In many ways, it seems like a backwards question: why should proponents of a federal right to quality public education have to justify such a right; shouldn't it be opponents of such a right who have the 'splainin to do?

Nevertheless, that's the political reality we live in. Children in America are not guaranteed any particular quality of education.

To be sure, each of the 50 states offer schools to children, but in reality the kinds of schools that are available are as wide ranging in quality as one can possibly imagine. Public schools in some wealthy towns are truly first-rate educational institutions; in some neighborhoods (often low-income and minority ones), however, children often stand to receive a quality of education that is nothing short of unconscionable.

Enter the Southern Education Foundation, a venerable advocacy organization that has been fighting to improve educational opportunity for disadvantaged children for well over a century.

Their name would lead you to believe, quite rightly, that they are concerned principally with educational challenges facing children in the Deep South. So the fact that they have taken the lead in sparking a national conversation about the right for a federal education amendment to the Constitution, by issuing this thoughtful report, just serves to underscore the crucial need for making quality education a right for all our children.

Quite simply, the scope of the problems that plague our schools are just too big for individual states and localities to handle--particularly in this economy--and communities need the resources and support of the federal government to make serious headway, regardless of where they are located.

As the report details, gross inequalities in school inputs, processes, and outcomes exist across states, among districts within states, and among schools within districts. But the greatest of these is the disparities among states. One way to see this is to consider how much more money is spent at a high school in a high-spending state (Alaska or New York) compared to a high school in a low spending state (like Tennessee, Utah, or Idaho). SEF found that over a four year period, an Idaho highs school student could have as much as $89 million less spent at their school than an Alaska high schooler.

So why amend the Constitution to add a right to quality education? In the end, it comes down to practical, civic, and moral reasons.

Practically speaking, amending the Constitution would force policy makers to address tough questions that are simply avoided in the present day. It would require policy makers to come up with a baseline for what kinds of opportunities every child should have by expressly describing necessary educational inputs (quality teachers, textbooks, instructional time, etc.). It would also force law makers to identify who is responsible if such inputs are not met so that students and families have a way to get what they deserve--a method of enforcement that is too often lacking today.

Even more practically, an effort to amend the constitution would create space for other vital educational reforms even in the case that it fails--see the Equal Rights Amendment and subsequent advances in womens' rights for an example.

As a civic matter, a debate about whether to enshrine quality educational opportunities in our nation's founding document would spark dialogue and thought among ordinary citizens about the importance and meaning of education--a conversation that has been sorely lacking. It would build public consensus and political will to do better by kids as a policy matter, but perhaps also on a family-by-family basis.

Most importantly, however, guaranteeing every child in America a right to quality educational opportunity is just the right thing to do. Our nation is built on the founding principle that everyone has a shot at the American dream if they play by the rules and work hard. The bedrock of that principle is the public school education; if it is inequitably distributed to disadvantaged groups, the very foundation of our country rests on shaky ground.

In other words, fixing that foundation by way of an amendment would do wonders for the long term civic and economic well-being of America, but it's just as important to do it because it's fair and right. Ask even those who are opposed to a federal amendment whether they think in practice every kid in the country should have access to a good school and they will (hopefully) say yes.

So why not put our money where our mouth is and pass a 28th amendment to the US Constitution guaranteeing the right to a quality education?