Inside the rural Texas resistance to the GOP’s private school choice plan

[trunks2k]

When the private school results tanked too low Louisiana told the private schools to improve by rejecting low-performing applicants (something public schools can't do.)

And this is a problem with "private schools are better". First of all, they are self-selecting. It takes more money and/or effort to get your kid into a private school. Those who do are more likely to be financially stable and have parents that place a higher priority on education. That puts them at an advantage performance wise straight from the start. Now, add in that private schools can exclude low performing and children with learning & behavioral issues, you've greatly skewed the population of the school.

 

[comana]

And this is a problem with "private schools are better". First of all, they are self-selecting. It takes more money and/or effort to get your kid into a private school. Those who do are more likely to be financially stable and have parents that place a higher priority on education. That puts them at an advantage performance wise straight from the start. Now, add in that private schools can exclude low performing and children with learning & behavioral issues, you've greatly skewed the population of the school.

since vouchers are sourced from public money, it would seem that any voucher laws should require any school that accepts them to accept all students regardless of academic performance.

I see only problems stemming from states that go this voucher route. Private schools excluding underperforming students from other schools because they bring down the average, private schools popping up to rake in the voucher but not making the expected academic standards, students remaining in public schools suffering the results of underfunded schools. Also, the best private schools raising tuition to take advantage of increase in funding available from each family (like universities did with increases in student loan availability).

 

[Fantine]

In our state, private schools can accept who they want. And standardized tests are not required so even if they underperformed we wouldn't know.
Homeschoolers need to follow more state regs than the private schools.

 

[FenderTL5]

Negative, there is no statistical information to support the presumption.

There's no presumption. Tax dollars that would've gone toward public education are redirected to for-profit private institutions through the vouchers. There's doesn't need to be statistics, that's what those programs do by design. If it didn't it's a failure.

What's killing schools - if there are any being killed - is the so called educators who are practicing social engineering instead of academic excellence. Johnny can't read, but he can learn to be called Susan.

..and you accuse me of presumption. :/

 

[hislegacy]

..and you accuse me of presumption. :/

No - an observation:

https://www.usnews.com/education/k12/articles/private-school-vs-public-school

Deciding whether to send a child to public or private school can be a tough choice for parents of elementary, middle and high school students. Data on whether public or private education is better can be challenging to find and difficult to understand, and the cost of private school can be daunting.​

​

So how can parents weigh private schools versus public schools?​

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Myra McGovern, spokesperson for the National Association of Independent Schools, says it really comes down to what is best for each child.​

“The individual needs of the child should shape the choice for parents,” she says.​

Robert Pianta, dean of the School of Education and Human Development at the University of Virginia, says parents should be “clear about the specific benefits that they are seeking for their child.”​

​

Research has consistently shown that private school students tend to perform better in standardized tests. The National Assessment of Educational Progress, which is often referred to as “the nation’s report card,” assesses both public and private school students in subjects such as math, reading, science and writing. The most recent NAEP data shows what other research has found: Private school students score better in almost all subjects.​

​

Reasons to Consider Private School

Here are some of the popular reasons why parents might consider private school as an education option for their children.

www.thoughtco.com

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Religious Teaching​

Public schools are required to keep religion out of the classroom. Private schools can teach religion or not, depending on the mission and philosophy of the particular school. If you are a devout Lutheran, there are hundreds of Lutheran owned and operated schools in which your beliefs and practices will not only be respected but taught on a daily basis. The same is true of all the other religious denominations.​

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[comana]

No - an observation:

https://www.usnews.com/education/k12/articles/private-school-vs-public-school

Deciding whether to send a child to public or private school can be a tough choice for parents of elementary, middle and high school students. Data on whether public or private education is better can be challenging to find and difficult to understand, and the cost of private school can be daunting.​

​

So how can parents weigh private schools versus public schools?​

​

Myra McGovern, spokesperson for the National Association of Independent Schools, says it really comes down to what is best for each child.​

“The individual needs of the child should shape the choice for parents,” she says.​

Robert Pianta, dean of the School of Education and Human Development at the University of Virginia, says parents should be “clear about the specific benefits that they are seeking for their child.”​

​

Research has consistently shown that private school students tend to perform better in standardized tests. The National Assessment of Educational Progress, which is often referred to as “the nation’s report card,” assesses both public and private school students in subjects such as math, reading, science and writing. The most recent NAEP data shows what other research has found: Private school students score better in almost all subjects.​

​

Reasons to Consider Private School

Here are some of the popular reasons why parents might consider private school as an education option for their children.

www.thoughtco.com

​

Religious Teaching​

Public schools are required to keep religion out of the classroom. Private schools can teach religion or not, depending on the mission and philosophy of the particular school. If you are a devout Lutheran, there are hundreds of Lutheran owned and operated schools in which your beliefs and practices will not only be respected but taught on a daily basis. The same is true of all the other religious denominations.​

​

​

​

That’s great but when private schools can discriminate on which students can attend it skews the test results to the higher end.. It’s not apples to apples and it doesn’t mean that a school with higher scores is necessarily better at teaching the the material. Filling a school with the most likely to succeed students is stacking the deck.

