Voucher Schemes Don't Help Students
There is no evidence vouchers motivate teachers to teach better or students to learn more
April 12, 2013 RSS Feed Print |
| Teresa Meredith is a kindergarten teacher and vice president of the Indiana State Teachers Association. |
As politicians and lawyers debate the constitutional validity and political implications of the Indiana Supreme Court's recent decision regarding school vouchers, those who spend our days in the classroom continue to ask the very same question that nags at us on all pressing education issues: Will it help my students succeed?
It's a question that consumes us daily. That's because we came to the profession with the hope of making a significant difference in the lives of our students - to teach them, to mold them, to help them become our nation's leaders, healers, innovators and, yes, teachers.
I started my career in a Catholic school as a kindergarten teacher and have since moved on to teaching in one of Indiana's great public schools. Having taught in both settings, I have a good understanding of what students need to succeed. Proponents argue that vouchers make things better for all students by creating an environment of competition. In my 23 years of teaching, I have never known a teacher or a school to perform better because they are competing for resources. There is simply no evidence, anecdotal or otherwise, that giving vouchers to a small percentage of poor parents somehow motivates educators to teach better, or students to learn more.
[Read Bob Behning: Choice Drives Quality in Education]
To the contrary, taking away the tools and resources we