Access to Choice Is the Best Way to Appreciate Teachers

Colleen Hroncich

As you’ve probably seen if you’re on social media or have visited a national restaurant chain, it’s Teacher Appreciation Week. There are all sorts of deals and rewards available for teachers this week.

While free chicken sandwiches, milkshakes, and soft drinks are great, there’s a better way for teachers to feel appreciated: educational freedom. For most people who want to teach, the government-run monopoly school system is the only option. But the spread of educational freedom, or school choice, is changing that.

What do I mean by educational freedom/​school choice? In an increasing number of states, there are programs that allow some taxpayer support of students at a variety of learning options instead of all being sent to the local school district. School vouchers are essentially scholarships funded with state tax dollars that can be used for private school tuition. Tax credit scholarships can also be used for private school tuition, but they are funded through private donations which generate a tax credit for donors. With education savings accounts, states put education funds in special accounts that parents can use for expenses such as tuition, tutoring, curricula, and services for children with special needs. 

It’s pretty easy to see how students benefit from educational freedom programs—they can access the learning options that work best for them instead of being forced into the school they happen to live near. But how does this show appreciation for teachers? Simple: just as one size doesn’t fit all students, it doesn’t fit all teachers either. 

The spread of educational freedom programs has opened new options for teachers. This includes jobs at traditional private schools, but the opportunities don’t stop there. Former public school teachers are among those taking advantage of these programs to create microschools, small learning environments that often follow a student-centered model and group kids by their needs instead of just their ages; hybrid schools, where kids learn in person some days and at home others; and à la carte options, where they offer specific content to homeschoolers or microschools.

While teachers and others are also creating these new learning environments in states that have not adopted scholarship programs, it’s much more sustainable in states that have. 

For my Friday Feature blog series, I regularly talk to former public school teachers who have become education entrepreneurs. And without fail, they tell me that they’re happier and more fulfilled in their new environments—even when their income doesn’t match what they were making before. They appreciate the increased autonomy and flexibility, as well as being able to do what they think is best for kids in consultation with their parents.

So if you want to show you appreciate teachers, embrace educational freedom, and let them take it from there.