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But if they go to a private university they don't get a rebate on whatever taxes they paid that support the State U in order to help pay for the private school.
Rebate on taxes? What are you talking about?
If you are talking about a tax credit for tuition, you get that (if you qualify) no matter if you attend private or public colleges.
I don't know why we all need to criticize everyone else's choices.
I have worked in public education now for over 20 years. I have been criticized for homeschooling my kids for a while, but I had some reasons for doing so. I have been criticized for living in the nicer are and sending my kids to the best schools (public) while working in the lower income schools. I have been criticized by church friends for not sending my kids to the church school.
I will educate my kids the way I feel is good for them. Period. I make no apologies or excuses, nor do I need to justify anything to anyone. These are MY children and I will do what I feel is best for them. The end.
It goes both ways. Teachers make the choice they think is best for their individual child. Just like the rest of us. I don't think it's hypocritical, but (general) you are welcome to your own opinion My kids (private school) have classmates with public school teachers for parents. They also have classmates with parents who teach at the same private school. They also have teachers who send their kids to public schools.
Ok, so teachers make the best choice for their children...fair enough. Since we can agree that choice is good and public teachers are free the choose the best, why is the education establishment so quick to bash Betsy Devos who is pushing for a voucher system that opens up choices?
Ok, so teachers make the best choice for their children...fair enough. Since we can agree that choice is good and public teachers are free the choose the best, why is the education establishment so quick to bash Betsy Devos who is pushing for a voucher system that opens up choices?
I think the fear is that public school system will become the dumping ground for SPED students and troubled students.
A voucher system won't help students who have no transportation or if no private school will accept vouchers. I'm sure private schools know that with govt money comes govt regulation
I think the fear is that public school system will become the dumping ground for SPED students and troubled students.
A voucher system won't help students who have no transportation or if no private school will accept vouchers. I'm sure private schools know that with govt money comes govt regulation
You bring up some good points. I'm not sure about private schools but I have heard that some charter schools in the LA area cherry pick the children that don't have special needs. That is a legitimate fear under the voucher system.
I grew up in the Los Angeles area and I've seen generations of students who were funneled into poor performing schools simply because their homes were assigned to those schools. That is why the voucher system (at least in theory) sounded worthwhile to me. if we subject the poorest of our population to a virtual education monopoly based on geography, are we really helping with socioeconomic mobility?
There are valid arguments against the voucher system. Private schools can reject a student based on religion. Private schools may not provide bus service for students that don't have rides. Some private schools may be run poorly with incompetent teachers and staff.
But I believe that the market will help correct these issues over the long run. If a school performs poorly, they won't get the vouchers because the parents will have a choice to not send their children there, and the school will ultimately go out of business, just like a poorly managed restaurant with bad food and rude service goes out of business. If a religious school rejects students based on religion, then it opens up an opportunity for a secular school (or even the existing public school) to occupy that market. If a significant number of children need bus service to even consider a school, that school may start providing bus service in order to keep the vouchers coming (some private universities provide free shuttles to their students so why not K-12 private schools?).
Again, my biases are based on my experiences in Los Angeles. There appears to be a huge wealth gap in Los Angeles and a lot of that has to do with who owns real estate in areas that are zoned to the best performing schools. When there is money involved, whether that be a house that someone owns in a great school district or a teacher's union that depends on the monopolization of the local education market, it will be extremely difficult to challenge the status quo.
Ok, so teachers make the best choice for their children...fair enough. Since we can agree that choice is good and public teachers are free the choose the best, why is the education establishment so quick to bash Betsy Devos who is pushing for a voucher system that opens up choices?
Because the kids who might benefit the most from vouchers don't always have the choice (their parents have to make that choice). Because spending hours on a bus to get to a better school isn't always an option and isn't optimal. Because resources would be better spent improving the neighborhood schools so that more kids could benefit from the neighborhood school actually being a viable choice. Because private school spots will always be limited.
The public school teachers choosing to send their children to private schools probably still have a viable public school option, even if it's not what they think is the best for their kid. My kids go to private school and our public schools are a great option. The private school is a better fit, but at least I know I have that option.
