From Inequality to Quality

Charter schools have been in the spotlight a lot recently because of the Waiting for Superman documentary among other reasons. One of the biggest stories at that time was the success of charter schools and that is exactly what Linda Darling-Hammond talks about in the next chapter in her book.

I think that charter schools are great especially for inner-city populations. The reason that charter schools are so great is that they are well thought out and planned. Charter schools are able to start fresh and don't have many of the constraints the public schools have. Often times public school receive outside funding or are completely funded from other sources. Because of the way these school are organized often times they have a wide selection of teachers to choose from. For what charter schools are they are fabulous, but I do not think that an all charter school program is the answer to America's education woes.

Charter schools are something that inner city parents and students must seek out and these are the families that are truly invested in education. I believe that parents and families make a big difference in education outcomes and by having all parents at least have a baseline of interest and investment helps boost achievement. Also, because there is limited space in charter schools often times they are places that you must apply to and be admitted or go through a lottery system. This means that some charter schools get to choose their students based on performance among other things. The public school must serve every student wether or not their parents or them care students have to be in school.

I will say that our education system is in serious need of a refresh and could benefit from a fresh start like charter schools. With the ability to make conscious well thought out plans for the future of education instead of a hodge-podge of bandaids to try and fix the deep rooted problems.