To end the education depression, choose school choice

School choice is the right choice to end America's "decade-long education depression, writes Jorge Elorza, who leads Democrats for Education Reform, in a New York Times op-ed. The system can't be reformed from within, he argues. We need "a new educational operating system — one that channels public funding through students and families directly, rather than through centralized district bureaucracies."

When parents can have the power of choice, "schools are compelled to adapt and improve to earn their trust," Elorza writes. Educators can design new schools to offer alternatives.

Evidence from New York City and beyond shows competition can improve traditional public schools, he notes. The availability of charter schools and private scholarships can raise achievement in nearby district schools.

If there's no oversight, quality suffers, writes Elorza. But government can provide"guardrails to ensure access and standards" without controlling how schools teach. The money should follow the students.

It's not a novel idea. Many European countries fund students at diverse schools, rather than large public systems, writes Elorza. When different types of schools are held to common academic standards, students do well.

Many states now offer education savings accounts and tax credit programs to let education dollars follow the student. "Families now have access to learning experiences that are hard to find under the traditional system: blended artificial intelligence and Montessori methods in Arizona microschools, a focus on Black culture in Atlanta and personalized tutoring in New Hampshire," writes Elorza. He's not a fan of publicly funded homeschooling, but says "public schools, charter schools, private schools and hybrid models should all be on the table."

And he wants Democrats to stop defending the K-12 status quo and start designing the new system.