The unprecedented wave of federal funding could be used to modernize public schools – the second-largest public infrastructure in our nation, behind only highways.
One recommendation to fix inequity in Australia is for the government to fund non-government schools to the same degree as government schools, while banning them from charging fees.
The push to expand charter schools in the U.S. contributed to a robust movement of teachers’ unions and allies demanding a well-resourced public school system.
The education philosopher Paulo Freire would have denounced the pandemic-fueled proliferation of online schooling as an affront to democracy and a further entitlement for those in positions of power.
The battle to expand private education in South Carolina amid the pandemic mirrors previous struggles over civil rights and highlights the ways systemic racism has undermined public education.
Millions of public school students are learning online, mostly at home. Any standardized tests they take in this unusual school year may not yield reliable data about their academic progress.
School nurses were already overwhelmed, with hundreds of students and staff in their charge. Now, COVID-19 screenings and testing have become their priority.
Fully funding private primary schools would significantly decrease inequity in Australia. And it wouldn’t cost the government too much more than it’s already spending on education.
Taryn Morrissey, American University School of Public Affairs
For US parents, the health, economic and social crisis the COVID-19 pandemic brought about is compounded by the difficult if not impossible task of working, caring for and educating kids.
In about two in three US families with two parents, both are working or looking for a job. That makes caring for kids when schools and day care providers are closed hard if not impossible.