Trump 2.0 has begun. How will American education fare?

Well, the deal is done, and Donald J. Trump has been sworn in as America’s 47th President.

As unsettling as some may find this, there’s little to be done. Despite any potential revulsion experienced by many as they watched the signing of terrifying executive order after terrifying executive order, he is, for all intents and purposes, the boss. He and his billionaire band of merry men will now attempt to remake America in their image; rich, straight, white and misogynistic, with a dangerous dose of narcissism thrown in for good measure.

For the foreseeable future, the news cycle will be dominated by Trump, much as it was during his last term in office. Certainly, many of us remember his ruminations around household bleach and its potential applicability during the COVID pandemic, as well as his comments about grabbing women by their genitalia.

The level to which such transgressions now seem inconsequential should perhaps give some pause. However, while news feeds of the time were discussing the use of household cleaners to cure disease and “locker room talk” as a defense against accusations of misogyny, Trump was, relatively quietly, appointing Supreme Court Justices who would ultimately overturn Roe v. Wade.

While we watched the spectacle before us, women’s rights were set back fifty years.

Society, of course, has a maddeningly stubborn pattern of ignoring history’s lessons. While the world’s media anxiously awaits Trump’s next declaration about invading Greenland or which culturally diverse group is eating which family pet, it seems oblivious to the potentially devastating impact the next four years could have on the American public education system.

Although not directly in Trump’s crosshairs, the President has been quite candid about his intention to dismantle the U.S. Department of Education and, in doing so, delegate control of education back to the individual States. This would see the American system more closely resemble our Canadian one, where education is the responsibility of the Provinces, as opposed to being governed at the federal level.

The difference, however, is that Canada has been able to thwart widespread efforts to privatize our public education system. With the exception of Alberta, where Premier Danielle Smith has actively encouraged private interests to enter the education sphere, public education remains, for the time being at least, safely in public hands.

The same can not be said of our southern neighbours. Since the late eighties, the American public has been subjected to a largely false narrative that the country’s public education system is failing; a narrative driven by individuals who see tremendous opportunities within the education system for generating profits.

These “edupreneurs” point to perceived failings within the public system and claim to have the solutions. These solutions often come in the form of what are known as “charter schools;” which are essentially private schools funded with public money. These schools offer specialized education, programming, and services that the public system can not, at least according to the edupreneurs themselves.

As lovely as these sound on paper, they simply have not worked. Despite an ever expanding suite of charter schools being offered in the US, their education system continues to underperform on essentially every international benchmark available.

One might think that this would cause the American public to reconsider charter schools as a viable educational alternative, particularly since these schools are rife with scandals and rampant profiteering. Oddly enough, in the face of decreasing test scores and with over 20% of America’s adult population classified as illiterate, there is increasing pressure on law makers to expand what is known as “school choice”.

Enter Trump’s appointees to guide American education over the next 4 years: former professional wrestling CEO Linda McMahon, (a name you probably recognize) and former Tennessee Education Commissioner Penny Schwinn (a name you probably do not).

McMahon’s appointment as Secretary of Education is obviously of grave concern to educators stateside. If the decline of the American education system over the past few decades has proven anything, it’s that applying the tenets of business to schools leads to disastrous results. Trump’s decision to put someone in the role whose qualifications for the job are next to non-existent speaks to the value he places on educating America’s children.

Penny Schwinn, appointed as Deputy Secretary of Education on January 17th, is a little less of a wild card, although still problematic. She has made no bones about her stance supporting school choice, nor has she had any problem viewing education through a business lens. In a recent interview, Schwinn unapologetically identified “exceptional customer service” and “fiscal accountability” as keys to developing a successful school system.

A charter school founder herself, she also played a key role in implementing a state law that limited discussions of race and racism in classrooms.

In the name of a balanced examination, Schwinn has shown some modicum of promise. She worked to increase salaries for teachers while Tennessee’s commissioner and implemented an innovative apprenticeship program for pre-service educators that allowed them to work (and get paid) while pursuing their teaching license.

Those decisions, however, were more about pragmatism than they were about passion. Finding innovative ways to draw people into the teaching profession is one thing. Having a vision about bettering the world through a robust public education system that encourages critical thought, well that’s quite another.

It’s hard to imagine that public education in America will thrive under this leadership. Certainly, Trump’s day one declarations around gender and D.E.I. will have dire, if not fatal, consequences for some students. The mass uprooting of countless families, human beings all, through deportation programs will also leave an indelible mark on individual classrooms right across the country.

As much as society is offered lessons from history, the English teacher in me recognizes there is also wisdom to garnered from literature. As I am watching current events unfold, I can’t seem to help but be reminded of William Golding’s classic Lord of the Flies.

Trump has certainly managed to convince the masses that they should fear the imaginary “beastie” in the forest, this one in the form of any entity or group that can be classified as “other.” He has a firm grip on the conch, and millions upon millions of Americans seem content to join him on Castle Rock, eager to launch boulders at whichever version of Piggy should happen to be standing, helplessly and powerlessly, on the causeway.

Regardless of from where they draw their teachings, I hope Canadians are, indeed, heeding this moment’s message.

After all, it won’t be long before our own little island will be asked to choose between the comparative versions of Jack and Ralph who are vying to become our next Prime Minister.