Seattle Schools Community Forum: Odd Corners of I-1240

Seattle Schools Community Forum: Odd Corners of I-1240:

Odd Corners of I-1240

by Charlie Mas

There are some potential consequences of I-1240 which have not been much discussed.

The proponents of the initiative are proud to say that the teachers in the charter schools will have to meet the same certification requirements as public school teachers. That's true, but it neglects to consider how the charter schools are much more likely to hire many more teachers with conditional certificates. As we know, the state doesn't make any effort whatsoever to confirm that candidates for conditional certificates actually meet the requirements for a conditional certificate. They rely entirely on the school districts to do that work and they automatically approve every application they receive. Charter schools, therefore, could submit dozens and dozens of requests for conditional certificates - including a lot which do not meet the legal requirements - and see them all approved. Charter school teachers probably will not have qualifications equal to those of public school teachers. Teach for America, for example, places a lot of their corps members in charter schools.

The proponents of the initiative love to point out how the initiative requires charter schools to enroll every student