It is increasingly apparent that private choices in free markets are not only more efficient but also please consumers better than government provided goods and services. We can ignore for a moment that workers in several European nations are striking and rioting as governments attempt to back out of services which, apparently, please consumer. Walberg's conclusion is remarkable in its lack of connection to the data presented earlier. Moreover, he recommends that the U. S. adopt an educational system that exists nowhere in the world. Alone among European nations, Holland has a system of choice, but its state-directed tests assure that schools will engage in minimal experimentation and that the private schools of choice will not differ in any significant degree from the government run schools.
International comparisons are extremely difficult to interpret under the best circumstances.
Responding to Misconceptions. About Public Education in the United States. The sixth Bracey report on the condition of public education. A Study of the Perpetual Scrutiny of American Education. Limits of the Market Metaphor.