Finland ranked seventh in the world in OECD’s student assessment chart in 2018, well above the UK and the United States, where there is a mix of private and state education

  • WaxedWookie@lemmy.world
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    9 months ago

    Private schools grant an “out” for the wealthy (and by extension, powerful). If they can pay for better results, they’re actively incentivised to lobby to defund public schools. If the private option doesn’t exist, they’re incentivised to lobby to improve public schools (the ones with kids, in any case).

    • fbmac@lemmy.fbmac.net
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      9 months ago

      I’m afraid if private schools were removed the really wealthy would just send their kids to study in another country like they already do, and the middle class would lose this option, and we get worse as a whole

      • afraid_of_zombies@lemmy.world
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        9 months ago

        Nah just pay for after school programs. I wasn’t happy with the level of progress I was seeing with my kids on certain subjects. So after a few attempts to push the schools I gave up and hired tutors. I am not really in the financial position to do this but the alternative is worse.

      • WaxedWookie@lemmy.world
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        9 months ago

        On the one hand, a significant number of people are motivated to improve public education. On the other, a handful of billionaires’ kids move overseas. That’s an insignificant trade-off, isn’t it?

        Countries that invest heavily in public education have the best education standards in the world - see Finland as one example. Even assuming a couple of billionaires aren’t better off, why would I care - especially given the massive benefit to the broader population.

        • fbmac@lemmy.fbmac.net
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          9 months ago

          What I think would happen is that I would lose private education for my kids and the public ones will still be shit, like all public services in my country

          • WaxedWookie@lemmy.world
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            9 months ago

            Why would you think that given the fact that this is more or less what the countries with the best education standards in the world do?

              • WaxedWookie@lemmy.world
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                9 months ago

                Why don’t they work - bear in mind that we’re addressing funding issues, and getting the decision makers more staked into the outcomes.

                • fbmac@lemmy.fbmac.net
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                  9 months ago

                  Dunno, I live in Brazil, I’m used to things not working. Getting from here to what they have in Finland is unlikely

                  • WaxedWookie@lemmy.world
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                    9 months ago

                    For better or worse, I get the impression that an increase in social spending isn’t something you’ll need to worry about under the Bolsonaro government.

                    The problem with this solution in Brazil isn’t the solution itself - it’s the fact that you have an austerity-focused right-wing government that wants such investment to fail so that they can kill it.