voucher program under human capital theory and social reproducing theory
Mr.Garcia
Voucherprogramunder2theories.docxVoucher program under 2 theories
Please write a 4 page single-space article about Voucher program under human capital theory and social reproducing theory. Human capital theory is for Voucher program, while social reproducing theory is against Voucher program. I have attached basic ideas on the file, please expand them. I've also provide a bibliography, you can draw materials from those, and you are also encouraged to draw materials from other places.
1. Voucher program:
Voucher program is actually a government funding program. It is designed for those who are unhappy with the education provided by public schools, but cannot afford to go to private schools. The legitimate candidates can now go to private schools paying only the amount of tuition fees of a public school, the rest of the tuition will be covered by the government funding-the Voucher program.
Voucher program has a long history. It was first created in 1991 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The main purpose of Voucher program in Milwaukee was to offer low income families more high-quality school options (Vevea, 2017). Thus, parents can choose where to send their children to school simply by evaluating the performance of a school, without economic concerns. Schools need to compete in the education market in order to absorb more and higher quality students. As a result, the performances of schools will be improved (Ncsl.Org, 2017). According to researches, students who received Voucher are more likely to graduate from higher school compared to those attend public schools. (Ncsl.Org, 2017).
However, the Voucher program has been criticized for that it is actually destroying public education since the program will drain resources away from public schools (Vevea, 2017). And the situations of public schools will become worse, since higher quality students are shifted from public schools, as well as better performed teachers.
Regardless of the critiques of the Voucher program, more and more states have adopted this education policy. Up till today, Wisconsin has four Voucher programs-the Special Needs Scholarship Program, the Parental Choice Program (Statewide), the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program, and the Parental Private School Choice Program in Racine, WI. These Voucher programs allow families with a total income of up to 300 percent of the federal poverty level to apply for a school voucher up to $6500 to pay for their tuition (Vevea, 2017). In 2011, the income limit was broadened so that more families are allowed to benefited from the Voucher. Families with a total income of 200 and up to 300 percent of the federal poverty level can require more tuition funds in order to cover the more expensive tuition fees of private school (Vevea, 2017).
2. Voucher program under human capital theory
Human capital refers to factors which will affect the enhancement of human skills and talent, which will further improve people’s economic productivity (Olaniyan and Okemakinde, 2008). Many have argued, based on human capital theory education is highly instrumental and necessary to increase people’s production capacity (Schultz, 1971, Psacharopoulos and Woodhall, 1985, and Sakamota and Powers, 1995).
Voucher policy can be seen as a means to more efficiently invest in people. It introduces the function of competitive market to education system. Hence, resources can be better distributed and utilized under a competitive environment. Moreover, the private demand for better education can be satisfied. Lower income families can thus provide their kids with same good quality of education as higher income families. That is to say, Voucher program has decreased the opportunity costs for lower income families.
3. Voucher program under social reproduction theory
The dominating capitalist class has set up the rules of the game playing in the society, before other classes noticed that. As a result, no matter what the society is producing, it is actually the reproducing of capitalist class, and other classes is loosing the ability to change that. As a matter of fact, other classes who has power have already been absorbed by the dominating social class.
In America, private schools represent the ideology of capitalist class in particular. Due to their high tuition fees and culture, private schools shut out students from other classes. By culture, I mean the schools value what capitalist class values. Moreover, kids from capitalist families have already known well the “language” of the class before they were sent to the school. Compared to students from public schools, students graduated from private schools has accumulated more social relations and resources, which will benefit them in their future career.
The voucher program seems a means to break the social reproducing circle, but I argue it actually sustain the reproducing circle. Sending more students from lower income families to private schools will not narrow down the gap, but pushing larger population to accept the capitalist’s norms and culture. That is to say, the capitalist class, as the ruling class, defines the production of people by educating them with capitalist’s interests. The voucher program throwing more people into to private schools to accept a different class’s culture and norms, but leaves public school to a worse situation. It shifts away money and resources to the most needed struggling schools. And private schools get more attention and resources.
Bibliography
Beck, Molly. 2017. "Push To Give School Vouchers To Middle-Income Families Hits Wall". Madison.Com. http://host.madison.com/wsj/news/local/govt-and-politics/push-to-give-school-vouchers-to-middle-income-families-hits/article_ce9be066-b56a-5de3-9851-8bf98e62d498.html.
