Charter School

[Shadow]

One of my daughter's is really struggling with/in her public high school. I met with her councelor today and learned that she is a good candidate to test for entrance into a Charter School to catch up. The school in question works on trimesters and is excelerated...so, she has a good chance to earn back any credits she has lost and can later graduate with her class.

Has anyone had experience with Charter Schools? I know they are pretty strict. If so,what did you think about them?

[fj1200]

One of my daughter's is really struggling with/in her public high school. I met with her councelor today and learned that she is a good candidate to test for entrance into a Charter School to catch up. The school in question works on trimesters and is excelerated...so, she has a good chance to earn back any credits she has lost and can later graduate with her class.

Has anyone had experience with Charter Schools? I know they are pretty strict. If so,what did you think about them?

We're in a new charter school and it is excellent. I don't know if I would generalize charter schools as strict but there may be some particular requirements like volunteering a set number of hours. Beyond that it probably depends on the specifics and particular charter of the school. There is another local charter school that by charter must accept ~50% of its kids from the local refugee population which presents some issues but I think it was a good experience for my son when he was there in 1st grade.

Bottom line: depends on the school but that's always the case. Good luck to you and her in getting into a better situation.

[SassyLady]

My granddaghter and grandson both go charter schools. Basis of Tucson is one and the other is Academy of Math and Science. GD took Latin in 5th and 6th grades and is now taking Chinese. GS is in 4th grade and is taking Russian. Definitely expect more from their students than public schools. The teachers at both schools are professionals in their fields and not professional teachers..not unionized and can be fired for not producing results. Basis students have all necessary credits and ready for college after completing 11th grade. Very accelerated.

[Shadow]

I don't know if I would generalize charter schools as strict but there may be some particular requirements like volunteering a set number of hours.

Basically I was just told that they only want students who actually want to be there...so the kids have to apply themselves...and make all arrangements to attend and set up the appt for the entrance exam. Then agree to school policy...which is pretty much zero tolerance due to the amount of students seeking to enroll. I thought that was good. Means my daughter has to be engaged right from the onset and will teach her to learn how to fend for herself.


not unionized and can be fired for not producing results.


Another thing I really liked...They have to meet certain standards that the high school does not. I was having a hard time getting my daughters teachers/councelors etc to care about her education. To them she is just a number and they were not invested in her success...so she wasn't either.

I think this could be good for her self esteem...once she see's that she can do what she sets her mind to.

[fj1200]

Basically I was just told that they only want students who actually want to be there...

Cool, sounds like an intense program. In any charter school the parents have to at least take positive action to get them in the school but it sounds like they go even above that.

[SassyLady]

What I like about my grandson's school is that although he is in 4th grade, he takes his math and science classes at 6th grade level. The remainder of his subjects are taught at his normal class level...so, he's not "ahead" or "behind" in any areas. They teach each subject at the learning level of the student no matter what their age. They aren't just put in a grade level and expected to all learn at the same pace.

My granddaughter had passing grades in all her classes last year, passed all her final exams but her Latin final. In fact, even with failing the final, she had a passing grade. However, the school refused to promote her to the next grade because she failed the final. They don't allow the students to slack off ... they are expected to excel all the way down, and past the wire. They did, however, give her a chance to retake the final two weeks before school started. She passed, and was promoted. The school is very demanding and has high expectations.

Her school was the topic of a documentary "Two Million Minutes"



'Two Million Minutes,' in a Couple ParagraphsBy Sean Cavanagh (http://www.edweek.org/ew/contributors/sean.cavanagh.html) on <abbr class="published" title="2009-09-22T14:27:49-05:00" style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; border-image: initial; ">September 22, 2009 </abbr>

<iframe allowtransparency="true" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" src="http://platform.twitter.com/widgets/tweet_button.1326407570.html#_=1327979812324&_version=2&count=vertical&enableNewSizing=false&id=twitter-widget-0&lang=en&original_referer=http%3A%2F%2Fblogs.edweek.org%2Fe dweek%2Fcurriculum%2F2009%2F09%2Ftwo_million_minut es_in_a_coupl.html&size=m&text=Curriculum%20Matters%3A%20'Two%20Million%20Mi nutes%2C'%20in%20a%20Couple%20Paragraphs&url=http%3A%2F%2Fblogs.edweek.org%2Fedweek%2Fcurri culum%2F2009%2F09%2Ftwo_million_minutes_in_a_coupl .html&via=educationweek" class="twitter-share-button twitter-count-vertical" title="Twitter Tweet Button" style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 5px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; height: 62px; width: 55px; "></iframe>
I've been backlogged with a couple assignments recently, so I didn't have time to give my impressions of "Two Million Minutes: A 21st Century Solution," a film that debuted in Washington late last week. I attended the premiere. The crowd included a lot of business representatives and education-policy types, though the big-ticket draws were probably the Rev. Al Sharpton and former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich. The unlikely duo have moving through the talk-show and public-appearance circuit, talking about the need to improve American schools, among other things. They came in support of the documentary, which is a sequel to a similarly themed 2007 film (http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2008/01/09/17video.h27.html)...............

