As the debate on public education grows, there is renewed effort from school choice advocates to provide taxpayer funded school vouchers to families of students who attend failing public schools.
In theory, school voucher programs seem like a viable alternative to enrollment in neighborhood public schools that are failing or unsafe. Voucher programs provide families the opportunity to enroll their children in private or parochial schools which are perceived as superior to public schools. However, in practice, voucher programs have not made the significant educational impact to garner more support.
One of the problems with voucher programs was that several studies found no evidence that voucher program participants improved academic achievement. The studies found that the lack of academic gains were due to “too many other factors at play [i].”
Voucher program advocates would have the public believe that placing a child who has academic, social, and behavioral challenges in a private or parochial school would effectively eliminate those challenges. Advocates would also have the public believe that all of the social service challenges that a child faced due to abuse and neglect would not impact the child in a private or parochial school. Lastly, voucher advocates would have the public believe that private and parochial schools will begin to level the playing field causing public schools to become stronger.
Voucher program advocates do not tell you is that vouchers are for tuition only. Vouchers are not used to purchase school uniforms, transportation (ie: bus passes), or extracurricular activities. This means that an additional monetary burden may be placed on the family if the voucher school is not near the home. Some private and parochial schools do not provide transportation, whereas public schools provide free transportation for children who live 1.5 miles or more from their school. Additionally, if the voucher school is not near the home, it may prohibit the child from fully being able to participate in the school community.
Second, voucher program advocates do not tell you that private and parochial schools are not required to accept children with vouchers. By not requiring private or parochial schools to accept a certain percentage of voucher students who apply, nullifies the arguments made by voucher advocates.
Finally, voucher program advocates do not tell you that private and parochial schools are not accountable to State or Federal educational requirements as public schools. Private and Parochial schools are not required to comply with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). Therefore, a voucher child who has an Individualized Education Program (IEP) from their public school and they are accepted to a private or parochial school, the school does not have to follow the child’s IEP. Additionally, the compliance protections the child had at their public school under IDEA does not apply to private and parochial schools.
The story on school vouchers has not been fully disclosed, as a tax payer it is important that you remain informed on this issue, educate others, and find out where your elected officials stands on schools vouchers.
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