This letter to the editor on "Public School Choice" by Deputy Under Secretary Nina Rees appeared in The New York Times on October 8, 2003.
To the Editor:
In "A Failure of Logic and Logistics" (On Education column, Oct. 1), Michael Winerip criticizes the public school choice provisions of the No Child Left Behind Act; these provisions allow parents whose child attends a school in need of improvement to transfer their child to another public school.
The concept behind the provisions is to prompt states and districts to think strategically of ways to provide all students with a high-quality learning environment. That Chicago, Los Angeles and other districts may be limiting students' choice to transfer has more to do with their reluctance to move their systems forward and provide an equitable education for their students than it does with flaws in the federal law.
Once school systems begin to step up to the plate and educate all students effectively, all parents will be satisfied with the schools their children are in, and the need for student transfers will be removed.
Nina Rees
Deputy Under Secretary
Department of Education
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