Conservative icon rips teachers' unions as schools turn into 'propaganda agencies'
We're watching the same failure loop.
Conservative icon and academic Thomas Sowell unleashed on the current state of the education system, warning it has become a massive arm of "propaganda" with little incentive to improve as union power and friendly Democrat politics shield schools from accountability.
"It’s failing to teach students how to think," the 95-year-old economist and historian said in a podcast interview published Tuesday. "It’s failing to give them a background of knowledge of history. And it’s failing to allow them to express views that are different from what is being propagandized."
"These have become propaganda agencies, more so than educational institutions," he added.
Sowell joined the Hoover Institution's podcast "Uncommon Knowledge with Peter Robinson" in a more than hourlong interview that notably did not focus on Sowell's economic expertise, but instead offered a sharp critique of the current education system, including reflecting on his own struggles as a youth in the New York City school system before becoming one of the nation's most treasured conservative minds.
NEA INSIDER BLOWS WHISTLE ON 'TOXIC' CULTURE AND FAR-LEFT POLITICS INSIDE TEACHERS UNION: 'IT'S A CULT'
Sowell’s core argument outlined that the education system is insulated from the kind of consequences that force correction in other arenas, such as private businesses facing punishment for poor performance with monetary losses.
"Public school education, you have the almost inexhaustible amount of money from the taxpayers," he said as to why school systems have failed students. "Private schools are becoming private more in name than in reality. They're getting billions of dollars of taxpayers' money and there's very little following of what happens. So that they can keep on doing things that are wrong for generation after generation."
Basic math and reading scores among American students have been on a downward trajectory for years, with the COVID-19 pandemic and remote learning worsening the trends in recent history.
Nearly half of high school seniors, for example, scored below basic in math and reading, according to the Nation's Report Card data published in 2025. An EdChoice’s 2025 Schooling in America Survey found that 68% of Americans and 60% of parents believe K–12 education was on the wrong path.
HOUSTON SCHOOL DISTRICT TRYING TO WOO PARENTS WHILE LOSING STUDENTS AMID SCHOOL CHOICE COMPETITION
Sowell pointed to teachers' unions as a major player keeping families trapped in a cycle of a failing education system.
"Teachers’ unions collect billions of dollars in dues and then invest millions …
We're watching the same failure loop.
Conservative icon and academic Thomas Sowell unleashed on the current state of the education system, warning it has become a massive arm of "propaganda" with little incentive to improve as union power and friendly Democrat politics shield schools from accountability.
"It’s failing to teach students how to think," the 95-year-old economist and historian said in a podcast interview published Tuesday. "It’s failing to give them a background of knowledge of history. And it’s failing to allow them to express views that are different from what is being propagandized."
"These have become propaganda agencies, more so than educational institutions," he added.
Sowell joined the Hoover Institution's podcast "Uncommon Knowledge with Peter Robinson" in a more than hourlong interview that notably did not focus on Sowell's economic expertise, but instead offered a sharp critique of the current education system, including reflecting on his own struggles as a youth in the New York City school system before becoming one of the nation's most treasured conservative minds.
NEA INSIDER BLOWS WHISTLE ON 'TOXIC' CULTURE AND FAR-LEFT POLITICS INSIDE TEACHERS UNION: 'IT'S A CULT'
Sowell’s core argument outlined that the education system is insulated from the kind of consequences that force correction in other arenas, such as private businesses facing punishment for poor performance with monetary losses.
"Public school education, you have the almost inexhaustible amount of money from the taxpayers," he said as to why school systems have failed students. "Private schools are becoming private more in name than in reality. They're getting billions of dollars of taxpayers' money and there's very little following of what happens. So that they can keep on doing things that are wrong for generation after generation."
Basic math and reading scores among American students have been on a downward trajectory for years, with the COVID-19 pandemic and remote learning worsening the trends in recent history.
Nearly half of high school seniors, for example, scored below basic in math and reading, according to the Nation's Report Card data published in 2025. An EdChoice’s 2025 Schooling in America Survey found that 68% of Americans and 60% of parents believe K–12 education was on the wrong path.
HOUSTON SCHOOL DISTRICT TRYING TO WOO PARENTS WHILE LOSING STUDENTS AMID SCHOOL CHOICE COMPETITION
Sowell pointed to teachers' unions as a major player keeping families trapped in a cycle of a failing education system.
"Teachers’ unions collect billions of dollars in dues and then invest millions …
Conservative icon rips teachers' unions as schools turn into 'propaganda agencies'
We're watching the same failure loop.
Conservative icon and academic Thomas Sowell unleashed on the current state of the education system, warning it has become a massive arm of "propaganda" with little incentive to improve as union power and friendly Democrat politics shield schools from accountability.
"It’s failing to teach students how to think," the 95-year-old economist and historian said in a podcast interview published Tuesday. "It’s failing to give them a background of knowledge of history. And it’s failing to allow them to express views that are different from what is being propagandized."
"These have become propaganda agencies, more so than educational institutions," he added.
Sowell joined the Hoover Institution's podcast "Uncommon Knowledge with Peter Robinson" in a more than hourlong interview that notably did not focus on Sowell's economic expertise, but instead offered a sharp critique of the current education system, including reflecting on his own struggles as a youth in the New York City school system before becoming one of the nation's most treasured conservative minds.
NEA INSIDER BLOWS WHISTLE ON 'TOXIC' CULTURE AND FAR-LEFT POLITICS INSIDE TEACHERS UNION: 'IT'S A CULT'
Sowell’s core argument outlined that the education system is insulated from the kind of consequences that force correction in other arenas, such as private businesses facing punishment for poor performance with monetary losses.
"Public school education, you have the almost inexhaustible amount of money from the taxpayers," he said as to why school systems have failed students. "Private schools are becoming private more in name than in reality. They're getting billions of dollars of taxpayers' money and there's very little following of what happens. So that they can keep on doing things that are wrong for generation after generation."
Basic math and reading scores among American students have been on a downward trajectory for years, with the COVID-19 pandemic and remote learning worsening the trends in recent history.
Nearly half of high school seniors, for example, scored below basic in math and reading, according to the Nation's Report Card data published in 2025. An EdChoice’s 2025 Schooling in America Survey found that 68% of Americans and 60% of parents believe K–12 education was on the wrong path.
HOUSTON SCHOOL DISTRICT TRYING TO WOO PARENTS WHILE LOSING STUDENTS AMID SCHOOL CHOICE COMPETITION
Sowell pointed to teachers' unions as a major player keeping families trapped in a cycle of a failing education system.
"Teachers’ unions collect billions of dollars in dues and then invest millions …
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