Posted on 04/13/2015 9:16:54 AM PDT by Academiadotorg
More evidence indicates that school choice works, even in so-called blue states.
The Boston-based Pioneer Institute undertook a study of charter schools in the bay state and found that “Case studies of five high-performing charters schools from around the state reveal that these schools create highly effective teaching workforces in specific ways. First, they take great advantage of the autonomy that they have to assemble their own teaching workforces, in most cases without having to consider teacher tenure or other common constraints that teachers unions impose on traditional public schools. When assembling their workforces, high performing charter schools tend to be agnostic with regard to whether or not teachers are licensed, and instead consider factors such as academic background, ‘buy-in’ to the school’s mission, and whether or not a candidate will contribute to a department and/or a school, on the whole.”
“Case studies also reveal that high-performing charter schools cultivate tailored approaches to teacher induction and professional development—approaches that, in all cases, emphasize the use of frequent evaluations, specific and actionable feedback, and the leverage of peer and mentor teachers in these processes.”
Moreover, Cara Stillings Candal, who authored the study, notes, “Interestingly, charters achieve these stellar results with a comparatively young and less experienced teaching workforce. Teacher data from the Boston Public Schools and a high performing charter in the same area are both representative and revealing: At City on a Hill Charter Public School in Roxbury, MA (one of the highest performing high schools in the Commonwealth), 41% of teachers are between the ages of 26-32, and an even greater percentage are under the age of 26. In Boston, on the other hand, only 19% of teachers are between the age of 26-32, and far fewer than that are under the age of 26.”
Some of the Detroit area charters are among the best in the nation.
Boston is the last city in America I would think of regarding charter schools.
Good to know since I hope to someday have grandchildren there.
1) Why would it be surprising that good (i.e. anti-liberal) ideas work even in liberal hell-holes?
2) Why would we CARE what works in liberal hell-holes, except to the degree that it keeps the fascist commie voters from fleeing the sinking ship and contaminating the free states?
It will be interesting to watch Governor Walker’s latest voucher proposal as it plays out this year. He’s proposing expanding the Milwaukee voucher program statewide to families earning, I think, less than 185% of the poverty limit.
The state funding, which is substantial on a per pupil basis, will follow the child to the school chosen by the parents, whether that be a charter school or a private school.
This would be a substantial expansion of school choice, one that, if it succeeds, would be likely to lead parents above the income limit so lobby for eligibility for their own children. In short, it could revolutionize education in Wisconsin.
As a side note, I recently read a piece detailing the breakdown of the teaching of morals in public schools. Imagine if a private school put the emphasis on a moral code similar to the 10 Commandments. Maybe the parents who send their kids to such a school wouldn’t be getting calls from the cops about them punching out unsuspecting strangers on the street. There’s more to education than science, math, and English courses and parents would gravitate to schools that recognized that fact.
>>Why would we CARE what works in liberal hell-holes, except to the degree that it keeps the fascist commie voters from fleeing the sinking ship and contaminating the free states?<<
Education is about the children, and that’s why we should care, not only about the ones they want to abort, but about the ones they decide to let live.
Better educated people are thinkers which leads more of them off the democrat plantation.
exactly, and they didn’t even have a Michelle Rhee or Mayor Fenton
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