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opinion:
It’s time to empower parents to be educational entrepreneurs. Even if that means going up against powerful teacher unions and bureaucratic giants of education.
Americans have long believed that parents are primarily responsible for educating their children, with government playing only a secondary role. They believe they belong to and are secondary to their parents.
And fortunately, my parents agree. More and more parents across the country are taking responsibility for their children’s education, opposing government overreach. Jason Sampler, a father from Georgia, told The Washington Post that he is happy that his child’s private school will help and support his parents. increase. …[W]We work together to best meet each child’s needs. Alicia G. Edwards, her Miami native mother, praised the private school her own children attend.
Parents are especially fired up in the aftermath of the pandemic. After experiencing extended school closures and seeing their children exposed to inappropriate content, parents are demanding better options for their children.
Interest in private schools is growing nationwide. The James Madison Institute reports that enrollment in Hebrew schools in South Florida has exploded in the wake of the pandemic, with 170,000 Florida students taking advantage of private school choice scholarship programs. But these changes are not unique to Florida. Private Christian school enrollment increased by 35% for the 2020-2021 academic year, while charter school enrollment increased by 7%.
Additionally, homeschooling student numbers have doubled since the pandemic. According to Cheryl Fields-Smith, a professor of elementary education at the University of Georgia, homeschooling rates among black families have risen from just 3% to 16%.
And these are not passing trends. According to a National Parent Union poll, most parents want more schooling options for their children. In fact, 80% of parents surveyed said the 2020-21 school year required more input and involvement in their child’s education.
This market model is the future of K-12 education. But the Biden administration is putting a damper on educational freedom. For example, President Biden’s charter school regulations impose grave and arbitrary demands on charter schools that focus more on union complaints and demands than on student needs and academic concerns.
That is why they are fighting to regain their parental power. Two of his key bills introduced in the last Congress, the Educational Choices for Children Act and the Parents’ Rights Act, will remain Republican priorities in the new Congress.
Parents need information before choosing the best schooling options for their children. That is what the Parents Bill of Rights provides. This law will force schools to be more transparent about their curriculum and finances so that parents can make informed decisions. Educational Choices for Children Act expands educational opportunities for millions of students and gives students and their parents the freedom to direct their academic careers. Parents should be at the helm of their children’s education, and these bills will help them get there.
At the 118th Congress, the days of locking children in failed government-run schools are over. Republicans are giving parents the tools to make the best choices for their children’s education.
• Rep. Virginia Fox represents North Carolina’s 5th congressional district and chairs the Commission on Education and Workforce.
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