Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, April 1, 1990 TAG: 9004020197
SECTION: EDITORIAL PAGE: F2 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE:
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
He failed to note that lawyers compete with one another for business. Competition rewards excellence and forces the inferior out of the system.
Lawyers are not paid a salary that enables them to drive Mercedes. They are paid according to the quality and quantity of work they do. If they don't get results, they don't have a job. In Floyd County, a teacher who shows up at school 182 days a year for seven hours a day gets paid by the same salary scale as the truly outstanding teacher who burns the midnight oil to be sure her students achieve academic excellence.
U.S. college and universities are ranked with the best in the world, while our public schools fall far short of the mark. The biggest difference between our colleges and universities and our public school system is competition. Students select the college or university they attend; public-school students have no choice.
Our situtation will not improve until parents can choose the school their children attend. The voucher system would make this possible. I would not choose an inferior lawyer to represent me, and resent a system that protects inferior teachers and therefore deprives my child of an education.
Education decisions should be based on what is best for the students rather than what is best for politicians - they like to keep the teachers' union happy. The voucher system would allow parents to choose the best school (public or private) and teacher for their children. Everyone would win - teachers could drive Mercedes, students would learn, and the United States would no longer be ashamed of its lack of educational accomplishments.\ BECKY HOWELL\ FLOYD
by CNB