My only memory of searching out a private school involved shadowing a sophomore at the “best” private high school in Austin. During that day, I attended her math class and answered a question correctly–as an eighth grader. From then on, my perception of private school was decidedly skewed, especially when I went to college and found out that most had stayed in their bubbles, never exposed to the possibility that they might not be the best. This is when I concretely learned that privatization just mean that access is limited, and not because it is definitely better.
First and foremost, private schools spend a lot of time wanting to look good, not providing services for students, especially if the students are special needs. A close friend has a child with learning difficulties and tried to invest in charter schools because of poor percentages in the public schools, and the family has been working with the children at home to build up multiple skills. The problem was that the charter school relied heavily on screens, which is a no-go for students with ADHD, and there was no substitute available. Sadly, the grades were atrocious which made applications to private schools impossible, and so the child remains stuck at the failing charter school.
In the United States, privatization meant segregated, so that should be the first thought that comes to anyone’s mind. Spaces were already private, but to distinguish a hierarchy, certain private spaces had to put up signs about who could be there. The spaces that did not put up signs got invaded, even though it was clear to the members and participants who was designated for the space. Privatization only developed to establish an order of who should be included and who should be excluded, even when most people already knew the rules. Trouble was, those who even had their own signs refused to get out of the “private” spaces of others, sometimes even destroying those spaces to maintain the “glory” of their own spaces.
Now, when it comes to how the empire is working, several children are going to be left behind, whether they are my friend’s child or a random household. Dismantling the Department of Education so that people can avail ourselves of private schools is basically an exposure of the private school system. If those schools really had been all that amazing, public schools would have never survived simply because people would have been working tooth and nail for such programs. Statistically speaking, more geniuses have been found outside private schools than in them, because private become privilege more often than not. If public schools were really no threat to the “miracle” of private schools, the empire would not have worked to diligently to destroy them, and no one can argue such a statement.
Chasing A Dying Empire 