When schools do not teach and will not change, parents and students must have other meaningful options. Critics fear those other options will simply drain money from the public schools. They also argue that disadvantaged students could struggle to fit in at relatively homogenous, affluent private schools and might drop out as a result. Voucher supporters, on the other hand, say private schools don t have to deal with the bureaucracy and regulations that hinder public schools. And they believe vouchers give low-income parents a way out of poorly performing schools and a greater sense of opportunity.
Supporters also say the argument that vouchers pull money away from public schools is off-base.
I m baffled by it. Moreover, money alone doesn t make a difference, Guthrie said. Guthrie and Abramson said the arguments may be moot for now. Guthrie said he thinks that Bush proposed vouchers a politically charged term that the president avoided using simply to appease conservatives. Vouchers have never really been on the political radar in Tennessee.