We have all been to a business that didn’t treat us right. Perhaps they overcharged us or had poor customer service. Regardless, it is frustrating to be treated poorly as a customer.
How do we hold businesses who treat us poorly accountable? We may refuse to do business with them, write a negative review online, or let everyone know not to do business with that company. In essence, we vote with our pocketbooks and our feet.
Is it possible to hold schools accountable in a similar manner? In other words, is voting with our feet and our pocketbooks enough to produce changes in schools?
Schools are responsible for the most important service of all: the education of our children.
So what are parents supposed to do when schools fail to provide that service in a quality manner or offer poor customer service?
Parents with children in public schools have a difficult time walking away because of compulsory education laws and school boundaries.
Some argue that because students in the Utah Fits All program are not required to take standardized tests the program lacks educational accountability. But public school officials often disregard, or explain away the results of those tests. Often the results of those tests are not made public until October of the following school year. That timing makes it difficult for parents to look for other options.
And what happens to a school that performs poorly in academics? They often get more money from the state.
No, standardized tests are not providing academic accountability.
But here is an example of a school actually being held accountable. A new microschool opened in West Virginia in the summer of 2023. Within the first few weeks of the school year, the school began to lose students. It became so dire, that the school had to shut down because they simply could not keep their customers (students and their families) happy.
The parents voted with their feet and their pocketbook. They walked away, wrote bad reviews, and got other parents to do the same.
That is true accountability in education.
Parents know when their children are receiving a good education. Programs like the Utah Fits All give parents the power to walk away.
And although it is sad for the school founder in West Virginia, it is a blessing to our children’s education. By giving parents the ability to walk away, we are improving education far faster than any other process available.
