LETTERS
Leveling the public-charter playing field
I APPLAUD the decision by the Massachusetts Charter School Association to encourage its members to recruit English-language learners and special-education students (“Charter schools take a commendable step,” editorial, April 20).
Charter schools will show their commitment to this initiative by taking the following actions:
■ Actively reaching out to parents of English-language learners and students with significant DISABILITIES
to ensure that they feel welcome and invited to APPLY.
to ensure that they feel welcome and invited to APPLY.
■ Stopping the practice of telling parents of students with disabilities that there are some services that they don’t provide, and instead assuring parents that they will provide all services needed for their children.
The new undertaking praised in the Globe editorial, if properly implemented, will help charters to attract and serve students with limited English proficiency and significant disabilities.
Many charters also find ways of causing students with BEHAVIORAL issues to return to district public schools, whether by suspending them or advising them to leave, and these practices also need to stop. Finally, it’s important to note that because parents have to apply to charters for their children, charter enrollment is limited to students of parents who are motivated and able to complete the process.
issues to return to district public schools, whether by suspending them or advising them to leave, and these practices also need to stop. Finally, it’s important to note that because parents have to apply to charters for their children, charter enrollment is limited to students of parents who are motivated and able to complete the process.
Once these practices are changed, and charter schools enroll similar proportions of English language-learners, students with significant disabilities, and students with BEHAVIORAL issues, then comparisons of charter results with district school results will be valid.
issues, then comparisons of charter results with district school results will be valid.
the cost to the cities would be prohibitive -all those grants and funding to the public school from Title I, state, etc, would have to go to the Charter School and out of the public school budgets - you still need to hire the teachers and councilors with less money as a portion would be sent to the Charter school.
ReplyDeleteMaybe charter schools were created to give back education dollars to children instead of the greedy administration in public system.
ReplyDelete