Vouchers and Public Education

* Re “The Voucher System: Simply Un-American,” (Orange County Voices, June 25): Public schools are monopolistic because they tax parents the same, regardless of whether their children attend public or private schools. This denies choice to all but the wealthy.

When a monopolistic institution fails to deliver what is expected of it, the American way is to introduce real competition into the equation. An example is the U.S. Postal Service, which was another dysfunctional bureaucracy hamstrung like the public school system. But when Congress finally allowed companies to compete, things changed. The Postal Service, faced with competition, was released from most legislative oversight, which diminished the power of the postal workers union. The result was that the Postal Service got its act together, and overall mail service has vastly improved.

Opponents always cite the possible unintended negative consequences of vouchers. Frank Spittle, for example, argues that vouchers would skim many of the best students from public schools, which would deprive poorer students of role models. In other words, he believes good students must be held hostage, to their everlasting detriment, for the greater good of the whole. That sounds distinctly un-American to me.

DAN EMORY

Huntington Beach

* Am I missing something in Frank Spittle’s article about school vouchers? He seems to say that poor performance is to be expected of a public education system because it has the responsibility of educating so many kids. He then opposes a solution that would lead to smaller class sizes and more individualized attention for the children who need it most.

It is the kind of twisted logic that has led to the kind of public school system we have today, where California ranks near the bottom in almost every measurable indicator of performance. It’s time to make a change in the worn-out way we think about educating our children.

BETH LOWE

Santa Ana

* Spittle has it backward. It’s un-American to accept mediocrity and failure. It’s un-American to blame people subjected to a system rather than the leaders of that system. It’s un-American to strive for the middle and to make people feel ashamed for wanting something better for their children.

As a former school board member, I understand full well that the education establishment wants to blame parents and students and not themselves. I will vote for school vouchers, and also will be encouraging every educator in the state, those who really care for the students and not the system, to do the same.

FRANK URY

Mission Viejo

* Spittle’s article disturbed me greatly. As a parent, I am distressed that he would be willing to accept failure in our public school system as long as the “burdens” of that failure are “evenly distributed.”

I don’t understand this low expectation, especially coming from a teacher. I want my children to learn how to succeed and strive to be the best at whatever they choose to do--not accept mediocrity as a shared sacrifice.

BARBARA CHAMBERLAIN

Garden Grove