 

[essentialsaltes]

A Well of Conservative Support for Public Schools in Rural Texas​

NEW HOME, Texas — Bright yellow uprights tower over what was recently a flat expanse of cotton fields, now transformed into football turf. Nearby, cranes pull up the walls of what will soon be a new elementary school.

Not too long ago, you could count on two hands the number of annual graduates from the New Home Independent School District. Now, families are flocking to the windswept patch of West Texas just south of Lubbock, drawn to the deeply conservative farming community by the promise of good public schools.

“What’s keeping this place together is the school,” said Ramon Benitez, 39, an agriculture science teacher at New Home.

Texas has been an outlier so far [in the red state attack on public schools] in large part because of the long-standing support for public schools in deep red communities like New Home. In far-flung districts around the state, parents and educators have defended their schools, which are often the biggest local employer and the center of community life.

“Parents are angry about the woke agenda that is being forced on their children in their schools,” [Gov.] Abbott said during an event to promote Education Savings Accounts last month at a Christian school in Bryan, Texas. “Our schools are for education, not indoctrination.”

The governor has made the issue the centerpiece of his third term early on, crisscrossing the state to rally support at more than a dozen exclusively Christian schools.

Abney, the athletic director at New Home, said he found himself torn and feeling as if his vote were being taken for granted.

“I’m a very politically conservative person,” he said. “But the politicians who I support on most issues are the ones most seemingly intent on attacking public education, which has been what I’ve devoted my life to.”

 

[Fantine]

That’s great but when private schools can discriminate on which students can attend it skews the test results to the higher end.. It’s not apples to apples and it doesn’t mean that a school with higher scores is necessarily better at teaching the the material. Filling a school with the most likely to succeed students is stacking the deck.

And in Arkansas, the private schools have no burdensome regulations to hold them accountable.

Shrewd legislators. They knew there would be new schools opening, some operated by religious extremists who choose science texts favoring Moses over Darwin, history about slaves singing "jump down turn around pick a bale of cotton," and mashed up lit books with censored excerpts from real literature.
Fake science, fake history, fake humanities...
And let's not forget corporal punishment.
Parents, beware.

 

[essentialsaltes]

Texas school voucher fight is a test of the power of ‘anti-woke’ rhetoric​

Dozens of public school students spend their lunchtime with a guitar-playing Baptist minister, bowing their heads in prayer under a tree by the school playground. English classes read Shakespeare and Steinbeck, avoiding works that might draw them into contemporary controversies. Most parents here consent to corporal punishment for misbehaving children, though the superintendent says he rarely swats kids with the paddle.

This tiny district in west Texas is hardly a hub of liberal indoctrination.

Yet Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, is hoping that fear of a “radical woke agenda” in places like this will help him secure a long-elusive goal: a voucher-style program that would award public stipends of up to $8,000 to parents who switch to homeschooling or private schools.

So far, many rural Texas conservatives remain unconvinced by the governor’s warnings. Schools here serve as Friday night football venues, leading employers and focal points of community life. Rural superintendents have been able to use their stature to mount intensive lobbying campaigns, persuading lawmakers representing overwhelmingly Republican areas to break with their governor on a bedrock issue.

“Meadow schools is kind of being run the same way it was when I was there,” said Ray Gober, an 87-year-old retired farmer

“You would be ostracized if you were a woke person in this community,” said Robert Henson, an 80-year-old retired cotton farmer and nightly Fox News watcher.

Meadow’s ... elementary and upper schools are housed on a single campus for about 255 students, including roughly one-third from a neighboring small town. More than two-thirds of the students are considered low income; the school provides breakfast and lunch to everyone and to-go bags for those who need dinner.

House members signaled opposition to Abbott’s plan earlier this month, passing a budget that prohibits using public money for private schools. But neither side expects the issue to be resolved until the legislative session ends in late May.

 

[Fantine]

TBT, what private schools will open in these tiny towns. And not every parent is able to homeschooling, financially or academically.

In the meantime, a school closure takes the town off the map, as interscholastic sports keep the town alive.

Keep fighting, and find yourselves a new governor.

 

[hislegacy]

Here is the strength of politics in the US:

Whatever area you live in. You have a voice - when the majority vote representatives into office it is because they most closely reflect their values and politics. If the State and local legislatures vote to allow vouchers for schools - it is because that is what their constituents want. If not - they are voted out.

Only 7% of the population identify as LGBTQ - which is Gender Dysphoria, a mental disorder. (That is if you follow the science and not what is culturally acceptable).

