Are children really being sent to school to get a rigorous education? This is a tough question. Children in America are being sent through a public education system that reeks of political and corporate manipulation. This design attempts to force every child into the same mold, which does not let the individual child express themselves, be recognized for their personal strengths, or get support for that with which they struggle. There are many things that continue to contribute to the degradation of education in America, and some of these are private investments in charter schools, No Child Left Behind (NCLB), and an overemphasis on standardized testing.
While private invested charter schools may seem to be the right choice for some children,
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“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 …show more content…
I understand Charter schools are appealing and may offer a more intense education in a certain areas, but a well- rounded education allows a child to develop them self with experience and then choose a course of study within their interest that sets them up for life, rather than their parent choosing for them in a charter school. Believing no child will be left behind is fantasy in its self, children are always going to excel at different levels and learn by their own time- clock. Forcing standardize testing upon on the education system as a whole will never yield accurate results because it is geared towards only one type of test taker that learns the answers rather than the material. Standardize testing, No Child Left Behind, and Charter Schools will continue to dumb down the education system, force good teachers to leave the profession, and continue to force every child into the same mold. I don’t want to be a robot that agrees with everything I’m given. I want to be able to question and argue my valid point of difference. Research, writing, and being able to communicate clear understanding of a topic is rigorous, while regurgitating answers is
Zimmer, R. and Buddin, R. (2009), Is Charter School Competition in California Improving the Performance of Traditional Public Schools?. Public Administration Review, 69: 831–845. doi: 10.1111/j.1540-6210.2009.02033.x
Charter Schools are best known for combining traits and features of both public and private schools. Charters schools are not restricted to many of the rules and policies put on other public schools (Gale 1). For example teachers are given more free reign in charters, and they are not expected to stick to a certain curriculum. Because there is no specific criteria in place for teachers of charter schools, pay scales do not have to be followed for teachers and administrators. Also, charters are publically funded and have specialized accountability for producing certain results.
She realized that choice and accountability were not the answer, but that curriculum and instruction were more viable solutions to America’s educational dilemma. Ravitch suggests that to abandon public schools is to abandon the institution that supports our concepts of democracy and citizenship and to the promise of American life (Ravitch, 2011, p. 12-14). The idea of school choice is rooted in Milton Friedman’s essay concerning the government’s role in education. Friedman asserted that society should support and contribute to the maximum freedom of the individual or the family. He maintained that the government should provide vouchers to help support parents financially on their children’s education, which parents could use at the school of their choosing; so long as the school met set standards. Therefore, this creation of choice would stimulate competition, which Friedman believed would increase the development and improvement of nonpublic schools, as well as, create a variety of school options (Ravitch, 2011, p. 115). As a result of the choice movement, the public received three versions of school choice: voucher schools, private schools, and charter schools. Each of these schools receives public funding, but do not operate as traditional public schools, and are not managed by a government agency (Ravitch, 2011, p. 121). Charter schools became the most popular choice of this new
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.
The argument that public schools will benefit from the competition that vouchers will encourage is absurd. Public schools accept all students regardless of their academic ability, handicap or family background, while private schools generally do not admit students who they expect will bring their average scores down or who require special accommodations. Competition, even on this uneven playing field, implies winners and losers. When it comes to education, we would hate to see any child on the losing side.
In other words, is it meeting the needs of the people? No. How can our students from the United States fall so far behind in common core subjects compared to other countries, yet we rank pretty high in confidence? Why? It is because the educational experience is no longer about the child.
According to Edie (2012), “Charter schools are public schools because they operate independently of the school district” (Edie , 2012, p.1). Charter schools were developed because of the struggle of educational needs of public schools in educating students. They Charter schools are designed to be free to set their own operating hours and curriculum. They also strive to boost student achievement by giving students more time in the classroom, and also can offer classes in the evening, weekends, and into the summer months. Most charter schools feature smaller class sizes and dedicated teachers who want to make a difference, so students receive a lot of individual attention. Charter schools are held accountable for meeting and exceeding state and district academic achievement targets...
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.
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.
The biggest difference between charter schools and public schools is that the charter schools have their 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 to serve minorities, such as African-Americans and Hispanics, because they want to save the nations’ culture.
...hools perform better than public schools? No, no and no. the numbers retrieved in research do not lie. 83% of charter schools are doing no better and even worse than public schools. Charter school teachers are 132% more likely to resign willingly from their positions as a teacher than teachers from public schools. Multiple cases of charter school owners misusing large amounts of money, not just any money, but your earn hard-earned cash. The fact that competition is not helping anything but widening a gap between reality and general copouts. There is no morality in limiting sources to a select few students. The solution lies in the expansion of widespread resources to all students. Put the money and effort in to the general cause of public schooling. If it is not broke, why try to fix it? Charter schools are not the solution to the problem, but the fuel to the fire.
American education has been falling behind the world for some time now and the US government has come up with an idea that they believe will put us back in the race. This idea is called common core and it has been taken nation wide, and majority of all states have accepted this new education curriculum for math and science. Florida has accepted common core but changed the name to The Florida Standards to lower the disapproval from the citizens of this state, but that is not enough. The Florida Standards are not good for us and are to much on our students.
Proper school funding is one of the keys to having a successful school. Americans believe that funding is the biggest problem in public schools. School improvements revolve around funding. There needs to be funding not only in the successful schools but also the schools that aren’t doing as well. In documentary, Waiting for Superman, it talks about how smaller class sizes will help students. Funding is what will help the smaller class sizes. State funding mechanisms are subject to intense political and economic scrutiny (Leonard). Studies have shown that funding is inversely related to accreditation levels (Leonard). School funding needs to be increased, but there must be accountability as well.
In the United States high schools dealing with student’s privacy are becoming more of a huge problem and more students are feeling that schools are validating their privacy rights. In recent discussions of teen privacy in school, is whether if schools go overboard sometimes and feel they can search the student’s because they are using school property or are on school property. Some people feel that students do need more privacy from their schools because they need their privacy just like everyone else, and with this more reasonability they will have to get them ready when they leave school. On the other hand, some think that by giving more privacy to the student’s more poor decisions would come out of it than strong ones. Students that have
Many people in today’s society believe it’s wise to send their children to private schools. In making the decision on whether to put children in public or private schools, they look to four main factors: curriculum, class size, the graduation rate, and cost. When people have to pay for something, their first thought is, “Will I be getting what I’m paying for?” With a private school education, the amount you have to pay is usually well worth it. Public schools offer diversity. Here students can find people who are just like them and can associate better. Wherever you live, you have to send your child to the closest school. There’s no choice on what public school you can send your child to, whereas for private schools you can pick to send your child there. It’s not an easy choice for parents to decide, but many factors point toward a guarantee that a good education would be achieved, which is most important.