Change is coming to public education in the United States, brought on by cultural shifts, legal decisions and technological advances. Michigan policymakers would do well to anticipate the revolution, or our schools will be left behind.
Public attitudes about education have shifted since the COVID-19 pandemic. The lockdowns spurred new demand for alternative forms of education. Remember how people didn’t know they needed an iPhone until Steve Jobs announced the device in 2007? This dynamic is playing out in education.
The demand can be seen in the expansion of school choice programs across the country, which now allow families to use education dollars for private schools and tutors.
Since the pandemic, 17 states have created universal school choice programs, offering scholarships and education savings accounts. Additionally, a new federal tax credit program steers grant money to eligible families for education expenses, including private school tuition. Thirty states have opted in to the program; Gov. Whitmer has yet to announce Michigan’s plan.
Home education is growing as well. According to the Johns Hopkins Institute of Education, 2.8% of school-age children in the United States were homeschooled in 2019. That number jumped to 5.92% in the 2023-24 school year.
These school choice expansions were aided by three major education decisions from the U.S. Supreme Court over the last decade. These cases held that states cannot bar students from education choice programs simply because they attend private or religious schools.
Another development that will disrupt the status quo is technology-assisted learning.
“Alternative schooling is having a moment among high-income parents,” reports Katherine Bindley in The Wall Street Journal. “Families who can afford to send their kids to the best K-8 institutions are seeking new options.”
Bindley says families are putting their children in AI-assisted schools that teach life skills like negotiation, problem-solving and entrepreneurship. One such school, Alpha School, launched in Austin, Texas, 12 years ago. It added eight schools last year, with nearly two dozen starting later this fall.
The schools of tomorrow will look different than the schools of yesterday. An algorithm will never replace the benefits a teacher and mentor can offer a student, but in the hands of an effective teacher, new tools will help customize education for each child.
Michigan policymakers are largely standing on the sidelines as this revolution unfolds. Whitmer’s eight years in office show little improvement and even less structural reform.
“Since 2014, among states measured every year, Michigan has experienced the worst decline in childhood literacy,” said Whitmer in her first state of the state address.
The governor had more gloomy news in her last state of the state. “Michigan is 44th for 4th grade reading,” she said. “Forty-fourth.”
The governor and lawmakers console themselves that the state is spending a lot more money. But the kids are doing worse, according to math and reading scores from the National Assessment of Educational Progress. Underperforming schools will prompt parents to find alternatives.
Often, changes that look inevitable in hindsight were laughable before they happened. Just ask former Blockbuster CEO John Antioco. In 2000, he met with Netflix. At the time, Netflix was a struggling startup, while Blockbuster dominated home video rentals.
The Netflix team offered to sell the company to Blockbuster for $50 million. Antioco listened politely, and tried not to laugh.
Ten years later, Blockbuster filed for bankruptcy and streaming was becoming the preferred form of home entertainment.
Michigan policymakers are making Blockbuster’s mistake. Three trends — the policy environment, parental attitudes and tech capabilities — will change how education is done in the future.
Will policymakers stand in the way of educational excellence or cheer it on?
Michael J. Reitz is executive vice president of the Mackinac Center for Public Policy.
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Education is changing fast. Michigan should keep up. | Opinion
Reporting by Michael Reitz, The Detroit News / The Detroit News
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By Michael Reitz, The Detroit News | USA TODAY Network
