AUDIO

Nearly two decades after the first modern school voucher program was enacted in Milwaukee, questions have emerged about whether school choice is capable of delivering the results that enthusiasts first promised. Today, although there are more than 4,000 charter schools and 150,000 students enrolled in private school choice programs, the impact of school choice on K-12 education remains largely unclear. AEI’s Frederick M. Hess argued in a recent article in The American magazine that choice too often substitutes for real market-based strategies. Others have suggested that choice undercuts academic standards and shows little evidence of advancing systemic reform in schools. Meanwhile, supporters maintain that such claims are misplaced and that choice-based reforms continue to make advances both on the ground and politically. As a result, the K-12 choice movement has made inroads on the left while raising concerns on the right. In light of the 2008 election, it is worth asking what is next for school choice. Joining Hess at this event will be Robert Enlow of the Friedman Foundation for Educational Choice, Howard Fuller of Marquette University, Sol Stern of the Manhattan Institute, and Joe Williams of Democrats for Education Reform. AEI’s Henry Olsen will moderate. 

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