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As we learn more about how students have fared the past couple of years, another group is beating a different drum, this one for school choice.
We’re hearing a lot about choice in this midterm election season. It’s a persistent drumbeat as DFL candidates hammer one nail, since it’s the only one they’ve got. In ad after nauseating ad, they falsely insist Republican candidates are hellbent on eliminating a woman’s right to choose.
Meanwhile, parents of kids who’ve been born are focused on what’s happening in our schools. As we learn more about how students have fared the past couple of years, another group is beating a different drum, this one for school choice.
Change often begins with the language and that’s true with schools. Offering a fresh perspective, Corey DeAngelis, a nationally recognized school choice advocate, suggests we call public schools government schools. It’s fitting, he says, because the government dictates everything about the school system that is educating most children. The government assigns students to schools based on where they live. The government hires personnel. The government sets schedules and decides what students will learn.
As more families take a critical look at government school performance, they’re voting with their feet. Though they continue to pay taxes to support government schools, they’re enrolling in private and parochial schools, shifting to homeschooling and starting micro schools.
There’s a movement taking place across the nation that’s being embraced by some and resisted by others. It shifts ownership of education directly to families. Education savings accounts and voucher programs are gaining traction, though not with teachers unions or candidates they support.
Most recently, Arizona joined other states that have created or expanded school choice options through legislation. Instead of dollars following schools, dollars will follow students.
It’s worth watching Arizona as it sorts through the details of the new approach. If Minnesota were to follow Arizona’s lead, options currently financially prohibitive for lower-income students (who often attend the worst performing schools) could become a reality.
In November, Minnesota voters will have two distinctly different choices in the candidates for governor. Both say they’re committed to improving academic outcomes. Their allies say a lot about their priorities and approaches.
