Public Schools --- Why On Earth Do We Need Them?Written by Joel Turtel
From time Mayflower landed at Plymouth Rock in 1620 until 1850s, most parents taught their children to read at home or sent their children to small private or religious grammar schools. Education was voluntary and local governments did not force parents to send their children to state-controlled schools. Yet, literacy rates in colonial America were far higher than they are today.In 1765, John Adams wrote that “a native of America, especially of New England, who cannot read and write is as rare a Phenomenon as a Comet.”1 Jacob Duche, chaplain of Congress in 1772, said of his countrymen, “Almost every man is a reader.”2 Daniel Webster confirmed that product of home education was near-universal literacy when he stated, “a youth of fifteen, of either sex, who cannot read and write, is very seldom to be found.”3 After Revolutionary War, literacy rates continued to rise in all colonies. There were many affordable, innovative local schools parents could send their children to. Literacy data from that early period show that from 1650 to 1795, literacy rate among white men rose from 60 to 90 percent. Literacy among women went from 30 to 45 percent. 4 In early 1800s, Pierre Samuel Dupont, an influential French citizen who helped Thomas Jefferson negotiate for Louisiana Purchase, came to America and surveyed education here. He found that most young Americans could read, write, and “cipher” (do arithmetic), and that Americans of all ages could and did read Bible. He estimated that fewer than four Americans in a thousand were unable to write neatly and legibly. 5 (See Note references in my book, "Public Schools, Public Menace")
| | Public-school Teachers Know Best --- They Send Their Kids To Private SchoolsWritten by Joel Turtel
A study done by Thomas B. Fordham Institute found that nationwide, public-school teachers are almost twice as likely as other parents to send their children to a private school. The study also found that more than one in five public-school teachers send their kids to private schools.In biggest cities across America, statistics get even more startling. In Washington, D.C., Baltimore, and 16 other big cities, more than 1 out of 4 public-school teacher's kids attend private schools. In some cities, almost half public-school teachers do this. For example, in Philadelphia, 44 percent, and in Cincinnati, 41 percent of public-school teachers sent their kids to private schools. Yet, across America, only about 12.2 percent of all parents who are not teachers send their children to private schools. Now, why is this? Public school authorities keep telling us that they give our kids a good education. Yet they send their kids to private schools? Well, teachers know best in this case. They actually work in public schools every day. They see kind of 3rd-rate, often mind-numbing education children get in these schools. Public-school teachers love their children like all other parents do. They want best for their kids. So, is it any wonder that so many teachers send their children to private schools?
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