Last
month on the Washington Post’s “The
Answer Sheet” Blog, guest blogger Jeff Bryant argued why Democrats should
not support any form of educational options.
Check out the response from AFC Senior Advisor Kevin P. Chavous, a
former D.C. Councilman and a lifelong Democrat, on why Democrats must put
partisan politics aside and support school choice:
Jeff
Bryant’s July 18 piece on Valerie Strauss’ “The Answer Sheet” blog lets blind
partisanship get in the way of an accurate characterization of school choice
programs across the country. As a
Democrat, I full-heartedly support school choice in every form—from strong
traditional public schools to charter schools to voucher programs—because these
options shift our focus from an antiquated, overly-bureaucratized
one-size-fits-all system that is sadly failing millions of disadvantaged
children to those who know their children best—parents. Your failure to think
critically is apparent in your change-averse ideology that prizes the status
quo over proven measures that will help kids.
In
a political climate where bipartisanship is growing increasingly rare, school
choice breaks the mold, having earned the backing of Republicans and Democrats
in places like Louisiana, Florida, Wisconsin, Georgia, Ohio, and right here in
the nation’s capital. The reason, which Mr. Bryant fails to acknowledge, is
simple: for many lawmakers, the future of our country’s next generation is far
more important that scoring political points.
The
assumption that poor families are misinformed is simply untrue, and it is that
notion—one emphasizing system-wide decision-making over the best judgment of
parents—that accounts for a great deal of the achievement gap that plagues our
country’s educational performance. It’s
why when we put power pack into the hands of parents, as was done here in D.C.,
voucher students graduate at a rate of 91 percent—more than 30 percentage
points higher than students in D.C. Public Schools. And an evaluation of the Milwaukee voucher
program also found a higher graduation rates and a trend that participating
students were more likely to enroll and continue in four-year universities than
their public school counterparts.
It’s
why when the opportunity for choice arises, parents respond in droves. More
than 17,000 students are on waiting lists for public charter schools here in
D.C. and more than 10,000 low-income families have applied for the voucher
program since it was created in 2004.
So
yes, Mr. Bryant, I am a Democrat who proudly favors school choice, and there is
nothing meek about my support. After all, I’m on the side of the parents, and
it’s they—not you—who really know what’s best for their kids.
—Kevin
- American Federation for Children | Alliance for School Choice, MSG
Don't forget options like Virtual Academies (online schooling) and HOMESCHOOLING....clearly parents know what's best for their kids when they choose to school-at-home....My dd (13) was left behind by the local school district and has progressed so much since pulling her out and enrolling her in a K12.com online school (Washington Virtual Academy and then East Valley Virtual Academy). She has multiple disabilities including High-Functioning Asbergers and ADHD but intelligent. The schools didn't want to help her because she could pass a test....what she needed was a place where she could be creative and explore topics in HER learning style and not an institution where creativity is squashed by 'Teaching to the Test' for NCLB funding.
ReplyDelete