Has the Bell Tolled for Public Schools?

I can’t remember reading a more self-contradictory argument than the one David Gelernter uses to urge us “Let’s Get Rid of Public Schools” (Commentary, May 13). He points that “global rankings place our seniors 19th among 21 surveyed countries” in science. If any of the 18 countries ahead of us had achieved its position by abolishing or deemphasizing public education, he might have a point. In fact, none have; public education is universal among advanced industrial democracies.

Perhaps logic is not on the curriculum of the conservative private school system Gelernter wants to bring in to replace the public schools that have, in his words, “forfeited their right to exist.”

Eric Mankin

Venice

*

If we do away with public schools, who will educate the physically and mentally handicapped? The children with serious learning disabilities?

The fallacy in privatizing schools is that those schools would take everyone who walks in the door. Our current system shows that doesn’t happen. Where are the Down’s syndrome kids and the autistic and dispossessed at the private high schools in California? That’s right, private schools don’t have to educate them. Gelernter’s attitude sickens more than it illuminates.

Craig Holland

Bakersfield

*

Finally a sensible approach to our nation’s publicly funded broken education system -- scrap it. Gelernter does not introduce many new revelations, he just cites what many have been saying for years -- why must we continue funding a system that is obviously broke? We don’t.

It has been obvious that too much of the “system” has been liberalized so that U.S. graduates rank far behind graduates of other countries. Contributing to this serious decline was that liberal administrators and teacher unions were allowed to gain too much power in terms of curriculum and testing.

So how can we compete in the global marketplace in the future? We can’t. Liberals throw around the word “choice” when it comes to abortion, but they always deride the idea of school choice when it comes to the most basic and important element of our country’s need to compete worldwide.

Bob Franz

Placentia

*

So, let’s see. Gelernter thinks public schools are unnecessary. The only alternative to public school is private school. So, we will have to pay for our schools directly -- or with a voucher/tax credit plus cash. We will need to staff these schools with well-trained teachers/administrators. Quality -- as in, you get what you pay for -- doesn’t come cheap. Proficiency in science -- labs, computers and, above all, math -- starting in the lower grades. Pretty big budget, but then that goes with the territory.

And you get to choose a school that reflects only your own social values. No need for the competition of ideas. So the curriculum is up pretty much up to the school to determine. I’m certain that the growing percentage of us who have McJobs will welcome this opportunity to spend a large portion of our income on education and choose an ideology at the same time.

David Strauss

Arcadia

*

Gelernter’s question about public schools’ right to exist can be answered simply: because most states’ constitutions establish the right to a free public education, and oblige the states to provide it.

David W. Leslie

Chancellor Professor

of Education

College of William and Mary

Williamsburg, Va.