ity analysis facilitated by matched birth and school records from Florida, and find that the public school students most positively affected by increased exposure to private school choice are compar- atively low-[socioeconomic status] students (those with lower family incomes and lower maternal education levels). In other words, school choice helps impoverished students the most, even those who remain in public schools. Innovative Education The expansion of school choice has opened the floodgates for innova- tive educational options, and in the last three years, we have seen an emergence of more personalized approaches to education. One of the fastest-growing new educational models is “micro-school- ing,” which is the modern version of a one-room schoolhouse. Parents in local communities typically pool resources to either teach subjects themselves or hire a teacher to instruct about 10-25 kids of similar ages and academic levels. The sched- ule and curriculum can be tailored to fit the needs of each group. This model of schooling can operate online, in person often in homes, churches, or other creative spaces or as a hybrid model. Some micro- school teachers use a curriculum from an organization like Acton Acad- emy, while others create their own curriculum based on the needs and talents of their students. According to a recent estimate, more than 1.5
This rapid progress was precipitated by parents’ increasing dissatisfac- tion with public schools as they got an up-close look into their children’s learning experience when class was moved onto Zoom not to mention parents’ exasperation when many teachers’ unions kept public schools closed for an entire year. According to a joint Harvard-Stanford study, students in public schools lost roughly half a year of learning in math and a quarter of a year in reading due to school closures, hurting impov- erished children the most. Student reading levels have plummeted to 1992 levels, effectively erasing 30 years of steady progress. Now, four years since the start of the pandemic, public schools have yet to make up for these learning losses. Families of all socioeconomic back- grounds are rightly demanding more options for their children, and state In late 2022, Arizona became the first state to pass universal school choice. Now, any family in Arizona can access up to $6,500 per year through an education savings account (ESA) to choose a school that best fits the needs of their child. Enacting this legislation was a hercu- lean undertaking spearheaded by Republican Governor Doug Ducey. The governor’s team worked closely with parents, advocates, and lawmak- ers to get the bill across the finish line. lawmakers are listening. The Race for Choice
Once the law passed, other governors saw that such reforms were possi- ble in their states. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, a prolific champion of educational freedom, became the second governor to sign universal school choice legislation. Now, the governors of Arkansas, Oklahoma, North Carolina, Utah, Iowa, and Ohio have enacted similar programs. The adoption of universal school choice marks a transformational shift in American education. For the first time in our history, millions of fami- lies have the financial freedom to choose the schools that are right for their children. Now, taxpayer dollars can travel with the child, rather than being confined to assigned public schools, which in many cases are fail- ing to educate, nurture, and realize the potential of our students. What’s more, school choice has proven to elevate outcomes in tradi- tional public schools. According to a study published in the Ameri- can Economic Journal, having more educational options increases the test scores of neighboring public schools, among other benefits. As author David Figlio writes: We find evidence that as public schools are more exposed to private school choice, their students experience increasing benefits as the program scales up. In particular, higher levels of private school choice exposure are associated with lower rates of suspensions and absences, and with higher standardized test scores in reading and in math. These results are not uniform: We carry out an extensive heterogene-
Volume 18 Issue 2 • 11
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