While charter schools are good on some levels, they also cause a lot of damage to our public education system.

It is difficult to determine if the academic performance level at a charter school is due to the teaching, curriculum, and/or administration because the student body of charter schools is selective. Charter schools recruit students whose parents are committed to and involved in their child’s education simply by having an application process. Moreover, students who have behavior issues are sent back to the public school. Requiring charter schools to take Special Education students, low-income students, etc., does not change the fact that charter schools enroll the students among those groups who are most likely to succeed academically. Children who end up in charter schools are those whose parents make a concerted effort to apply and an interested parent is a huge indicator of academic achievement regardless of socioeconomic status.

In comparing public schools to charter schools or private schools, it is important to acknowledge that Special Education is a huge and mandated part of the budget for public schools. Taking Special Education out of the equation vastly changes the cost per pupil and test results. Evaluating a school without isolating Special Education is simply bad analysis.

Charter schools can hire teachers who are not only non-union, but are also not certified teachers. While it is true that some people are innately gifted teachers, knowledge of a subject area does not make someone an educator. Teaching is a science unto itself and its own discipline of study for a reason.