With $10 million in federal funding to work with over the next three years, advocates of charter schools are pursuing ways to expand on Kansas’ 27 such schools. One proposal would open two charters in Topeka’s historic former Sumner Elementary School. Charters are championed by controversial Education Commissioner Bob Corkins, though state law still requires that each charter be approved by its local school board and the State Board of Education. State board member Bill Wagnon got at one good reason for skepticism about this charter push: “My general concern about the whole notion of charters is that it’s premised on the assumption the public school system is not responsive to innovation. I don’t buy into that one bit.”
Posted by Rhonda Holman
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14 Comments
On the one hand educators say that their test scores are top notch. Then the next breath they say they are underfunded and cannot do anything because of the parents. Meanwhile statewide the schools are failing according to most people dealing with their “product”. I guess that is innovative education. If it were any other business the public schools would have gone out of business instead of getting big raises. Gotta love innovation.
What’s the definition of a charter school? My understanding is the term, “charter school,” sometimes refers to a school operating under a local school board but which has agreed to some innovation for a limited period of time usually paid for by the federal government.
Also are parochial schools and home schooling groups considered “charter schools”?
In the case of Bob Corkins, I think he is desperately trying to carve off a few schools into a private sector situation but financed by Kansas government school funds to give himself a job after his demise with the Kansas BOE.
Generally, it is my understanding that a charter school is a public school which is allowed to operate without compliance with many of the laws and regulations otherwise governing public schools. It is my further understanding that in Kansas, a charter school is to be approved by both the local BOE and the State BOE, and is subject, in general, to some of the rules/regs applicable to state accredited schools under QPA, such as state assessments; reporting absences, graduation rates; ethnic composition of student body, to name a few.
Proponents of charter schools often label them innovative. I am unclear as to how “innovative” they are, or how successful they are. For my part, I would argue that local BOEs should take a look at well though out magnet programs (I’m not a fan of magnet programs at the K-5 level, BTW) to provide innovation and choice to parents.
One question,the answer to which is unknown to me: Do charter schools have to comply with Special Ed statutes and regulations?
The reason for my inquiry as to application of Special Ed rules to charters is that the article linked in the IP indicated that one charter proposal in Olathe was for autistic students. Now, I am ignorant of much concerning special ed, but I am aware that inclusion of Special Ed students into regular ed classrooms is a part of the drill. My question is how would a charter school designed for autistic students work, as autistic students are a part of special ed, without any regular ed classrooms for inclusion? Or, is this an area where waivers may be requested/obtained?
Bill Gates on education reform, including the use of charter schools.
http://www.cnn.com/2006/EDUCATION/11/13/gates.education.ap/index.html
I find myself in agreement with many of his suggestions, in particular the increased graduation requirements in math and science, and the compensation differential issue. What say you, other readers?
Even as someone who is against government education would not say that schools are not responsive to innovation. The problem is that innovation from where? As a monopoly, the government do not have to change. Even voter pressure does not amount to much, especially with education groups and teacher’s unions so heavily involved in the political process.
Government schools are not responsive, in a meaningful way, to their direct consumer. Their consumer is the students and then the parents.
Don’t like the history your kid is taught? Tough.
Think pep rallies are a waste of time? Tough.
ProudMan, from experience: pep rallies (which are a waste of time) are not limited to public schools.
Just an example Vaughn. I could have listed troubles with English, Math, Geography, Biology, etc.
When I was in school, a pep rally was a chance to bug out to the local arcade. Pep rallies at places of employment are a good time for a nap.
Isn’t home schooling relatively easy to set up? My point being, a person does not HAVE to send their kids to public schools.
Vaughn I have a child with autism, so maybe I can shed some light on this. And I’m not speaking as an expert on charter schools, just from what I’ve heard through my groups and my own experience.
Yes, special ed kids are supposed to be given free and appropriate education in the least restrictive environment with individualized education plans for them. It is the school’s obligation to provide this. However that’s simply not happening in many many many cases. Inclusion is good for kids like mine who are higher functioning and can model their peers (of course, sometimes modeling isn’t a good thing either). Even in my son’s school, getting the staff to provide him with special needs is like pulling teeth. So autism schools are set up to deal with these sort of things directly, they already have specialized trained staff. They have the tools and equipment necessary to give these kids the proper environment for learning.
Most of our kids are getting blamed for low test scores, for acting out behaviors like hitting- when simply following their plan for schooling would have prevented the outburst in the first place. They’re kicked out of schools with no place to go and parents are choosing to quit work and homeschool just to get the education their children deserve. In Kansas one school was locking autistic kids up in boxes!
It shouldn’t take a lawsuit to get some of these schools to comply but that’s where it’s heading for a lot. Some parents would just rather start with a school that is going to readily provide for them instead of fighting a long, uphill battle….
which is exactly what I’m doing at the moment. I don’t have a school anywhere near here that I could choose. My only option is to force them to comply.
Pubic schools are nothing more than state temples, and as such they can’t be innovative. Homeschool your kinder!
V.L.R.B!!
nacholib,
But like it or not, you do support the school with tax dollars. If schools could feel the pinch from mis-treatment of each student, then that mis-treatment would stop in short order. Now that would be innovation.
Take this into classrooms for a thinking outside the box approach:
Girl Scouts Clean Energy for a Clean Environment programs
http://www.nesea.org/education/gscleanenergy/glossary.htm