Why are so many choosing Home Schooling and/or Private Schools? If we follow the trends and keep opinion out - they like greater control over their own children's education. They might like the smaller class size - they might like the absence of social engineering - they might like the sports programs - they might like more interaction between parent and educators - they might like the higher test scores.

that's my .02

 

[hislegacy]

In the meantime, a school closure takes the town off the map, as interscholastic sports keep the town alive.

citation of proof of fact requested please

 

[rambot]

From the link:

These plans, commonly known as vouchers, would give parents the money the state would have spent educating their children in public schools — between $8,000 and $10,000 per child per year in Texas — and allow them to put it toward homeschooling expenses, private school tuition or college savings accounts.​

​

hmmm... giving taxpayers a say in where their tax money is spent and protecting your children at the same time - don't see a down side to it. The obscure reference to smaller towns is simply fixed - have the 250 sets of parents keep their children where they are.

So.....the solution for the small town is to pretend they are not a small town. I'm not suer why you say it's an "obscure reference". Do you understand the concern being expressed?
And taxpayers accept that their money goes into public education; In rural Texas however, it can be tyranny of the minority.

 

[hislegacy]

So.....the solution for the small town is to pretend they are not a small town. I'm not suer why you say it's an "obscure reference". Do you understand the concern being expressed?
And taxpayers accept that their money goes into public education; In rural Texas however, it can be tyranny of the minority.

Hmmm..... - uh, no

In a representative Republic - like the US. Laws and actions are passed by the representatives the majority vote into office. If the minority does not like the outcome of the actions of the representatives the answer is to vote in people who believe the same as you.

When there are two sides - and there are always two sides - one gets what they vote for that other does not -

It is not tyranny - it is called Democracy

 

[rambot]

Hmmm..... - uh, no

In a representative Republic - like the US. Laws and actions are passed by the representatives the majority vote into office. If the minority does not like the outcome of the actions of the representatives the answer is to vote in people who believe the same as you.

When there are two sides - and there are always two sides - one gets what they vote for that other does not -

It is not tyranny - it is called Democracy

So allow me to explain.

A rural school district in Texas has a RAZOR think budget. Let's say it has 1000 student. Let's say 30 of those families pull their children. The school board cannot maintain their budget and will fold. The other 900+ students are now without schools.

This is hypothetical, but it is meant to demonstrate what tyranny of the minority looks like.

Also, I don't know what the rule are in Texas in regards to homeschools following the state curriculum, but that could also be problematic.

 

[hislegacy]

So allow me to explain.

A rural school district in Texas has a RAZOR think budget. Let's say it has 1000 student. Let's say 30 of those families pull their children. The school board cannot maintain their budget and will fold. The other 900+ students are now without schools.

This is hypothetical, but it is meant to demonstrate what tyranny of the minority looks like.

Also, I don't know what the rule are in Texas in regards to homeschools following the state curriculum, but that could also be problematic.

Thank you for explaining hypothetical tyranny - I lean towards real life issues myself. It is always interesting to understand how others view the United States.

 

[rambot]

Thank you for explaining hypothetical tyranny - I lean towards real life issues myself. It is always interesting to understand how others view the United States.

So you don't understand the scenario.

 

[hislegacy]

So you don't understand the scenario.

I fully understand the scenario - I fully understand your position - I fully understand everything every post you have ever written.

Words synonymous with Hypothetical are: debatable. abstract, assumed, nonpractical. In other words the exact opposite of actual facts.

Hypotheticals cannot, by design be brought to a specific conclusion.

I hope that aides clarification. I am more than willing to discuss realities, and actual facts -

 

[rambot]

I fully understand the scenario - I fully understand your position - I fully understand everything every post you have ever written.

Trust me, that confidence has been misplaced. The issue in the past is you may not have been willing to admit you didn't understand it.

Words synonymous with Hypothetical are: debatable. abstract, assumed, nonpractical. In other words the exact opposite of actual facts.

Hypotheticals cannot, by design be brought to a specific conclusion.

I hope that aides clarification. I am more than willing to discuss realities, and actual facts -

School districts could be shut down because they are so small and losing even a small portion of income will make them untenable.

Would you be upset if a public school district could not service their population because 5% of their students left? Because you were just talking about democracy a couple posts ago. And if 95% of a student body is happy with their school....or even 51% of the student body is happy with it, why should a district shut down?

 

[hislegacy]

Trust me, that confidence has been misplaced. The issue in the past is you may not have been willing to admit you didn't understand it.

You're repeated statements made from some imagined position of greater understanding don't validate your position in the discussion, nor does it demonstrate a superior mental ability. It's really a shame because I think we could actually have meaningful discourse if we could stay in reality and not some hypothetical mental picture drummed up to prove a point.

School districts could be shut down because they are so small and losing even a small portion of income will make them untenable.

The key word is COULD - hypothetical. They could also stay open for a number of reasons.

Would you be upset if a public school district could not service their population because 5% of their students left? Because you were just talking about democracy a couple posts ago. And if 95% of a student body is happy with their school....or even 51% of the student body is happy with it, why should a district shut down?

My position on the democratic process remains unchanged.