What Chris Cerf Needs to Know About Albert Shanker
Chris Cerf, the acting commissioner of education in New Jersey, published an article today defending charter schools, which have become very controversial in his state. They have become controversial because the state is trying to push them into suburbs that have great public schools and don’t want them, and they have become controversial because the public is beginning to revolt against for-profit charters, especially for-profit online charters, which Cerf is promoting.
People in New Jersey are beginning to realize that every dollar that goes to a privately managed charter school is a dollar taken away from their own public school. Because the budget is not expanding, it IS a zero sum game. Fixed costs do not decline when children leave the
People in New Jersey are beginning to realize that every dollar that goes to a privately managed charter school is a dollar taken away from their own public school. Because the budget is not expanding, it IS a zero sum game. Fixed costs do not decline when children leave the
How Could We Not Know What Was Happening?
A reader sent the following comment:
For the past twelve years I have been a pre-k teacher in a public urban inner city school. I also owned a business for twenty-five years. I attended a public elementary school and a private high school. I attended public, private, and online universities.
For the past twelve years I have been a pre-k teacher in a public urban inner city school. I also owned a business for twenty-five years. I attended a public elementary school and a private high school. I attended public, private, and online universities.
I know the difference between public good and free market.
When I returned to teaching twelve years ago things were just starting to change. In my district a lot of early childhood supervisors who knew a lot about early childhood retired and/or moved to other states. The staff 
