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Educational Choice in America |
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LIFE sees educational choice as free-range choice in l earning, including public, private, home education or any combination or variation thereof! Too often, the phrase “educational choice” gets bogged down in public education debate and rhetoric. But true educational choice should embrace any method that a learner values, needs or from which he or she benefits.
Today, these choices include everything from standard public schools, charter schools, magnet schools, a variety of private schools, dual enrollment, part time enrollment, and home education. According to the Heritage Foundation, a policy research and analysis group, “Today, 11 states and the District of Columbia have enacted state-funded scholarship programs or tax credits/deductions for education expenses or contributions to scholarship funds; most states have charter or magnet schools; dual enrollment programs are common; and all 50 states allow parents to home school their children.”
The Heritage Foundation evaluates educational choice in Florida thusly:
- Public school choice: Interdistrict/voluntary
- State constitution: Blaine amendment
- Charter school law: Established 1996
Strength of law: Strong
Number of charter schools in operation (fall 2003): 258
Number of students enrolled in charter schools (fall 2003): 56,826
- Publicly funded private school choice: Yes
- Home-school law: Moderate regulation
The Foundation concludes, “Florida leads the country in providing education choices for children. The state provides A+ scholarships for students in failing schools, McKay Scholarships for students with disabilities, tax credits for donations to scholarship organizations, and over 200 charter schools. Eligible high school students may take college courses for high school and postsecondary credit.”
But LIFE believes that our educational choices go far beyond institutional choices and should embrace, celebrate and further develop community learning opportunities like libraries, museums, zoos, aquariums, private co-operatives, skills centers, apprenticeships, youth groups and more!
All of these venues typically offer a wealth of hands on learning opportunities through the shared skills and resources of talented and caring individuals, and LIFE believes everyone can tap into these everyday resources in our everyday lives.
Others are also exploring the many learning options available to us today in new and exciting ways:
Educational Alternatives: A Map of the Territory"
Parent Preferences and Parent Choices: The Public-Private Decision about School Choice (2006)
The Importance of School Choice and Educational Alternatives
Partnerships for Free Choice Learning (PDF)
In these pages and on our website, you’ll find a myriad collection of resources, both online and off, that we hope will open everyone’s minds and hearts to ways we can turn our entire communities into a fantastic, contextual collection of educational choices where we can all find the information we need to suit the individual ends we seek, for ourselves and our families.
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Family Directed Learning