Charter Schools and the American Dream If you were to walk into any American classroom, almost every student would say that education is the key to the American dream: the ideals of “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness,” as stated in the Declaration of Independence (CITATION). However, in tough neighborhoods, where poverty and crime are extremely pronounced, the typical public schools do not always set these challenged kids on the path to success. Throughout educational reform, a new option has prevailed. Charter schools, according to the Public Charters.org website, are “unique public schools” which are designed to help students improve, both inside and outside of school, from their specialized teaching (Charter School background). …show more content…
As stated by the article “Charter Schools Can Benefit Low Income Students,” 25% of charter schools have given students “significantly stronger learning gains,” with charter schools in urban, low income areas being extremely successful. More specifically, “Performance differences between charter school students and their traditional public school peers were especially strong among black and Hispanic students in poverty” (Low income benefits article). These schools are giving these disadvantaged students the opportunities to achieve the American Dream and succeed in a way the other schools never would …show more content…
In fact, there is an absurd amount of corruption in American charter schools. Specifically, the Huffington Post Article, “Waste, Fraud, and Charter Schools… Shocked? No,” by Thomas J. Gentzel, states that there have been more than $200,000 of stolen or wasted taxpayer dollars that were meant to go to charter schools (Waste, Fraud). The article is drawing the conclusion that this could be the reason why most charter schools (other than urban ones) are failing to help adolescents. This is a reasonable conclusion due to the overwhelming evidence of failing charter schools. The same article states that charter schools are “failing their students and families” (Waste Fraud), which can be seen through the academic results from charter schools in comparison to traditional public schools. Lew Moore’s HeraldNet article, entitled “Charter Schools Can Benefit Low Income Students,” specifies that 25% of charter schools are improving student “learning gains,” compared to the near 50% that do not change anything, and the 37% of charter schools that result in lower learning gains that their traditional public school counterparts (Low income benefits). These two sources make it clear that charter schools are really not helping kids: in fact, the overwhelming majority do nothing, or worse, possibly due to the lack of money. Because students are not getting the education they need,
That broader conception of school allowed those schools to better support the students and address social issues that prevent students from accessing their full potential. This conceptual shift can only be spurred by a clear vision of “good education”—which then caused an improvement in their community’s education
America’s public school system started off very rough, but through the dedication of many hard-working Americans, it was starting to shape into a system that allowed all children, regardless of race, gender, religion, or nation of origin, to have an education.
While charter schools may seem appealing at first, further research shows that they, do, in fact have faults. Because of the high standards portrayed by charters, the brightest students in public schools often flee to charters in search of a better learning environment. Ironically, charter schools usually attract less-qualified teachers due to lower pay. Often, the result is many students eventually leaving the charter system, sometimes with a decrease in learning a...
Schools may not be equally available to all students and thereby result in unequal treatment for those not eligible to attend or not selected. Public schools could become "dumping grounds" if the "good" students were to leave and go to charter schools. The drain of funds from the public schools could also present a problem. Transportation issues would arise as well as a reexamination of state athletic association rules and regulations. Choices to attend may not be made on the basis of attending a better school or district but because the school is closer to childcare, it's perceived as easier, more convenient or has better extracurricular activities. Lawsuits could arise due to the fact that the schools would make promise regarding school performance and/or educational offerings that might not materialize. Schools could file for bankruptcy. Other issues include possible discrimination toward students and violation of state of federal laws.
A child’s first day of school is often viewed as a rite of passage; the first step on the road to a happy and successful life. This is true for most children from affluent families who live in the best school districts or can afford expensive private schools. But what if a child’s first day of school is nothing more than the first step on the road to poverty and possibly even illiteracy? The documentary Waiting for “Superman” addresses many issues in a failing school system and the innocent children that system leaves behind. Although the documentary spends little time suggesting parents’ roles in their children’s education, it clearly shows that we must make changes to help children from low-income families and improve the teacher’s unions.
