Trump is moving fast, and education reform is on the docket. Backed by the GOP, the plan is to move forward with a voucher program that will increase competition in schools. No doubt, the liberals are against this. Let’s take a look at their points and see how much water they hold.
The biggest narrative coming from the left against a school voucher system is that it will promote segregation in schools. This is as ridiculous as it sounds, but we’ll hit the major points anyways. The first example cites that a voucher system in Chile increased segregation. The data is extremely murky in this study, but even if we assume it’s true, the Chilean example does not correlate with American education. In fact, existing voucher programs all fall well within segregation limits in the U.S.
The other main argument comes from a study that showed charter schools in America are less diverse, on average, than public schools. In fact, most charter schools have too many minority students while high-end private schools are predominantly white. The private schools are mostly explained by the current distribution of wealth in the country, but the charter schools are a bit more interesting.
In response to changes instituted in the No Child Left Behind era, the majority of charter schools that opened were in areas where the public schools were struggling. In fact, this completely explains why they appear so segregated.
A more honest bit of research measured the impact of charter schools on segregation by looking at a single region over a period of time. When studies have utilized this method, they have measured that in every studied region in the country, an increase in school choices led to an increase in student diversity. In other words, the emergence of more schools has decreased segregation. That said, how are public schools doing with segregation?
Before schools were forcefully integrated, public schools were mostly segregated along address lines. Since most minority groups lived in certain areas within the greater community, this was easy. Integration efforts initially overcame this, but over time, location-based school districts were able to gently push student populations back toward their segregated norms. In fact, public schools are less integrated today than they were in the 70s.
Unfortunately, this segregation comes with negative impacts. Whether born of racism or not, the bulk of modern segregation comes in the form of parents buying homes or moving into better school districts when they can. While no one would blame a parent for trying to get their kids into the best school, the methodology quite obviously favors individuals with the disposable income necessary to relocate.
In other words, wealthier families get their kids into better public schools. Once again, this leads to the segregation we see that perfectly correlates with income distributions. If all of that feels a little heavy, the gist is this: the current public school system promotes discrimination by income, even if unintentionally.
Even a cursory glance at the data makes everything we’ve discussed so far painfully obvious, which means the liberals leading the fight against vouchers know all of this. While it might be tempting to chalk their dissent up to typical partisanism, the truth is actually a little more sinister.
In order to work, voucher programs have to specifically target lower income households first. Most agree that a gradual transition to universal vouchers is the only thing that is fair, but if you don’t go after the low-income families in the beginning, studies show that they will get left behind. So, given this sudden opportunity and advantage, most families will put their kids in the best schools the vouchers allow.
As things currently stand, the majority of those schools would be private rather than public or charter. As it turns out, the vast majority of the most competitive private schools are tied to religious groups. In fact, if you stop to think about it, one of the best schools in your state is probably named after a saint or other religious figure.
This, ultimately, is the source of liberal opposition. School vouchers are a wonderful opportunity to help those worst off in America, but, since that help will push those in need toward religious institutions, the atheist core of liberalism and progressivism must oppose the idea. Their fear is that church-backed private schools will push America back towards evangelicalism, and that must be avoided no matter the cost to the kids who will continue to get left behind.
Regards,
Ethan Warrick
Editor
Wealth Authority
