Election day is Tuesday Nov. 5, just a few days away. Both republican and democratic presidential nominees are talking more about education given the fact that Tim Walz, Vice President Harris’s running mate, is a former public school teacher. 

The New York Times said that in general, republicans are in favor of “Universal School Choice,” or private school voucher programs to delegate federal funding for private and charter schools. In contrast, democrats argue that giving federal dollars to private and charter schools will take limited resources away from the public school system.

 When interviewing DHS’s introductory government teacher William Brooks he said, “If there’s more money going to charter schools, we need to ask if there is equal access for students to go to these schools.” While public schools are free for anyone to sign up, charter schools are more selective, Brooks also said, “There may be certain groups that don’t have access to a charter school because their parents didn’t know about or have time to enter their kids into a lottery.”

PCC credit teacher Lauren Moran, who has experience teaching in a private school in Georgia, and at Durango’s charter school, Mountain Middle backed up Brook’s statement by saying “The fact that there even is a lottery means that access to Charter schools is limited.”

Moran also said that in general,the republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has expressed interest in giving the control of education to the states rather than to the federal government.

When asked about the differences between the two political parties, Moran said, “The argument in giving more power to the states is that the people in those states know best what their students need.” This would mean that states have more control over what is taught in schools and individual school funding. 

In addition, Moran said the argument against this is, “That we have a very national and global economy, so students in all states need to be prepared to compete for jobs in that economy. If there is great variation between what is taught at the state level, then some students wouldn’t be as prepared as others to compete for jobs.”

In addition to greater state control over curriculum, republicans have proposed ending teacher tenure, certifying teachers for “patriotic values,” and “supporting schools that teach America’s Founding Principles and Western Civilization”. While democrats have proposed strengthening civil rights protections for LGBTQ+ children and students of color, which is an issue DHS recently experienced with the flag policy issued on November 9th and the walkout on November 15th. 

 Teaching difficult topics such as racism, slavery and Western expansion can be hard in a classroom. Ms. Moran said, “I think it is important to teach all aspects of history, even the things that are difficult, but it should be done in a way that is appropriate for each age group.” With states vs. the federal government in control means that states would control how much of these topics are taught. 

Although these topics are important, both teachers expressed what they think is most importantly taught in a classroom. “For me, the most important thing I can teach students is the ability for them to think for themselves,” said Brooks. “It doesn’t matter what the subject is, it’s more important that they understand a concept…rather than memorize a specific fact.” 

Moran and Brooks both said that, “We think it’s really important for the students to form their own opinions so they understand how the government works,” and that “It’s up to them to do their research about various issues so they can form their own opinions.”

Although the presidential elections get a ton of attention, both teachers said that what really impacts people the most, are the state and local elections. “Those are the ones that will shape policies that impact our lives here in Durango much more than the federal election,“ said Brooks. Given the extremely divisive political times, both teachers wanted students to be able to have informed discussions without arguing. “Speaking and listening is a skill that really must be taught.”