The current political campaign has pushed education to the forefront of the news once again. Tuition tax credits, school vouchers and the need for more teachers are highlighted everywhere in the media. I have the distinct advantage of being touched by all of these current “political” issues. I am a graduate of Catholic schools with children in the public school system. I am a stay-at-home mom pursuing my teaching certificate and trying to live off of one income.
A tax break or credit can mean the difference between taking the chance on a degree or giving up and staying home. If education is truly valued in this country, then it needs to be attainable for people in any economic situation.
Public education is supposed to be the means by which all people, regardless of income, are offered the chance to open their minds and better themselves. Private education has always been seen as the choice of the elite, thus the necessity for debate over school vouchers. I have to laugh about this, because the opponents of school vouchers must not spend a lot of time in private schools. The schools I have seen are not those privileged ivory towers that are being portrayed. I spent 12 years in Catholic schools and never realized that I was privileged or receiving something that public school students were not. I had the advantage of being taught by teachers who were dedicated enough to providing a Catholic education that they worked with less than half the technology available to public school students for half the salary of public school teachers. Times have not changed. My children attend public schools because my tax dollars pay for beautiful new school buildings, excellent incorporation of modern technology and updated textbooks. The opponents of school vouchers scream about the unfair advantage school vouchers would bring to the private schools, but after seeing how far behind private schools are in terms of facilities, materials and technology, it seems that vouchers would only level the playing field.
The pursuit of a quality education includes the hiring of quality teachers. There has been a great shortage of teachers, and schools have looked for alternative methods of acquiring teachers. One method that is highly debated is alternative teacher certification. Apparently the opponents of this idea have not spent much time in a traditional education program. Most education classes deal in theory when teachers-to-be need to be prepared for the reality of the classroom. If alternative certification programs skip the wasted time and focus on hands-on opportunities, then more power to them.
The goal of education is to enlighten and instruct in a way that prepares students to survive in society. We, as a community, need to realize that the education of our society is not a political topic to be rehashed every four years. We need to realize that educating our people, young and old, is something that needs to be evaluated, improved and refreshed on a daily basis.
