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VMI77 wrote: Having attended public school myself, both in California and Texas, and having homeschooled my children, I can attest to the inefficiency of public schools. And absolutely these ridiculous unions are a problem. One of my sons is an honor's graduate with a B S in biology. He was employed for awhile as an English tutor for students at the local college. Now he is tutoring public school children in mathematics. He is prohibited from tutoring any other subject because he is not a "certified teacher." So, he can tutor college seniors in English but not 1st graders or high school sophomores. He can teach the SAT --all of it-- but can't "tutor" a high school student in any subject but mathematics. OTOH, my wife quit high school and got a GED. SHE taught our youngest to read, and schooled him herself until his mathematical needs exceeded her ability, when he was around 12 or so. He graduated UT Austin as a double major (B S and BA degrees), got a perfect score on the LSAT, and was admitted to Harvard Law School (though he chose to go to the University of Chicago on full scholarship). Since both of my children have exceeded this public school graduate in academic achievement, without the assistance of a public school or a union "certified" teacher, my experience leads me to see about zero value added in return for the agony and expense of our public school system. In fact, given the public school indoctrination in collectivism I'd say the public schools are worse than nothing.

There is a critical imbalance between teaching and learning. Too much of one and not nearly enough of the other.

I have long advocated closing the public schools.

For a transition period, the state gives a voucher to the parents of each school age child to spend as they see fit. An entire industry of privately operated outfits will spring into existence, ready, willing and able to provide educational opportunities, in a bewildering array of choices for everyone from potential Rhodes Scholars to burger flippers. Parochial schools will be the choice of many, of course.

The teachers at the former public schools will compete for jobs at the newly organized organizations and many will be employed. The ones who don't want to work or excel or fit in will find other opportunities in other occupations. The ones who do want to teach and excel will be better compensated for their skills.

These outfits will offer what they think the market demands. Some will be very academic, some will be much less so. The beauty is that you can find a place for your child and we can stop trying to cram square pegs of academic nonchalance through round holes of academia. Disciplinary nut cases will be dealt with instead of being allowed to distract and detract from serious students.

As it is, the public schools are little more than baby sitting services for prepubescent children and dating services for the post pubescent ones. A less efficient means of educating our children could scarcely be imagined. We waste more and more on education and have less and less to show for it. All of it is squandered on the altar of teacher union demagoguery, and the pretensions of the educational lobby. These folks constantly whine for choice in other areas of life. Why not have it in educating our children?