Public Education and the Idaho Constitution

The Idaho State Constitution in Article IX section 1 states “…it shall be the duty of the legislature of Idaho, to establish and maintain a general, uniform, and thorough system of public, free, common schools.” What does “thorough” mean?

The teachers union (IEA) has equated “thorough” to mean adequately funded. The IEA would logically make this connection because of the relationship between funding and teacher salaries. However, the primary purpose of public education is to educate children; whereas, teacher pay is a secondary issue and important only in that it is a means to an end. The end is the education of children.

Section 1 also gives the reason for public schools: “The stability of a republican form of government depending mainly upon the intelligence of the people…” Schools were to be established to help the citizens become intelligent and educated and capable of self-government.

The Idaho Constitution gives few details concerning the nature of public education. It simply defines the prime purpose.

Public education has come to mean:
1. 180 days of attendance
2. 7 hour school day
3. 5 day school week
4. k-12 years of school
5. 44 - 48 credits hours of work in high school
6. 3 years of high school math
7. Students taught by a certified teacher
8. Public bussing
9. Sports activities
10. Music, band, drama, etc.
None of these above 10 items or educational traditions are listed in the Idaho State Constitution. They are all policies that we have adopted in the years since 1890. The State Constitution gives us a goal with no or little direction of how to accomplish the goal.

Is there an assessment to see if the goal of public education has been reached? When each student graduates from high school are they capable of self-government? What makes a citizen capable of self-government? Has this been defined? If not, why not? This is our Constitutional mandate for public education.

What does a person need in order to support a “republican form of government”? I ask this question for two reasons. The first is to clarify the purpose of public schools. It seems much of school funding discussions have focused on adult salaries. It’s time to shift our focus to student outcomes, and then make adjustment to take care of the needs of adults. Second, Idaho is experiencing serious budget shortfalls. If Idaho continues to experience budget shortfalls, Idaho taxpayers will not be able to afford all of the educational traditions that we have been able to fund in the past. A serious look at the core reason for education may clarify our thinking in deciding which programs are necessary and which are not.