"Why is there so much variety and abundance in other areas of our lives that we don’t seem to have in education?"
We have so many choices in so many areas:
· In music, we can stream classical, country, classic rock, rap, indie, or we can listen to vinyl or CDs
· In higher education, we can choose vocational school and apprenticeships, community colleges, public universities, or private religious schools
· Even a quick bit of Googling reveals more than 15 types of yoga, not counting “goat”
But for some reason, when it comes to K-12, choices shrink to virtually nothing. Why?
This question drives the work of Kerry McDonald, who leads the Education Entrepreneurship Lab at the Foundation for Economic Education and hosts the LiberatEd Podcast. Having studied economics, she was struck by the breadth of consumer choices available in the grocery store, as compared to the dearth of options most parents have when selecting the best educational fit for their child.
Lucky charms, bran flakes, granola – Oh My!
The grocery store – more specifically, the breakfast aisle – is one of McDonald’s favorite analogies for how education should function. Though I admit to sometimes feeling overwhelmed by the range of breakfast choices, there’s no question that it’s preferable to the opposite dynamic in which the same thing is served every day. During our Quality Matters conversation, Kerry gave the relatable example of a shopper choosing between an array of breakfast options: cereal, organic granola, eggs, and even yogurt.
Shoppers make decisions based on their unique preferences, dietary needs, and cost considerations. Unfortunately, this stands in stark contrast to the one-size-fits-all model that has dominated public education for over a century. In 2019, just over 70% of K-12 students in the United States attended their zoned public schools. This number has almost certainly decreased due to post-pandemic disruption and the school choice wave that’s been building since 2021, but the fact remains: many students are left with their zoned public school as the only practical schooling option. But the landscape is changing quickly, and Kerry McDonald is one of the leading chroniclers of the emerging movement.
Decentralized and Innovation
Even putting aside current efforts to shutter the U.S. Department of Education, in recent years, the centralized, top-down model of K-12 education has come under intense scrutiny. Where central planning is often sluggish and cumbersome, McDonald believes that a market-based approach is responsive and personalized, meeting the diverse needs of families. "There is such an opportunity for personalization, for choice, for abundance and variety in education models," she explains.
The rise of alternative schooling models, from micro-schools and homeschooling to self-directed education and low-cost private schools, has created a new paradigm of educational choice. In the case of micro-schools, these small, independent learning environments offer a blend of homeschooling and private schooling, often at a fraction of the cost of traditional private education. During the pandemic, many parents self-organized to form “learning pods,” which have since evolved into permanent micro-schools. The National Microschooling Center puts the number of micro-schools at roughly 95,000, serving 1.5 million children. Companies like KaiPod and Prenda now support families seeking to start a new school or become better trained in school management.
Families are taking education into their own hands, seeking more flexible and nimble solutions.
Measuring Quality in a Decentralized System
The question remains: how are we to measure quality in such a decentralized and personalized education marketplace? Without standardized oversight, can parents be sure their children receive a good education?
McDonald acknowledges that assessing educational success is complex, but she argues that parental choice itself is the ultimate measure of accountability. If a school or program is ineffective, families will leave, forcing it to improve or shut down.
"Quality is in the eyes of the beholder," she notes, pointing out that different families prioritize different aspects of education—some may value rigorous academics, while others prioritize outdoor learning or individualized instruction. Just as consumers rely on reviews, rankings, and personal recommendations in other markets, parents seeking educational options will do the same.
Fruity Pebbles ≠ Fractions
McDonald’s grocery store analogy resonates with me particularly because we’ve seen the opposite at play for more than 100 years. Increasing costs coupled with decreasing results and satisfaction are precisely what you’d expect from a monopolistic system, and public education remains one of the last such institutions in America.
Nevertheless, my experience in education policy and school operations indicate that selecting an educational setting is far more challenging (and weighty) than choosing breakfast cereal.
The clearest difference is that the consequences of making a bad choice at Kroger or Publix are de minimis. You may need to make another run to the store or suffer through 10 awful days of un-frosted mini-wheats, but these pale in comparison to detrimental school environment. The second difference is related: the satisfaction feedback loop (and ability to change course) is much longer in the educational context. Consider that even in a state with robust school choice programs, most schools require months of notice before they can accept a new student. A typical timeline might look like this:
- August – School year begins
- Sept/Oct – Parent recognizes the school is not a good fit
- Jan-Mar – Application process opens for new schools
- Following August – Student enrolls at new school
Whereas you can remedy a poor breakfast selection in 24 hours (or less), schooling decisions are often locked in for a full year. There may come a time when today’s school calendar and its attendant application cycles are no longer heeded but we’re a long way from making mid-year school changes en masse. It’s also not clear that such frequent changes would benefit most students. The last difference I note is that of complexity.
There are a number of factors that bear on one’s breakfast choice; however, the universe of variables is smaller than in the educational context which can involve cost, location, subject matter, extra-curricular opportunities, religion, school calendar and length of day, teacher expertise, quality of facilities, safety, transportation option – you get the point.
Kerry McDonald is not dismissive of these factors, and we discussed our shared hope that local, grassroots networks will emerge. These may take the form of user-generated websites like MicroschoolFlorida.com or in the form of person-to-person parent navigator services like Families Empowered.
Challenges and Barriers to Expansion
Despite the momentum of education entrepreneurship, significant barriers remain. Regulatory and bureaucratic hurdles often slow the development of innovative schooling models. McDonald cites Nevada’s strict occupational licensing requirements, which make it difficult to open secular private schools, as an example of how outdated regulations can stifle educational innovation.
Zoning laws and building codes designed for large public schools also create obstacles for micro-schools and independent learning centers. "The education regulatory apparatus is intended for very large traditional schools, public or private," McDonald explains.
I’ve documented how local zoning laws designed to regulate home-based business are outmoded in the new, emerging schools context. The result of these antiquated laws is that many educational entrepreneurs navigate complex legal landscapes or find creative workarounds, such as operating as homeschooling collaboratives rather than formal schools.
A More Dynamic System is Emerging
The shift toward a decentralized, market-driven education system represents one of the most significant transformations in K-12 learning in decades. With more parents seeking alternatives to traditional public schooling, the demand for innovative educational models is only growing. McDonald’s work highlights how education entrepreneurship is reshaping the landscape, offering families more choices and creating an environment where quality is determined by direct consumer feedback rather than top-down mandates.
While challenges remain, the energy behind school choice and education innovation is undeniable. As families continue to demand greater flexibility and customization in learning, the future of education looks increasingly diverse, dynamic, and decentralized. The market revolution in education is well underway, and it is poised to redefine how we think about schooling for generations to come.
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