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Educational Reform Must
Include Transparency and Competition
Education/Nancy Salvato |
May 27, 2005
- While it was somewhat surprising to read that
preschoolers are being suspended from school at alarming rates, that
teachers were having great difficulty managing these young children did not
catch me unawares. For all the media coverage given to funding and
accountability in the public school system, in general very little attention
is paid to early childhood education. Private preschool centers are forced
to hire the least qualified to instruct those under their care for the
simple reason that they cannot afford to properly compensate their teachers.
Head Start is one of the only early childhood programs that requires
education certification of instructors and compensates at the level of other
professional teachers. Yet the one oasis where professional instructors are
given care of our youngest children has suffered from serious financial
abuse and irregularities. Lobbying from the Head Start community has impeded
"greater transparency in the program" which would "enable the public and the
media to more closely examine the ways in which federal Head Start funds are
being spent" according to John Boehner, Chairman of the
Committee on Education and the Workforce.
Recently, "House education committee leaders introduced legislation that
would introduce greater competition into the federal Head Start early
childhood program and use it to strengthen school readiness, increase the
role of states and local communities in Head Start, and protect children and
taxpayers against the abuse and mismanagement of federal
Head Start funds."
The Bush administration is not only attempting to bring accountability to
K-12 education, but has thankfully remembered to concern itself with the
most vulnerable – the youngest members of this generation.
Establishing complete transparency in how education funding is allocated in
the public school system is one of the most urgent reforms necessary to
assure accountability in education. Let me say that again. Knowing how the
money is spent and who is spending it is the only way to ensure financial
accountability in education.
But there is more. Representative Boehner and his committee believe there
should be greater competition within the early childhood program. Notice the
familiar ring to this reform measure. NCLB has already established this
precedent by encouraging choice within the public school system. But the
administration needs to take this reform farther. Choice needs to include
the private sector. Available funds must be made available to independent
providers. Free market competition must be allowed to break the monopoly of
public education.
Hard working, responsible Americans have the freedom to choose their food,
clothing, and shelter. Good consumers seek the best value for their money.
Parents should not be forced to enroll their children in a sub-par
educational institution when there are superior alternatives available. Good
parents want to take advantage of every opportunity available to enhance the
development of their children. Why shouldn't they have the same choices when
it comes to their children's education?
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