I currently live in Indiana where they have a school voucher program that allows some money designated to my child's education to be used towards an approved school of our choice (including approved private schools). I am thankful for the ability to choose.
Here's why I am for school voucher programs (and you should be too).
1. I believe competition is a positive driving force for improvement. Monopolies are never good. There are laws that prevent private businesses from having a monopoly, but that does not prevent government from having a monopoly.
2. If this is tax money (which is my money), then shouldn't I be able to spend it on the education for my kids as I see fit?
3. It gives me choice about what kind of education I want my children to have. That choice would be stifled for me and many others were we unable to use our money (tax money) for our own educational preferences.
4. A Christian school is not forced to accept government money. No school is required to accept the school choice money and no school can receive it unless they meet certain requirements to be an eligible school (these requirements have to do with academic, staff education, facility safety, etc.). These are reasonable expectations.
5. If you are a parent sending your child to a private school, you are paying taxes that go to public schools and paying again to send your children to private school. This is not fair.
6. School vouchers do not destroy the public school system. Every state that has school vouchers still have public schools. Every student in every state with school choice vouchers still has access to a public school. Period.
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7. No one interferes with home schooling families through school choice vouchers. In my state of Indiana, homeschools are not eligible to receive the funds. I am not arguing that they should be eligible, just that they aren't here in Indiana. But government does not encroach more in homeschooling in this state that states that do not have school choice.
8. In most cases, school choice saves the state money. Typically less money is given in vouchers to those choosing private schools that money spent (per student) in public schools. This might not be fair, but it saves the state money.
9. Not every public school is bad. Most are not. I am thankful that our nation has made a priority of education for everyone. Those in favor of school choice vouchers are not arguing that. Some private schools are bad. Some public ones are bad. Parents should have the ability to choose what is best for their child.
10. The government rarely performs well when it refuses to allow competition. Private sector creativity, ingenuity, and excellence is important in
So why do some people oppose school choice?
1. Whoever controls the education of the next generation controls the future. Parents across the country are tired of some teachers and school districts (not all) using educational hours to indoctrinate their children in unwanted veins of cultural ideology. Without school choice vouchers, many middle income and low income families are at the mercy of their local public school despite the ability of its staff or the ideology that is being promoted.
2. It is about money. Many people argue that public dollars should be used only for public schools (not private ones). This is an argument that is a bit deceptive in its twisting of semantics. They really do not care where your kids go to school, as long as they get to keep the money.
3. Government over parents? I am a firm believer that parents should have authority over their children and the education of their children. Some people believe that government knows better than parents. The state of California recently banned school rules requiring parental notification of child's pronoun change. God intended for parents to be in authority over their children, not government.
4. They believe the propaganda. In the political debate you will hear people who want to give money only to government run schools that to do something else will harm teachers, eliminate homeschooling, allow the government to control private schools, harm the poor and cause test scores to go down (most data indicates that school choice leads to higher test scores across the spectrum). Don't believe all the flashy memes, rants, editorials, etc. In most cases across the country where states have already adopted school voucher programs, great things are happening. Some states are proposing and discussing expansion of the school voucher program. Do your own research and make an informed decision.
You can find some more information about school choice at this website: www.schoolchoicefacts.org
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