Teaching in the 408: More Readings

Another great post to check out over at Teaching in the 408, this time critiquing a report by The National Charter School Research Project, "Hopes, Fears, & Reality: A Balanced Look at American Charter Schools in 2005". Check out More Readings:

Missing the point, again.

[...] there continues to be this massive blindspot in assessing the impact of charter schools on student achievement. 'Everyone wants to know whether children attending charter schools benefit or suffer harm,' writes our researchers. Maybe, but the benefits of children in a charter school looks at only one side of the coin. Incomplete or insufficient as existing research is, it drastically exceeds research that looks at the effects charter schools have on the students who do not attend. In other words, a charter school opens in our community, what happens to our schools that lose their committed families, accomplished students, and key staff? Truly, the effects on the other 1,500 or 3,000 kids ought to be just as, if not more important, than studying or how the 73 kids fared in their new environment.

He makes a many other cogent points about charters. Check it out.