They said that the Lottery is biased for the reason that the filmmaker stands for Charters school, and the film presents the situation from Charters Schools’ point of view or specifically Harlem Academy Charter School’s circumstances. Besides, Sackler does not show the negative aspects of Charter schools and positive aspects of public schools. In society, public schools play an essential role in community education. Things always have two side effects, therefore, not every public schools are poor. According to the Center for Research on Education Outcomes (CREDO) in Stanford University, there is only 17% of charter schools in the United States succeeded better than traditional public schools; 43% is illustrated no difference from public schools; in fact, 37% were worse than public schools in 2009. In Arizona, Florida, Minnesota, New Mexico, Ohio, and Texas, public schools have a higher learning gains than charter schools (CREDO). In reality, not all Charter Schools success in their educational system. However, everybody has their own believe. Based on personal experiences and viewpoints in his or her community, which cause Sackler favor in Charter Schools. Additionally, Harlem Academy Charter School has a tremendous progress to the students, compared to other public schools in the New York
“Many charter schools segregate students along the racial and class lines and that they may also tend to lack services for students with disabilities or limited English proficiency, which leads to less diversity in Charter schools. Charter schools have their own school boards and are typically free to experiment with instructional and disciplinary methods, Charter schools are privately run by boards that are appointed by charter organizations rather the public which means less local accountability and
The issue of whether charter or public schools are more beneficial for students has been an ongoing debate. The question that arise is which type provides a better education. Having gone to a charter high school myself, I got to see and experience first-hand the benefits of going to a charter school as well as realizing the issues charter schools face here in Oklahoma. These problems need to address in order to guarantee that students are getting the best education that they can get. We are facing an epidemic today with our education system and charter schools could be the solution. There may be opponents to the idea of having charter schools, but they have been wildly successful lately and are quickly expanded throughout the states. This is due to the fact that charter schools can benefit people economically, educationally, and as well as socially.
Under NCLB policy, if a public school in the state standard exams results in consecutive unqualified scores, the school will be closed soon. Although the government gives parents more choices to accept the way of education, the students just can go to school in poor communities where the environment is bad. When there are charter schools, the public schools are going to be closed, the company or person can take it with permission, the foundation all comes from the government. The biggest difference between charter schools and public schools is that the charter schools have it own operating system, foundation and teachers.(Ravitch, Reign of Error, chapter 16, p157-160) There also are some disadvantages in charter schools, first is the quality gap, due to the quality of teaching which almost depends on teachers and principals. The second one is differentiation between races and classes. Some charter schools’ mission is serve minorities, such as African-American and Hispanic, because they want to save the nations’ culture. However, this limit of communication with other communities will result in a big gap objectively. Charter schools only pay attention to the scores and do not share their strategies to collaborate with public school, because they want more students to get high scores so they can enter to famous schools more than public
Wilson, Steven F., and Research American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy. Success At Scale In Charter Schooling. Education Outlook. No. 3. American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research, 2009. ERIC. Web. 11 Nov. 2011.
Charter schools are public schools of choice, meaning that families choose them for their children. They operate with freedom from some of the regulations that are imposed upon school districts. Charter schools are accountable for academic results and upholding the promises made in their charters.
For decades now, there have been educational problems in the inner city schools in the United States. The schools inability to teach some students relates to the poor conditions in the public schools. Some of the conditions are the lack of funds that give students with the proper supplies, inexperienced teachers, inadequate resources, low testing scores and the crime-infested neighborhoods. These conditions have been an issue for centuries, but there is nothing being done about it. Yet, state and local governments focus on other priorities, including schools with better academics. It is fair to say that some schools need more attention than other does. However, when schools have no academic problems then the attention should be focused elsewhere, particularly in the inner city schools.
Julian Nava was one of the people who fought to end IQ testing. He believed that students that did not get high IQ scores still had the potential to be something greater than a factory worker.
High school and college dropout rates are at an all time high. Secondary school students are told throughout high school that if they don’t go to college then they will never be successful. Going to college doesn’t always make a difference because many career choices such as teachers and lawyers are highly contested and result in either no job or low salary. Low pay deters teacher’s motivation and they tend to work part time jobs to supplement their income. Public schools standards are comparable to a kangaroo court’s procedure; private schools are known for better teachers, environment, and test grades. The major problems in the public school system include the lack of funding, lack of resources, and lack of standards.
Education is an integral part of society, school helps children learn social norms as well as teach them how to be successful adults. The school systems in United States, however are failing their students. In the world as a whole, the United States is quickly falling behind other countries in important math and reading scores. The United States ranked thirtieth in math on a global scale and twentieth in literacy. This is even more true in more urban, lower socio-economic areas in the United States. These schools have lower test scores and high dropout rates. In Trenton Central High School West, there was an 83% proficiency in literacy and only 49% of the students were proficient in math. Many of these students come from minority backgrounds and are often from low income families. There are many issues surrounding these urban schools. There is a severe lack of proper funding in these districts, and much of the money they do receive is sanctioned for non-crucial things. Schools also need a certain level of individualization with their students, and in many urban classes, this simply does not happen. While there are many factors affecting the low performance of urban schools, the lack of proper funding and distribution of funds, the cultural divide between teachers and students in urban districts, along with the lack of individualization in urban classrooms are crucial reasons to explain the poor performance in these districts. Through a process of teacher lead budget committees and further teacher education, urban schools can be transformed and be better equipped to prepare their students for the global stage.