Expansion of Vouchers
Bowles, Samuel, and Herbert Gintis. "The problem with human capital theory--a Marxian critique." The American Economic Review (1975): 74-82.
Critiques of human capital theory as a framework of empirical research and a guide to policy
Buddin, Richard J., Joseph J. Cordes, and Sheila Nataraj Kirby. "School choice in California: who chooses private schools?." Journal of Urban Economics 44, no. 1 (1998): 110-134.
Discussed students who are eligible for entering private school and whether education policy targeted at the most help-needed students
Burgess, Simon, and Adam Briggs. "School assignment, school choice and social mobility." Economics of Education Review 29, no. 4 (2010): 639-649.
The relations between school choices and social mobility.
Chakrabarti, Rajashri. "Can increasing private school participation and monetary loss in a voucher program affect public school performance? Evidence from Milwaukee." Journal of Public Economics 92, no. 5 (2008): 1371-1393.
Assessment of Milwaukee voucher program and its impact on public school
Checchi, Daniele. The economics of education: Human capital, family background and inequality. Cambridge University Press, 2006.
General information about human capital theory and social inequality
Fägerlind, and L. J. Saha. Education and national development: A comparative perspective. Elsevier, 2016.
Human capital theory view of education and its relation to social development
Giroux, Henry A., and Anthony N. Penna. "Social education in the classroom: The dynamics of the hidden curriculum." Theory & Research in Social Education 7, no. 1 (1979): 21-42.
Advantaged social class and inequality in education
Hanushek, Eric A. "Publicly provided education." Handbook of public economics 4 (2002): 2045-2141.
This article talks about public education, and provides an assessment of school fiancé in both public and private schools
Houtenville, Andrew J., and Karen Smith Conway. "Parental effort, school resources, and student achievement." Journal of Human resources 43, no. 2 (2008): 437-453.
Influences of parents, social class and resources to students’ school performance
Levin, Henry M. "Educational vouchers: Effectiveness, choice, and costs." Journal of Policy Analysis and management (1998): 373-392.
Assessment of education voucher program
Morrow, Raymond Allen, and Carlos Alberto Torres. Social theory and education: A critique of theories of social and cultural reproduction. SUNY Press, 1995.
Social reproduction theory in education
Nash, Roy. "Bourdieu on education and social and cultural reproduction." British Journal of Sociology of Education 11, no. 4 (1990): 431-447.
When talking about social reproduction, Bourdieu’s point of view is fundamental and essential.
Ncsl.Org, "School Choice: Vouchers". 2017. Ncsl.Org. http://www.ncsl.org/research/education/school-choice-vouchers.aspx.
This webpage includes evaluations of Voucher program
Neal, Derek. "How vouchers could change the market for education." The Journal of Economic Perspectives 16, no. 4 (2002): 25-44.
NPR.Org. "The Promise And Peril Of School Vouchers". 2017. https://www.npr.org/sections/ed/2017/05/12/520111511/the-promise-and-peril-of-school-vouchers
Educators’s saying about voucher
Olaniyan, D. A., and T. Okemakinde. "Human capital theory: Implications for educational development." Pakistan Journal of Social Sciences 5, no. 5 (2008): 479-483.
Peterson, Paul E., William G. Howell, and Jay P. Greene. "An Evaluation of the Cleveland Voucher Program after Two Years." (1999).
Psacharopoulos, G., and Woodhall, M. "Education for Development: An Analysis of Investment Choices (Washington, DC: World Bank)." (1985).
Justification of social expenditure on education
Sakamoto, Arthur, and Daniel A. Powers. "Education and the dual labor market for Japanese men." American Sociological Review (1995): 222-246.
Education is highly important to increase social productivity
Schultz, Theodore W. "Investment in Human Capital. The Role of Education and of Research." (1971).
Education is highly important to increase social productivity
Tyack, David. "Ways of seeing: An essay on the history of compulsory schooling." Harvard Educational Review 46, no. 3 (1976): 355-389.
Vevea, Becky. 2017. "What Is A School Voucher? | Parenting". Greatschools. https://www.greatschools.org/gk/articles/school-vouchers/.
Basic information about voucher program
Witte, John F. The market approach to education: An analysis of America's first voucher program. Princeton University Press, 2001.
