While American elected officials continue to encourage market reforms like competition, charter schools, and vouchers, Swedish officials are now recognizing the damage these reforms have done to their society. Sweden abandoned its public system in the early 1990s and welcomed vouchers and privately managed schools.

“STOCKHOLM (Reuters) – When one of the biggest private education firms in Sweden went bankrupt earlier this year, it left 11,000 students in the lurch and made Stockholm rethink its pioneering market reform of the state schools system.

“School shutdowns and deteriorating results have taken the shine off an education model admired and emulated around the world, in Britain in particular.

“I think we have had too much blind faith in that more private schools would guarantee greater educational quality,” said Tomas Tobé, head of the parliament’s education committee and spokesman on education for the ruling Moderate party.

“In a country with the fastest growing…