I am responding to Mr. Al Helgerson’s recent  letter. I was troubled with the slanted, one-sided content and tone.

It is no secret that education in America has slipped badly on the world stage. We should be in the top five. We are no longer in the top 20.

I believe that teaching is a very special calling. Future leaders are molded and developed in the classroom. However, all too often those leaders are coming out of private prep schools and high-priced private colleges. There is a privileged class in this country. A student from the middle class cannot compete financially.

Tenure was put in place to protect all teachers equally. The good, the bad and the indifferent. I agree that without tenure some good highly paid teachers may be let go by some school boards in an attempt to slash budgets. However, we all know that short of sexual misconduct with “a student” it is almost impossible to terminate a teacher. The primary goal of teacher unions is getting higher wages and more benefits for teachers.  Educating our youth is not a union priority.

Concerning vouchers, I fully support them. Under the current system the public education system is close to a monopoly. Yes, you can send your children to a private school, but you pay twice, once in taxes for public school and again for private school tuition. Therefore, only the very affluent can afford private schools, which for the most part are far superior to public schools. A substandard private school would never survive.

While vouchers may not be the panacea they would go a long way toward leveling to playing field. They would allow families lacking the means to send  youngsters “that qualify” to private schools whose curriculum more closely matches their personal beliefs and give public schools some badly needed competition for students.

Actions necessary to put vouchers in place will never happen as long as teachers’ unions have a the ear of liberal legislators. The very people who would benefit the most from vouchers are those toeing the union line and voting liberals in year after year.

 

Don Sorensen

Albert Lea