Wednesday, January 18, 2017

Betsy DeVos Hearing Highlights the Need for Less Government Control in Education





...The hearing turned into a vibrant debate among the senators about the merits of education choice, what the federal government can and should do to advance choice, the state of student loans and grants, and the efficacy of preschool....

The Senate hearing also turned to a discussion about school choice options such as vouchers, tuition tax credit scholarships, and charter schools, and what such options mean for traditional public schools.

The essence of the debate was about the definition of “public” education. DeVos suggested that policymakers should be less focused on upholding specific systems and arrangements for delivering education.

Moving away from institution-based funding to student-based funding is smart policy at every level of education....

The hearing also turned to policies pertaining to higher education reform and college costs. When asked whether she would support “free” college, DeVos responded with the basic fact that “nothing in life is free.”

Indeed, “free” college, and generous government subsidies in general, shift the burden of paying for college away from students—who are the direct beneficiaries of attending college—and onto the taxpayers, many of whom do not hold college degrees themselves and will never attend college....



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