Charter Schools Fail to Eradicate the Achievement Gap
Numerous inequalities characterize societies in which the majority produce the wealth but only a handful own it. The so-called “achievement gap” is mainly an expression of the harsh social class divide in society that keeps growing.
One of the conceited claims of charter school advocates is that privately-owned-operated non-profit and for-profit charter schools will close the nagging “achievement gap” in America. Charter schools are supposedly a panacea because they will “out-perform” America’s “failing” public schools, rescue kids, empower parents, and provide a brighter future for all.
But nearly 30 years later, with hundreds of studies and endless real-life examples, privately-owned-operated non-profit and for-profit charter schools have not eradicated or narrowed the “achievement gap.” On the contrary, thousands of online and brick-and-mortar charter schools perform poorly every year and at least 3,000 charter schools have closed since their inception in the early 1990s. More than 765 charter schools closed between 2014-15 and 2016-2017 alone,1 leaving thousands of families out in the cold. This figure represents more than one out of ten charter schools in the country by today’s numbers. The reality is that many non-profit and for-profit charter schools do not strengthen student proficiency in reading, math, and other subjects.
The track record of charter schools is even more unimpressive when considering the fraud and corruption plaguing this crisis-prone sector.
Decades later, charter school advocates are still struggling to produce a CONTINUE READING: Charter Schools Fail to Eradicate the Achievement Gap | Dissident Voice