schoolchoice
One of the main beliefs of the Alberta Parents Union is the right of school choice. What follows is the Alberta Parents Union latest commentary on the issue.
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The Legislative Assembly of Alberta has wrapped up, and the focus is now shifting to the election.
But I want to fill you in on something that we were keeping an eye on, that everyone else missed.
During the last session, NDP MLA Nicole Goehring introduced the following motion:
Be it resolved that the Legislative Assembly
(a) recognize that Alberta has been acknowledged for having a world-class public education system;
(b) oppose any efforts to create a privatized, two-tier education system; and
(c) oppose the use of vouchers for education, similar to those used in the United States.
The motion wasn't debated because time ran out.
But there’s nothing stopping Ms. Goehring from re-introducing the motion after the election, or even implementing it should the NDP form government.
So, let’s get to the motion itself, and discuss all the ways in which it would be bad for the very kids she is attempting to help.
First, she says Alberta has a world-class public education system.
We agree!
Alberta has one of the very best education systems in the world - 3rd in reading, 3rd in science, 8th in math!
But Alberta has a world-class education *because* of school choice and pluralism in our education system.
This isn't just our opinion - it’s been proven, consistently, by empirical research.
Of 28 peer-reviewed academic studies on this topic, 25 show that school choice - including vouchers - is not only good for the families who send their kids to a school of choice, but also improves test scores at public schools!
Of the remaining three studies, one found no change, while only two showed negative effects, and one of those was from Indiana, which has one of the most regulatorily onerous voucher systems in the world.
Second, Ms. Goehring attempts to fearmonger with the phrase "two-tier education".
But two-tier education is actually what the NDP’s education policies would create.
The Ontario education system, for example, is a perfect example of the kind of two-tier education system the NDP would introduce.
In Ontario, funding doesn’t follow the child to the school of their choice.
This means that only those who can afford to pay all their education taxes *and* pay again for private education, or those who can afford to buy an expensive house in a good school zone, have education choice.
Meanwhile, any Ontario family who can’t afford that is left stuck with no choice.
The reality is that those who are well-off will always have school choice.
The beauty of having funding follow the child is that it provides every other family with that same choice.
Suddenly, instead of only the wealthy being able to afford school choice, everyone can.
In summary, the NDP believes that school choice policies that ensure everyone has equal access to school choice is a “two-tier” system, but that their policy, where the rich can have school choice while everyone else can’t, is not a “two-tier" system.
Strange.
Finally, Ms. Goehring also tries to fearmonger to make it sound like school vouchers are an "American-style" education system.
It's true that many US states have adopted new systems in which the money follows the child - to wild success.
But the idea is also tremendously popular worldwide.
Norway, Sweden, Spain, France and more, all have robust voucher systems, while school choice is a constitutional right in Belgium, the Netherlands, and Ireland!
We think that Alberta needs to expand education choice, not restrict it, and that our kids benefit from choice.
Student enrollment in Edmonton Public Schools is increasing and the increase is causing growing pains such as larger class sizes and decreasing school choice.
One of the things that’s unique about the Alberta Parents’ Union is that we advocate for improved education quality and choice in every single education type in Alberta:
- Public Schools
- Catholic Schools
- Francophone Schools
- Alternative Program Schools
- Charter Schools
- Independent Schools
- Funded Home Education
- Unfunded Home Education
That's why we want to take some time to explain all these types of education, and - at the same time - hopefully, dispel some of the myths and misconceptions about how certain schools are allowed to operate in Alberta.
So here it is - your one-stop-shop explainer of Alberta’s school choice landscape!
As you’ve hopefully heard by now, the Alberta Parents’ Union officially launched last month and, as part of our launch activities, we’re holding a series of events across the province.
So far, we've held events in Cochrane, Taber, Lethbridge, Pincher Creek, Strathmore, High River, Calgary, Drumheller, Didsbury, Rocky Mountain House, and Edmonton, and we have 11 more events scheduled already (see below!).
We are very excited about the future of education in Alberta, and we’d like to work with you to build a great organization that can represent parents, advocate for students, and work to improve education in our great province.
One of the issues parents have brought up most often at our events so far is the issue of school choice.
At a basic level, school choice is the idea that parents and students should determine which schools students attend, rather than students being allocated to specific schools by the government based on where they live.
But, school choice doesn't only apply to the idea of getting to choose which school to attend - it also applies to what type of education is available to be chosen from.
Types of education include public, separate, francophone, alternative, charter, independent, or home education, and specific schools within each type may have their own special focus too.
Alberta has a good selection of school choice already, but there are ways the system could be improved.
School vouchers would help ensure choice is maximized for all, by ensuring that families have the ability to choose from a wide array of schools offering these different types of education and focuses.
In a school voucher system, rather than schools receiving bulk funding directly from the government, each student is allocated a voucher that represents their share of the government funding, and the government funding then follows the student to whichever school they choose to attend.
This isn't some hypothetical idea either.
School voucher systems are already in place in a number of countries, and in a variety of different systems, right around the world, and they're working.
Opponents of school voucher programs argue that these systems encourage stratification and separate families with more wealth and means from lower-income families, but this is only true in places where the number of vouchers available is limited.
Many jurisdictions get around this problem by allocating limited spots in voucher schools by using a lottery system so that access to these spots is determined by chance, rather than by wealth or motivation of the parents.
A better solution, of course, would be to simply expand the voucher programs so that all students could benefit from the program.
School voucher systems result in better outcomes for students across the board, on everything from higher test scores in math and reading, to better social outcomes.
If anything, it's the current system that encourages stratification and inequality, as children from wealthy families can afford to pay extra to go to higher-performing private schools, while those less well off are stuck attending lower-performing government-run schools.
Living in Alberta, we are lucky enough to have some of the best education choices in the world, but we can't afford to take that choice for granted, and we can always work to do better.
Giving every student, regardless of family wealth or income, the ability to attend a higher-performing school would be one of the single best policy reforms the government could implement to reduce inequality and improve the lives of all children.
If you'd like to hear more about the school choice issue, and many other education issues, please consider attending one of our upcoming events:
High Level - June 7th, 6:30 pm - 8:30 pm - Register Here
Peace River - June 8th, 6:30 pm - 8:30 pm - Register Here
Grande Prairie - June 9th, 6:30 pm - 8:30 pm - Register Here
Edson - June 10th, 6:30 pm - 8:30 pm - Register Here
Red Deer - June 11th, 3:00 pm - 5:00 pm - Register Here
Camrose - June 13th, 6:30 pm - 8:30 pm - Register Here
Grassland - June 14th, 6:30 pm - 8:30 pm - Register Here
Fort McMurray - June 15th, 6:30 pm - 8:30 pm - Register Here
Wainwright - June 16th, 6:30 pm - 8:30 pm - Register Here
Brooks - June 17th, 6:30 pm - 8:30 pm - Register Here
Medicine Hat - June 18th, 3:00 pm - 5:00 pm - Register Here
If you can't make it to one of these events don't worry, we'll be holding more events soon!
I look forward to meeting you all.
Regards,
Jeff ParkExecutive DirectorAlberta Parents' Union
P.S.
The Alberta Parents' Union runs entirely on donations from parents like you. Please consider joining the APU for $10 a month or, alternatively, making a one-off contribution to our efforts.
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