Me and ol' Sharpe were discussing this on the "why income inequality matters"...and I think its a very important issue that deserves some attention (and might be key in the solutions to all sorts of social problems)
I'd like to discuss how we fund our public school systems (pre-uni level), what the flaws of those systems are, and perhaps get some ideas rolling for alternatives. I'm going to be mainly discussing the US system, since thats all I am familiar with, but I'd love to hear other perspectives, and find out what works and doesn't work abroad.
Jerchiohill made two key comments on that other thread. One being "Education x3 is the key", and the other 'Capitalism isn't supposed to create equality in results, but equality in opportunity" (I might have butchered that. sorry.) In my view, those are both right, but the current public school financing plan kills that. Kids do not get an equal shot, because public school options are not close to equal.
Why? Well, public districts are mostly paid for via the district's property taxes. Naturally, if the district is a poor area (and thus, has low property value), the district gets less money, even if it takes in more students than a more affluent district. Why I don't pretend to paint the issue of educational disparity as just a "pump more money into it" sort of thing, (I know it isn't that simple), its obvious that poorer districts are at a big disadvantage, and students lose because of that.
There are a few purposed solutions. One is to increase the involvement of the state and federal governments (grants to poor districts). They do this to some extent already, but some groups would like more involvement to close the gap. I'm not really a fan of this, because I think its dangerous to get administrators hooked on free money. Plus, the state/feds will then want more control over what goes on in each district, which most people don't want.
Another solution are school vouchers, which allow children to attend private school. I'm really not a fan of this either. First, its using taxpayer money to support religious education (if I wanted to support catholic schools...I'd send my kids to one). Also, private schools have no oversight from the state, so basically anybody can work there, which leads to subpar administrators.
I have a few ideas of my own...but lets hear your thoughts!
I'd like to discuss how we fund our public school systems (pre-uni level), what the flaws of those systems are, and perhaps get some ideas rolling for alternatives. I'm going to be mainly discussing the US system, since thats all I am familiar with, but I'd love to hear other perspectives, and find out what works and doesn't work abroad.
Jerchiohill made two key comments on that other thread. One being "Education x3 is the key", and the other 'Capitalism isn't supposed to create equality in results, but equality in opportunity" (I might have butchered that. sorry.) In my view, those are both right, but the current public school financing plan kills that. Kids do not get an equal shot, because public school options are not close to equal.
Why? Well, public districts are mostly paid for via the district's property taxes. Naturally, if the district is a poor area (and thus, has low property value), the district gets less money, even if it takes in more students than a more affluent district. Why I don't pretend to paint the issue of educational disparity as just a "pump more money into it" sort of thing, (I know it isn't that simple), its obvious that poorer districts are at a big disadvantage, and students lose because of that.
There are a few purposed solutions. One is to increase the involvement of the state and federal governments (grants to poor districts). They do this to some extent already, but some groups would like more involvement to close the gap. I'm not really a fan of this, because I think its dangerous to get administrators hooked on free money. Plus, the state/feds will then want more control over what goes on in each district, which most people don't want.
Another solution are school vouchers, which allow children to attend private school. I'm really not a fan of this either. First, its using taxpayer money to support religious education (if I wanted to support catholic schools...I'd send my kids to one). Also, private schools have no oversight from the state, so basically anybody can work there, which leads to subpar administrators.
I have a few ideas of my own...but lets hear your thoughts!