Because the kids who might benefit the most from vouchers don't always have the choice (their parents have to make that choice). Because spending hours on a bus to get to a better school isn't always an option and isn't optimal. Because resources would be better spent improving the neighborhood schools so that more kids could benefit from the neighborhood school actually being a viable choice. Because private school spots will always be limited.
The public school teachers choosing to send their children to private schools probably still have a viable public school option, even if it's not what they think is the best for their kid. My kids go to private school and our public schools are a great option. The private school is a better fit, but at least I know I have that option.
Since K-12 kids are minors for the most part, their parents obviously are the ones that make the school choice (under a voucher system or otherwise).
Your experience may vary but drawing on my experience with Los Angeles Unified School District, simply "improving the neighborhood school" isn't so straightforward and therefore many schools in the district continue to underperform for decades. For many Angelenos, the default neighborhood school isn't really a viable option if their goal is to succeed and make it to a good university.
As for spending hours on a bus, the parents are the ones who can make that decision on whether or not they want to send their kids somewhere far away for a better school. If the parent at least has the option to weigh the pros and cons of a longer commute, they can make their choice accordingly. You make your choice to send your children to private schools, and it makes sense that other parents should be given the chance to make choices for their children as well.
Not the same thing at all. A more equivalent comparison would be someone who publicly advocated for LGBT rights while at the same time teaching their children to discriminate and sending money to work against it.
Or in the case of schools it would be sending their kids to private schools arguing against things like charter schools and vouchers which would provide other kids the same opportunities. Hypocritical.
I believe in the importance to the country of a public education system. So I put my money where my mouth is so to speak. My kids attended public school. The oldest just graduated from a public university (oh the horrors that it wasn't Ivy League, though they do have a pretty good football team ) while the youngest is currently in a different public college.
I'm an advocate for increased pay and education improvements. But it's awful hard to do when teachers keep shooting themselves in the foot. Because this sends two messages to the public. One, that teachers themselves don't believe in the quality of a public school education, despite what they say in public. And two, that teachers must be overpaid if they have the money to send their kids to private school.
It is not at all hypocritical. Vouchers take government money and give it to people to attend private schools. I don't know any parents at my son's private school who support that concept. That might damage the school, because part of the benefit of private is that parents have to pay for it out of their own pockets, which indicates that they deeply value education and that they will hold their children accountable for good behavior and a good work ethic. The government giving people money to clog up the private schools without paying for them would not help current private school families at all.
I'm a public school teacher who started out sending my son to public, but after he was utterly failed by his public school (he's high-functioning autistic), I moved him to private and it's the best decision I ever made. Yes, I absolutely see things I don't personally like about public schools: standardized testing, behavior issues, bullying, drugs, violence, lack of spirituality, large classes, educational fads, inadequate budgets, low expectations for certain students, etc. So I choose to send my son to school in a different environment.
I am no hypocrite. I work all day to help other people's children, and even tutor them after school without pay. I save and sacrifice my own money to get the best educational environment for my own child. I believe in free education being available for all in the form of public schools, and I do everything I can to provide my public school students with a good education. I believe in a parent's right to choose public, magnet, charter, private or homeschool: whatever works for them & their child. But I don't believe in the government paying for private schools. If they did, those schools would no longer be private. And that would take one of the school choices away from everyone.
Last edited by Pretzeltwist; 01-28-2019 at 09:30 PM..
I think the fear is that public school system will become the dumping ground for SPED students and troubled students.
It pretty much already is, in many public school districts. DeVos will only make it even worse.
Quote:
Originally Posted by BJW50
A voucher system won't help students who have no transportation or if no private school will accept vouchers. I'm sure private schools know that with govt money comes govt regulation
...and that's the part that nobody talks about when they criticize public school teachers for sending their own children to private schools. Public school teachers know firsthand about all the BS that often gets in the way of truly educating children in the best ways possible, due to having to adhere to so many government regulations (think of all the endless standardized tests and having to teach to the test all year long, for one). So they know that at private schools, they don't have to have their own children subjected to all the government regulation BS that often gets in the way of actual teaching and learning.
Last edited by NoClueWho; 01-29-2019 at 08:32 AM..
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My kids (private school) have classmates with public school teachers for parents. They also have classmates with parents who teach at the same private school. They also have teachers who send their kids to public schools.
) while the youngest is currently in a different public college.
DeVos will only make it even worse. 
