The Cycle of Disinvestment in Public Schools - How Public School Criticism Drives Policy and Disinvestment

Oct 15, 2026

Critiques of public education have intensified, with many narratives portraying school failure as inevitable and crisis-driven, while downplaying counterevidence. This policy brief focuses on critiques aimed at demolition rather than improvement, outlining five recurring themes: underachievement, inefficiency, inequality, lack of school choice, and indoctrination. It then analyzes how these narratives feed a broader cycle of disinvestment, weakening public systems through misleading claims.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages43

Reading Time1 h 48 min

AccessFree to download

Executive Summary

Core Criticism Themes

How Criticism Drives a Cycle of Disinvestment

The Cycle of Disinvestment in Public Schools: How Public School Criticism Drives Policy and Disinvestment Huriya Jabbar and Daniel Espinoza University of Southern California March 2026 National Education Policy Center School of Education University of Colorado Boulder [nepc.colorado.edu](nepc.colorado.edu) Acknowledgements NEPC Staff Faith Boninger Publications Manager Patricia Hinchey Academic Editor Elaine Duggan Production Design Alex Molnar NEPC Director Kevin Welner NEPC Director Suggested Citation: Jabbar, H. & Espinoza, D. (2026) . The cycle of disinvestment in public schools: How public school criticism drives policy and disinvestment. Boulder, CO: National Education Policy Center. Retrieved [date] from [http://nepc.colorado.edu/publication/disinvestment](http://nepc.colorado.edu/publication/disinvestment) Funding: This policy brief was made possible in part by funding from the Great Lakes Center for Educational Research and Practice. GREAT LAKES CENTER For Education Research & Practice Peer Review: The Cycle of Disinvestment in Public Schools: How Public School Criticism Drives Policy and Disinvestment was double-blind peer-reviewed. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercialNoDerivatives 4.0 International License. This publication is provided free of cost to NEPC’s readers, who may make non-commercial use of it as long as NEPC and its author(s) are credited as the source. For inquiries about commercial use, please [contact NEPC at](contact NEPC at nepc@colorado.edu)[ nepc@colorado.edu](contact NEPC at nepc@colorado.edu). The National Education Policy Center (NEPC), a university research center housed at the University of Colorado Boulder School of Education, sponsors research, produces policy briefs, and publishes expert third-party reviews of think tank reports. NEPC publications are written in accessible language and are intended for a broad audience that includes academic experts, policymakers, the media, and the general public. Our mission is to provide high-quality information in support of democratic deliberation about education policy. We are guided by the belief that the democratic governance of public education is strengthened when policies are based on sound evidence and support a multiracial society that is inclusive, kind, and just. Visit us at: [http://nepc.colorado.edu](http://nepc.colorado.edu) [http://nepc.colorado.edu/publication/disinvestment](http://nepc.colorado.edu/publication/disinvestment) 2 of 43 The Cycle of Disinvestment in Public Schools: How Public School Criticism Drives Policy and Disinvestment Huriya Jabbar and Daniel Espinoza University of Southern California March 2026 I. Executive Summary Critiques of public education have intensified in recent years. While some of these criticisms have merit—public education has many areas in need of growth and improvement—many of today’s critiques are generated and trumpeted by organizations seeking to manufacture crises. These critical narratives about public school failure often ignore counterevidence, instead employing deceptive language to persuade the public that the system as a whole is problem-ridden, perhaps hopelessly. While honest critiques of public education can drive beneficial reforms and investments necessary for school improvement, these claims of purported school crises have led to a weakening of the public system and are attached to attempts to undermine that system. Accordingly, this policy brief examines the subset of public education critiques that are about demolition, not improvement. We identify five core themes: (a) underachievement,(b) inefficiency,(c) inequality,(d) lack of school choice; and (e) indoctrination. After exploring these and related attacks on public education, we take a step back and consider the cycle of disinvestment that the attacks are feeding. The achievement attack is grounded in disappointing test scores, with crit

FAQs

What is the focus of this policy brief on public education criticism?

It examines a subset of critiques aimed at demolition rather than improvement, identifying how such narratives support disinvestment.

Which five themes do the authors identify in the critiques of public schools?

They identify underachievement, inefficiency, inequality, lack of school choice, and indoctrination.

How does the brief explain the link between criticism and policy disinvestment?

It argues that crisis narratives are often fabricated or misleading, and that they weaken public systems by undermining support for the schools and policies under discussion.

Oct 15, 2026

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