Since 1960, SAT scores have fallen by 100 points and public high school graduates increasingly cannot read at an eighth-grade level, understand basic mathematics or identify the United States on a world map. It seems the recent No Child Left Behind Act will help this problem. However, federal education spending has tripled since 1960 and federal encroachment into local decision-making has resulted in "zero tolerance" insanity.

The real solution is to look at the education success stories: private schools and home schooling. Both options boast higher average SAT scores, improved grades and better college placement. In addition, according to the Center for Education Reform, the average private school tuition is $3,116 - compared to the $6,857 per pupil expenditure at government schools.

The difference? Government bureaucrats, who often send their own kids to private schools, dictate nationwide public school policies from their D.C. offices. The system rewards failures by giving them more taxpayer money. Conversely, private schools must produce results (i.e., educated children) at an acceptable price or parents will send their kids to competitors. Likewise, home-schooling parents have a direct economic and emotional interest in ensuring their children receive an exemplary education.