Charter Schools

Renée Ingiosi
Fundamentals of Curriculum Development
Dr. Jay Dugan
March 28, 2010


Governor Christie recently stated in a New Jersey Charter Schools Association annual conference that he wants to see the number of charter schools in New Jersey grow during the next four years. This has caused much discussion within the education community. What is the appeal of the charter school? Supporters argue choice and accountability. Others argue that charter schools deepen racial and economic school segregation. The percentage of charter schools opening in our nation has continued to grow since its formation and has persisted to provide controversy.

Their conception began in 1988 during educational reforms for the public schools system. In 1992 Minnesota opened the first charter school in the United States. Shortly after that California followed. Today they are on the rise. In New Jersey there are currently 68 charter schools in operation.

A charter school is an independent public school of choice. They operate autonomously from a public school district yet are publicly funded. They may also receive private donations. For instance Bill and Melinda Gates donate millions to San Francisco’s arts and technology based Envision School. Charter schools are opened and attended by choice. Charter schools provide an alternative to traditional public education and are not permitted to charge tuition. Through the Public Charter Schools Program, the U.S. Department of Education offers grants to states which in turn awards sub grants to charter schools. Charter schools are also eligible for funding under other federal programs.

Charter schools must abide by their “charter” contract or face the risk of losing funding or facing closure. The "charter" is a performance contract detailing the school's mission, program, goals, students served, methods of assessment, and ways to measure success. The length of time for which charters are granted varies, but most are granted for 3-5 years.

According to The National Alliance for Public Charter Schools, the intention of most charter school legislation is to:
• Increase opportunities for learning and access to quality education for all students
• Create choice for parents and students within the public school system
• Provide a system of accountability for results in public education
• Encourage innovative teaching practices
• Create new professional opportunities for teachers
• Encourage community and parent involvement in public education
• Leverage improved public education broadly

Advantages

The main advantage of charter schools is the high level of accountability. The risk of losing funding or facing closure creates a responsibility to uphold the standards of excellence in the charter contract. The second advantage of charter schools is the freedom from the bureaucracy of traditional schooling. Charter schools are free from many of the rules, regulations, and statutes that apply to traditional schools. This can lead to a creative design within curriculum and more creative control over instruction. Instead of being accountable for compliance with rules and regulations, they are accountable for academic results and for upholding their charter. Theorists believe this increases the likelihood of best practices in education. The final advantage of charter schools is the success rate on state assessments compared to the nearest regular public school. Students are 4% more likely to be proficient in reading and 2% more likely to be proficient in math. When compared to students with a similar racial composition, the proficient rates are higher. Students are 5% more likely to be proficient in reading and 3% more likely to be proficient in math.

Disadvantages

Charter schools have their drawbacks. There is a high teacher turnover rate. Teachers are not part of a union and burn out is quick. According to a study by Miron and Applegate in the 2007 Great Lakes Center for Education Research and Practice document, “Teacher Attrition in Charter Schools” about 40 percent of new charter school teachers pursued other jobs. Another disadvantage is the selection process. Charter schools have limited space. Most charter schools are small schools (median enrollment is 242 students compared with 539 in traditional public schools). Fairness and Equity in the acceptance of student for enrollment may become biased. A charter school may favor a community member before an outside applicant. Some charter schools have waiting lists and use a lottery to randomly determine who is accepted. In a 2008 survey of charter schools, 59% of the schools reported that they had a waiting list, averaging 198 students.

Charter schools continue to spark controversy within educational communities and platforms. Our nation has seen a growth in this model steadily increase since its conception. It will be interesting to see how both charter schools and traditional public schools perform during the 21st century.

Resources:

www.newjerseynewsroom.com

http://www.uscharterschools.org/pub/uscs_docs/ta/steps.htm.