Bait and Switch: NC's Proposed Private School Voucher Bill

More noise, less substance. Figure 1. (Broome, 2013) 

Ideas about how to "fix" public education in North Carolina are as numerous as the cicadas this year and twice as loud. Tax credits for students with disabilities, evaluations tied to students' test scores, and the ending of teacher tenure are examples of some major overhauls proposed during the 2013-2014 legislative session. The latest in the ongoing effort to privatize education, under the guise of personal choice, is the private school voucher bill (House Bill 944) being considered by the General Assembly. Proponents say it's all about choice and outcomes, but opponents, like Rep. Chris Whitmire, say "it robs Peter to pay Paul" (Bonner, 2013).

If you are not aware of the private school voucher bill, below are the major provisions:

• qualifying parents receive a yearly $4200 voucher to be used at a private school of their choosing (H.R. 944, 2013)
• the voucher funds per-pupil spending at half the state public school per-pupil average (the state average is approximately $8400 per-pupil, at 2012-2013 levels) (H.R. 944, 2013 & Stephens, 2012)
• a two year program providing $10 million in funding the first year (vouchers for 2,000 students) and $40 million the second year (vouchers for an additional 7,000 students) (H.R. 944, 2013)
• only schools with 70 or more students must submit to a state audit (H.R. 944, 2013)
• no criminal background checks required for instructors as long as the highest ranking official submits to and passes a criminal background check (H.R. 944, 2013)
• no instructor is required to be Highly Qualified per Department of Public Instruction standards or licensed in the subject they teach (H.R. 944, 2013)
• enrolled students are not required to pass or prove proficiency in state-mandated tests (End-of-Grade, End-of-Course, or the Measures of Student Learning) (H.R. 944, 2013)

A cursory glance at the bill's provisions appear to provide impoverished families with some powerful options when it comes to their child's education. In essence, a parent can remove their child from a public school and place them in a private school.

This notion assumes three inherently destructive notions:

• private schools are better than public schools (only a private school can educate someone in poverty)
• a $4200 voucher is enough to cover the tuition of an accredited private school
• limited accountability makes for better outcomes

A long-held notion among the public is that private schools are better than public schools. This notion stems from the relationship we have with money. When we spend, we develop expectations. It is in a consumer's nature to demand value, to get the maximum return on every dollar spent. This being the case, one can assume that something one pays for must inherently be better than what one gets for free. This is true of clothes, food, and, in this case, education; however, the logic becomes unhinged when applied to public education. What appears free to most people is, of course, funded by tax dollars that averages to $8400 per pupil. If a family had to pay this out of pocket, the expectations and attitudes would be vastly different. The failing public school would become the expensive private school.

Private elementary, middle, and high schools also carry a currency that, on some level, mimics that of a private university. Private universities command a level of respect beyond that of  their public counterparts, regardless of any empirical data on ultimate educational outcomes of their graduates. If the importance of the term "private" seems disputable, consider the value our culture places on ivy league universities.

When operating under generalities and stereotypes, it is easy to assume that the excellence of any one private school extends to any private school. In the same regard, it is easy to assume that any failing public school must imply that all public schools are failures. This is part of a larger shift that assumes private enterprise can do anything faster, better, and cheaper than a public equivalent.

The bill makes additional assumptions in terms of cost. A sampling of 30 private schools' tuition in Forsyth County range from "several thousand dollars a year to more than $20,000" (Herron, 2013). Obviously, a family in poverty cannot afford to cover the difference.

Figure 2. (Barsotti, 2002)

Generalities concerning the value of a private school education combined with a voucher program that under funds the cost of a private school education creates an environment ripe for opportunist. The lure of $4200 per student, combined with minimal accountability, creates an opportunity for anyone with a notion to open a school a viable reason to do so.

While the detriment to public schools and students is a real possibility, what is perhaps worse is that a study of Florida's voucher program (the oldest in the nation) shows that those enrolled perform no better than those who stay in a traditional public school (Figlio, 2009). 

The real agenda being advanced by the private school voucher bill is much more sinister, despite the outward appearance of equity. The bill simply provides a means to remove students who are poor performers (usually those in poverty), place the students in unvetted schools, and slash per-pupil spending by half. This bill is founded on a false premise (private schools are better than public) and constructed with a false sense of choice. Who would have thought that education could become a bait-and-switch scam?

References

Barsotti, C. (Artist). (2002, July 15). I'm taking my voucher and going to circus school [Web Drawing]. Retrieved from http://www.condenaststore.com/-sp/I-m-taking-my-voucher-and-going-to-circus-school-New-Yorker-Cartoon-Prints_i8544117_.htm

Bonner, L. (2013, June 12). Private school vouchers at center of house budget debate. Retrieved from http://www.newsobserver.com/2013/06/12/2959542/private-school-vouchers-at-center.html

Broome, G. (Photographer). (2013, May 14). [Cicada peering at camera] [Web Photo]. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/imagepages/2013/05/14/science/14zimmer-span.html

Figlio, D. (2010, June). Competitive effects of means-tested school vouchers. Retrieved from http://www.nber.org/papers/w16056

Herron, A. (2013, May 30). Questions remain over N.C. school voucher bill. Retrieved from http://www.journalnow.com/news/local/article_4a57b1b6-c8bc-11e2-8742-0019bb30f31a.html

Stephens, D. (2012, June 21). North Carolina ranks 45th in per-student spending on public schools. Retrieved from http://www.newsobserver.com/2012/06/21/2152602/north-carolina-ranks-45th-in-per.html