Editorial: Insurmountable Opportunities

Insurmountable OpportunitiesPogo, a cartoon opossum in an anthropomorphic American comic created by the late Walt Kelly, is alleged to have said something along the lines of, "We are beset by insurmountable opportunities/' 1 Although the context and specific reference of this quote are unknown and possibly apocryphal, the statement seems to embody the atmosphere of the debate concerning private versus public education.On both sides of the issue individuals claim that their position either preserves or creates opportunities for choice.Often the debate is clouded with much emotion and a lack of objectivity, as many participants are either involved with one or another approaches to the way education is provided or they have children in school.Perhaps if we step back from the present and consider examples from the past, where we have no direct emotional involvement, the matter of what actually constitutes an opportunity in education will become clear.The idea of opportunity or choice in education is not new.For example, one of the reasons why we know of the lst-century CE Roman orator and teacher Quintilian is because he wrote about his particular way of teaching so as to attract students.His method of instruction, he maintained, would provide young Romans with an opportunity for competent and rapid edification: an opportunity, he contended, that competitive methods of education would not provide (Quintilian, 1921(Quintilian, , 1922)).Of course, Quintilian did not devise his curriculum and methods purely for altruistic ends.He wished to make a living through teaching.In consequence, only Romans with sufficient means could afford to have their children taught by Quintilian.In this instance the opportunity existed only if a family could afford Quintilian's fee.That money is often the basis for educational opportunity is a point that tends to be blurred today because of the ubiquitous nature of public education and the accompanying erroneous idea that it is free, and in consequence largely without value.By permitting private and alternative schools not funded by the public purse, therefore, parents should have a choice of educational opportunities for their children.Providing parents with some money in the form of vouchers would help ensure that these opportunities are available.As with most so-called "modern" ideas, this simply repeats a much older idea.By the 18th century in Europe, before the advent of what we now know as public education, many private educational opportunities were available to parents.Moreover, several great and innovative educators became widely known for their novel ideas, methods, and schools.These included the Swiss Johann Pestalozzi (1746-1827), Sweden's Emanuel Swedenborg (1688-1772), and England's Thomas Arnold (1795-1842) and Samuel Wilderspin (1791-1866).Although each made significant changes to education and to how it was viewed, most people did not have the means to send their children to such schools, even though some of these educators offered reduced rates and time

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