Misinformed charter punditry doesn’t help anyone (especially charters!)
Misinformed charter punditry doesn’t help anyone. It doesn’t help the public to make more informed decisions either about choices for their own children or about policy preferences more generally. It also doesn’t help charter operators get their jobs done and it doesn’t help those working in traditional public schools focus on things that really matter. This post is in direct response to the irresponsible and unjustified statement below from a recent editorial in the NJ Star Ledger:
The best of these schools, like the TEAM Academy in Newark, are miracles in our midst. With the same demographic mix of students as district schools, their kids are doing much better in basic skills. And they are doing it for less money, in a setting that is safe and orderly.
http://blog.nj.com/njv_editorial_page/2011/10/nj_sets_right_course_on_charte.html
Nearly every phrase in this statement is misleading or simply wrong. And that’s a shame. My apologies for being trapped in meetings yesterday and not having a chance to return calls on this topic. I might have been able to