School Choice, A Fix That Fails
Gary Houchens ignores the research I presented, glosses over the distinction between funding of schools and other public services, and misses the point of the Mao Zedong analogy.
With respect to the research on charters, it is not a case of "some will succeed and some will fail." It is a case of only 17 percent being better than public schools. As I explain in the article ("Privatization: A Drain on Public Schools"), a landmark study from a pro-charter think tank concluded that 83 percent of charters are either worse than or no better than public schools. Meanwhile, in case after case, vouchers have not delivered on their promise of improved achievement.
Contrary to Houchens's claim, financing K–12 education is not akin to financing health care or higher education. States compel attendance at public schools for students up to the age of 16; no government compels anyone to get medical