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Do you also have school choice in the Netherlands like in Belgium? John Stossel had a special TV program on education and mediocrity in the United States, showing the teachers' union militant resistance to school choice. One thing that Stossel had shown however was that in the Belgian system, the education budget money is not attached to the school (determined by some head count), but to the student, and it was up to the schools to compete for the student. If the parent thinks that a particular school is not doing the teaching job, the parent is free to move the child to another school. Yes, government funding is still involved, but there is still a market mechanism where the parent decides where the child goes.

Yes school choice is completely free. But can't american parents choose which school they want their children to go to? It's only fair since the parent pays for the education.

Although it also depends on testing, you have to have past certain tests at primary school or you can't go to all highschools. We do have a lot of choice still, with Public schools, Catholic schools, Protestant schools, Jewish schools, Islamic schools, and even american and englisch schools for american and english children that live in holland.

But can't american parents choose which school they want their children to go to?

Not exactly. An American parent can only choose which school his/her child will not go to ... and only by opting out of the public school system entirely ... and enrolling his/her child in a private or parochial [religious] school. I did it when my daughter was very young ... and it was a very, very expensive "choice".

Another choice open to parents when it is available is the 'charter school.' This is a public school established with the freedom to follow an independent teaching method, specific curriculum, limited entrance policy. My 6 year old grandson's name was drawn and he is enrolled in our Montessori model K-8 charter school. His sister will therefore automatically be eligible. Small classes, excellent curriculum individualized to the student. For instance, he entered kindergarten reading whole books at the 4th grade level (has a good Mom, read to him and played alphabet and word games). Because he does not always know the meaning of a word which he can easily read, his teachers are concentrating on vocabulary development.