Look, I’m not a fan of public schools but that’s because public schools are for everyone and I didn’t want my children being exposed to well, that. It was simply a mandatory that for 8 years of their life they would be in Catholic schools with a 90% Catholic student body because I wanted them to develop a strong sense of community identity that they will need when they get out in the world and have to deal with non-Catholics. When I did send some to private schools that were not run by the church I picked schools that still had large Catholic student bodies. That’s just me. I didn’t want my children going to schools where they would have had classmates from Evangelical Protestant religions as well as the kids who might have atheist or agnostic parents (as rare as that would be here) but that’s just me. Other parents might want their kids exposed to that kind of background
However, we do need to have public schooling to remain economically competitive and also because we’ve had it for 150 years at least in most parts of the country and it has become a time honored American tradition. Now, I support charter schools and the like but ripping up the public schools is a bad idea. It’s not like a gun is cocked to your head and you’re forced to go or anything. It’s simply that many parents don’t want to make the financial sacrifices to send their kids to private schools but I have seen more than a few kids at my kids schools be picked up in 30 year old rusted out cars so I know there are people who make the sacrifices.
We don’t need socialized schools to remain economically competitive any more than we need socialized medicine to remain economically competitive, although that is one of the arguments the national socialists are using to push Obama Care.
And just because we’ve had bad policy for 150 years doesn’t mean we should keep it. We were under a king for more than 150 years but we changed that.
One of the worst aspects of socialized schooling is it teaches kids by example that socialism is acceptable. It sets in motion the thought that if we have government education, why not have government medicine, and government housing, and government food, etc.
Nobody puts a gun to people’s heads and forces them into government housing projects either. Like putting kids in government schools it is a choice.
I commend you for using capitalist schools rather than having your lifestyle subsidized by others. Everyone should follow your example.
Are you assuming that learning actually happens inside the instiutional-type school? I contend that it doesn't!
Most learning happens in the home through the efforts of the parents and the child himself. These are the people who doing the hard work at the kitchen table, reviewing phonics as they read to the child, making certain math facts are memorized, and creating a home where education is valued.
It is the child himself who thoroughly studies his textbooks, works the problems, answers the questions, writes the essays, and prepares the projects IN THE HOME!
If it were carefully examined, we would learn that institutional schools are merely sending home a curriculum, grading the projects, and administering the tests. The hard work is done at home. The home habits of academically successful children are **identical** to the home habits of academically successful homeschoolers. What the parents and children of academically successful institutionalized children are doing is **"Afterschooling"**!
I support parents who choose private schools so that their children can have socialization with other children and families with values that match their political, cultural, and religious worldview. But...Studies really should be done to determine how much learning happens in the school, and how much is really due to the parents and child himself, at **home**.
If we knew how much learning happened at home or in the institutional school, it would help parents know if they are getting full value for the money spent. Also...If most learning is due to "afterschooling", then it is **insanity** to think the traditional institutional school will be of any value to the disadvantaged child. These children will need private schools similar to KIPP. ( George Will calls them "paternalistic" schools.)
It’s not like a gun is cocked to your head and you’re forced to go or anything.
The gun is cocked at the heads of taxpayers who must pay for these atheistic government schools! And...These schools may not even be teaching anything! These government schools may merely be sending home a curriculum and it is the parents who are doing 99% of the effective "afterschooling"!
The gun is cocked at the heads of parents who can not afford private school or homeschooling. They are literally are under police threat to send their children to the atheistic, socialistic, and Marxist dominated government schools. If you do not believe this please do a Google check on the words: "Truant and Police". ( Real bullets in those guns on the hip!).
Some parents can afford to use private or home schooling. I call it "ransom". Some call it "jizya".
Finally... Government schools are a **price-fixed** monopoly business that is giving a service away tuition **free**! If private CEOs tried to corner a market and drive out competition in this way, they would soon be in prison! In my county there are **no** private schools! Why would there be? Government is creating a terrible business climate for the creation of a private alternative! Then when there are no private schools, the government threatens parents with **armed** police and court action if they refuse to send their child to these government price-fixed monopoly schools!