Public education is a central principle of democratic societies. The history of free public education in the United States has its roots in revolution, and was one of Thomas Jefferson’s central proposals (Thattai, 2008). From the very beginning, it was the responsibility of the individual states to determine how to run their own educational system but until the middle of the 19th century, there was no real effort made to create a cohesive structure because of the demographic shifts and social upheavals occurring at the time. Currently, public education is a combined federal and state enterprise, in that the states receive funding for certain programs that are federally mandated and must follow federal law governing different aspects of education such as equal access and non -discriminatory practices (Thattai, 2008).
In the United States, the educational system is managed on the local level, which provides for an immense variance in quality. Funding public education is complex; federal allocations support state funding and are geared towards strengthening state education agencies and providing supplementary dollars for programs the states cannot fund alone (10 facts about K-12 Education Funding, 2006). This reflects the American paradigm that schools should be controlled locally-- but the result is a big disparity in school funding between the wealthy and impoverished areas. Test scores and drop-out rates fluctuate according to the quality of the district and availability of resources as well.
There is a clear expectation that “the people” are entitled to a free public education and that it will provide them with the background knowledge and skills necessary to be successful in the world. In addition, Americans feel that it is critical for the government to set high standards to enhance their ability to compete in an increasingly technological world. Revisions of standards has become a political issue and state governors are under increasing pressure to come to agreements about national and state educational outcomes (Tucker, 2001).
Recent economic upheavals have forced the American people to examine the aforementioned concepts more closely, to determine whether or not a free public education is actually a democratic principle, or whether it should become a private enterprise. In Wisconsin, for example, the citizens voted Scott Walker into the Governorship; he immediately began a series of legislative moves to cut funding to education and restrict union bargaining rights, both of which caused serious tension between the people and the government (Bruce, 2011). Post (2006) argued that when the citizenry is estranged from the decision making process, the democratic principle of self government has failed; citing Rousseau (1968), Post (2006) posits that without some form of ‘internal connection” (p.27) between the demands of individuals (free, high quality education) and those of the state (balanced budget, tax exemptions for corporations, final say on contractual issues), collective voting is no more than an empty exercise. If indeed, as the people residing in a democratic state ought to have a voice in the “creation of the social order,”(Kelsen, 1961, as cited in Post, 2006, p. 27) then legislatures and governors must allow –and listen to—public comment on unpopular policies and send them for public referendum, regardless of their personal views and agendas.
Public agendas such as free education base their assumptions on democratic principles—in this case equal opportunity, as created by equal access to education. Post (2006) discusses “distributive justice” and explains that democracy and equality do not necessarily ensure fairness (pp. 31-32). In education, the fact that states fund schools through a combination of revenues, including federal and income as well as property taxes, means that inequality is assured as long as wealth is unequally distributed (this is an issue with capitalism more than democracy, but they work hand in hand in the United States). In addition to this inherent inequality, the fact that the people do not have a real voice in school funding or resource distribution, and that these can be removed in order to accommodate other interests, implies that there is a serious disconnect between what we assume to be a democratic process and reality. This distance between the will of the people and that of the authoritative figures operating the system has grown, to the detriment of true democratic principles.
10 facts about K-12 Educaton Funding. (2006). Retrieved from US
Department of Education: http://www.ed.gov/about/overview/fed/10facts/index.html
Bruce, M. (2011, February 17). Wisconsin Teachers Protest Ed. Budgets, Union Cuts. .ABC
News. Retrieved from http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wisconsin-protests-news-
wisconsin-governor-scott-walkers-proposal/story?id=12942012#.TuuxZ9XWySo
Post, R. (2006). Democracy and Equality. The Annals of the American Academy of Political and
Social Science (603), 24-36.
Thattai, D. (2008). A History of Public Education in the United States. Retrieved from
http://www.servintfree.net/~aidmn-ejournal/publications/2001-
11/PublicEducationInTheUnitedStates.html
Tucker, M. (2001). Standards Movement in American Education - Governors Take the Initiative,
Standards-Driven Reform Models, The Rise of the Standards Movement. Education
Encyclopedia. Retrieved from
http://education.stateuniversity.com/pages/2445/Standards-Movement-in-American-
Education.html
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