose vouchers. But just how tied are the Democrats to these groups? Lets take a look. The National Education Association represented 1/10 of delegates at the 2004 DNC. In local levels the Teachers Unions consistently fight vouchers. It just so happens though, that the same liberal elitists that oppose vouchers, a majority of them send their kids to private schools. The problem is that they won't allow people less fortunate then them to have that same opportunity. To the people though they are on the wrong side of the issue. 70% of people agree that under performing teachers should be fired. 75% of African-Americans under 35 support vouchers.
Where Vouchers Have Worked
Most everywhere where they have been tried, vouchers have been a success. Cities include Washington D.C, Cleveland, and Milwaukee. A major country, Canada, has also implemented vouchers. Now, about 92% of people in Canada have school choice. The reason is that vouchers create competition. With that quality almost always improve. Today in public schools there is no accountability. That was the goal of NCLB, although many who once supported are now against it (Democrats). Think about it, if you are paying for something, like a private school, and the school does not perform well or up to your standards, you leave and find a better one. The problem is for many they cannot afford or do not have the option of changing schools. In cities where they have implemented vouchers, a majority of the time kids greatly improve on tests and the dropout rate declines. Also, money was saved and they were able to spend that money on educational programs.
Who Vouchers are meant to Help
School Vouchers are intended solely to help the poor and middle class. Minorities specifically, benefit the most from vouchers. Vouchers also help create diversity in schools. Back to a previous point Liberal elitists have no problem. In Milwaukee 1/3 of the disadvantaged students now go to private schools. Without vouchers, it is very unlikely any of them would have had that opportunity. Also, amongst African-Americans who make less than $15,000, 70% of them support school choice.
Reasons People Oppose Vouchers
One major argument against vouchers is because 0f the separation of church and state issue. Many liberals fear that giving taxpayer money, or public money, to private schools, many of which have religious affiliations, is unconstitutional. However, parents have a choice as to which school they would send their child to. With vouchers, nothing would change. If a parent decided they did not want their child going to a Catholic school they wouldn't have to. Today, it is really the same way. If you think about it vouchers are the best way to have democracy in education as it puts the people fully in control, not the bureaucracies. Another reason against vouchers is that they are meant to aid the rich. As I just mentioned, that is the complete opposite from the truth.
More Money isn't the Answer
Many feel that by just increasing money for education, we will solve all our problems. For one, money is not the answer. If you look at all major nations, we spend the most on education, but we are at the bottom of the list for actual results. Under George Bush, spending has increased 40% yet reading proficiency and other areas have declined. We are spending more and seeing less results. From 1991 to 2002, money spent increased greatly but graduation rates also went down. This another plus of vouchers. On average the cost of vouchers to educate a single child is about half of what it currently costs in the public system.
No comments:
Post a Comment