Very good editorial from the NY Post.
What’s really sad is that though these three charters aren’t getting the job done, they’re in the middle of the pack in terms of comparable schools. You won’t hear too much about that though or about the other charters that are doing well.
The bottom line is that a little more tough love would be good across the board, but don’t hold your breath for such an admission from the usual suspects… these two quotes from this AP story tell a sorry tale…
“We mean it when we say that if schools don’t perform, there will be consequences,” Philips [Bill Philips of the New York Charter Schools Association] said. “It’s not enough to just enroll the neediest kids.”
Dave Ernst, spokesman for the state School Boards Association, acknowledged that charter schools are being held accountable as proponents said they would. Still, he said, “It’s disappointing whenever you see that children haven’t gotten the education they’re entitled to.
“The record indicates that certainly, it’s time to take a long pause in New York to reassess the charter school experiment,” Ernst said.
When you hear the school board association folks talking (and acting) like Phillips, then you’ll know things are changing. Until then, this is politics.
Update: More here.