Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Opinion | The false promise of charter schools | Seattle Times Newspaper

Opinion | The false promise of charter schools | Seattle Times Newspaper:

The false promise of charter schools

Charter schools do not work as promised, writes Wayne Au, a University of Washington, Bothell education professor. One study indicates charters are two times as likely to widen achievement gaps as close them, he says.

Special to The Times

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As the Washington state Legislature considers a bill proposing the introduction of charter schools, it is important that voters and representatives understand a critical point: While advocates claim charter schools will raise the achievement of African American, Latino and low-income students, there is little evidence to support this claim.

For instance, the study completed by the pro-charter Center for Research on Education Outcomes (CREDO), a research group at Stanford's politically conservative Hoover Institute, found that charter schools performed worse than