Class Size

For decades, California critics have claimed that the performance of public schools couldn’t be improved by “throwing money at them.” Now, those critics must eat their words. After infusing schools with $1.5 billion to reduce class size, immediate improvement has resulted (Dec. 29).

That $1.5 billion is but a fraction of the past funding that enemies of public schools have withheld in their effort to create the kind of failures these critics wanted so that they could convince people that vouchers and privatization were needed. But voters continue to reject vouchers.

The tragedy is that these enemies of public schools have sacrificed a generation of California children in order to create problems intended to lead voters to go for vouchers. These children will suffer the rest of their lives, and taxpayers will pay billions for decades to come for the welfare, police and prison costs these poorly educated citizens will require.

JOHN ROSSMANN

Tustin