Particle Data Platform
Up First from NPR

In one Iowa city, public schools compete in the free market. Are students better off?

4/19/202632 min

Public education used to enjoy strong bipartisan support, but across the country, there’s a growing push to offer students alternatives to traditional public schools. The idea behind “school choice” is that competition improves education. President Trump and Republicans have attacked public education for failing students and for being too “woke,” while Democrats who strongly oppose school choice often dismiss valid criticism of public schools.

Today on The Sunday Story, NPR education correspondent Cory Turner travels to Cedar Rapids, Iowa, to understand how school choice can change a city's education landscape. Are students better served when schools compete in a free market?

You can find more of Cory's reporting from Cedar Rapids here.

See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

NPR Privacy Policy

Clips

Billionaire Backing Ups The Stakes
Charter Leaders Arrest Fallout
Schools Arent Businesses, They Serve
Is Choice Ruining Public Schools?
Windfall For Existing Private Students
Private Schools Can Say No
Protecting Kids  Who Will?

Transcript preview

First 90 seconds

  1. Ayesha Rascoe· Host0:00

    I'm Ayesha Rascoe, and this is the Sunday Story from Up First. This week, school choice. Those two words cover all kinds of programs that are meant to let parents choose to send their child to a school other than their neighborhood public school. Maybe it's to another public school or a public charter school or even a private school. In the US, school choice is often politically charged and even emotional.

  2. Speaker 10:29

    I hate to even say that I would consider it, but I think I represent a lot of families that if we're not looking at the best situation for our kids, we're gonna m-move our kid to a, a private school, and I don't wanna do that.

  3. Ayesha Rascoe· Host0:41

    [applauding] Today on the Sunday Story, NPR education correspondent Cory Turner takes us to Cedar Rapids, Iowa, a city swimming in choice, to understand what increased school choice really looks like for parents who want the best for their kids. Cory joins us now. Welcome.

  4. Cory Turner1:02

    Thanks for having me, Ayesha.

  5. Ayesha Rascoe· Host1:04

    So, uh, Cory, school choice is this idea that covers such a wide range of programs and policies. Can you walk us through the basics?

  6. Cory Turner1:15

    Yeah, you bet. So think of school choice as a spectrum, right? So on one end, you've got public school choice, things like magnet programs and open enrollment policies that allow kids to apply to other public schools,

We value your privacy

We use cookies to understand how you use our platform and to improve your experience. Click "Accept All" to consent, or "Decline non-essential" to opt out of non-essential cookies. Read our Privacy Policy.