Voucher Advocates warnings about National Curriculums Ignores Swedish Schools Success

Voucher supporters are making a preemptive propagandists strike to keep feeding out of the taxpayer trough. It’s sneaky, it’s self-serving and keeps the voucher expansion alive.

Voucher advocates have long held up Sweden as the best example of voucher success on a national level. But they’ve always ignored the two things they hate most about their system; a national curriculum and standardized test.

It seems they’re finally noticing, but only because Sweden is now banning home schooling and providing explicit sex ed.

HeraldExtra: There are things we can learn from other countries as we consider adoption. Sweden's adoption in 1993 of vouchers, following Milton Friedman's advice, made it universal and simple. The funding follows the student regardless of the parents' income. Any school, nonprofit, for profit or religious, can receive the government funding at the same amount as a public school … has to be all-inclusive, provide national standards, and have its performance monitored. They may not charge their students fees beyond the voucher. Private school enrollment has increased from 1 percent to about 15 percent.

This month's Liberty Magazine, whose mission is to protect religious freedom, is reporting that there are new sweeping additions … the national curriculum will now include a very explicit sex education class for 11-year-olds. Home schooling will be outlawed. As a result, many home-schoolers are fleeing the country.

They finally noticed Sweden has “national standards,” which means a national curriculum. Yet the article goes on to whine and complain about feeding out of the public trough and being accountable finally. Sadly they find themselves addicted to taxpayer money:

After almost 20 years these private schools cannot now afford to pull out either. This certainly was not on the horizon for the private schools when it was implemented. Now their only "choice" is to obey or fold.

The new argument: We don’t want to be like Sweden. Which also means; forget about the fact Sweden has one of the best school system in the world because their successful nationalized voucher program.