How to Understand School Vouchers

I can see both sides of the voucher debate. For those of you who do not know about proposed school vouchers--here it goes. The government would be able to give every family a voucher of roughly $2,500 per child (once they are of school age) to go toward private school tuition.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• An open mind

1. Consider whether vouchers would create a mass exodus of public education students into private schools. Maybe that exodus would benefit public schools by decreasing overcrowding, which is one of the major problems.

2. Consider that vouchers would create the much-needed competition that the public schools have never had. What has been the motivation for public schools to excel? They have never had any competition.

3. Admit that vouchers would draw money away from public education, however, at some point we have to realize that money may not be the answer to solving our public education woes. I would compare the problems in public education to the cure for cancer in that it's very possible that we could throw all the money in the world at the problem and it would possibly not fix it.

Resources

• Rock and Roll Kindergarten

[Schwengel]

on 10/15/2008 point well taken! well stated, oneloved!

[oneloved]

on 10/15/2008 It's a little misleading to claim that a school voucher is simply the government giving you money for education. In reality, it is REFUNDING money which the taxpayer has been forced to pay for a substandard product, and directing it towards a product which may work better for your child: a private school. With a voucher, the taxpayer does not have to pay twice for their child's education (first in taxes, and then again in tuition).

[goodteacher22]

on 4/18/2008 very insightful!

[iheartschool]

on 4/18/2008 i can't decide either...