With public vouchers, attacks on religious content are inevitable. The separationist s opposition to prayers at high school football games serves as a reductio ad absurdum to prove the threat to any religious content in school curricula. Most religious schools would find such content control too oppressive and reject vouchers. The dedication and excellence of some public educators is beyond question. Despite the iconoclastic Huck Finn stereotype, most students prefer a disciplined and challenging environment.
Compulsory attendance is another bedrock issue that s frequently overlooked.
Education is unquestionably important but most public school teachers will confirm that their efforts to teach the willing students are greatly diluted by the time spent dealing with a few malcontents who don t want to be in school. Private schools avoid this problem by expelling troublemakers. Learning requires desire. The exit-door option empowers teachers to focus on willing and marginal students and avoid wasted time on others. Compulsory attendance simply isn t conducive to effective order and discipline.