................Like the first "Two Million Minutes," the film makes the argument that U.S. students are performing at a mediocre level, at best, in math and science, and that this cannot stand, given the growing economic and educational might of nations like China and India. Unlike the earlier film, this one makes that case through a profile of a single school—BASIS Tucson (http://www.basistucson.org/), a charter school in Arizona—and scaffolds out from there. BASIS is depicted as a high-performing, pioneering school that has succeeded despite initial community opposition and relatively meager state financial support, which caused all sorts of problems for the founders in the beginning and creates continued budgetary woes to this day. The kids at BASIS are not math-and-science drones. They're presented as smart and engaged—with interests ranging from dance and roller derby to art and fire-juggling (I kid you not). One key difference in the school's approach appears to be that very advanced concepts in math and science and other subjects are integrated as far back as middle school. (The school serves grades 5-12.) The curriculum is demanding; the filmmakers interview students who struggled to keep up after arriving from lesser schools, but who eventually made it.
The film features interviews with the recently retired chairman of Intel, Craig Barrett (http://www.intel.com/pressroom/kits/bios/barrett/bio.htm), and former Arizona schools superintendent Lisa Graham Keegan, both of whom argue that the current educational system is not cutting it. It also includes some direct and indirect jabs and teachers' unions and teachers' colleges; at one point a narrator refers to the education "bureaucrats" who "keep our children locked in the 20th Century."
In one segment, Barrett, who has a Ph.D. in materials science, and who and taught at Stanford University for 10 years, remarks that he wouldn't be allowed to teach in a California public school without going back and picking up certification. Keegan, who was also an adviser (http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/campaign-k-12/2008/06/mccain_nclb_is_adequately_fund.html?qs=keegan+mcca in)to Sen. John McCain's 2008 presidential campaign, praises Teach for America. One of the BASIS school's founders talks about how she rewards teachers not only with financial incentives for student performance on AP tests, but also with the promise that they'll be given autonomy in the classroom. She praises the College Board for creating a "community of Advanced Placement teachers," held to similarly high standards.
I suspect that reaction to "Two Million Minutes" will depend on viewers' willingness to buy a premise. Actually, two of them: 1) That the United States' education system is falling behind those of high-performing nations (not everyone buys that argument); and 2) that the story of what ails the United States' schools, and the answer to how they can be improved, can be told through the story of a single school. The filmmakers obviously believe it can. Here's a school, as they present it, that through determination and a willingness to fight through the constraints of the public school establishment, produces some of the world's best K-12 students.

http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/curriculum/2009/09/two_million_minutes_in_a_coupl.html

[Shadow]

What I like about my grandson's school is that although he is in 4th grade, he takes his math and science classes at 6th grade level. The remainder of his subjects are taught at his normal class level...so, he's not "ahead" or "behind" in any areas. They teach each subject at the learning level of the student no matter what their age. They aren't just put in a grade level and expected to all learn at the same pace.

My granddaughter had passing grades in all her classes last year, passed all her final exams but her Latin final. In fact, even with failing the final, she had a passing grade. However, the school refused to promote her to the next grade because she failed the final. They don't allow the students to slack off ... they are expected to excel all the way down, and past the wire. They did, however, give her a chance to retake the final two weeks before school started. She passed, and was promoted. The school is very demanding and has high expectations.

Her school was the topic of a documentary "Two Million Minutes"





[/FONT][/COLOR][/LEFT]


Seems to be just what my daughter really needs too. They do take a placement test to see where she is at in all subjects. I think she will benefit a lot from this experience. Sounds like your grandkids sure did. Nice article BTW.

[SassyLady]

Seems to be just what my daughter really needs too. They do take a placement test to see where she is at in all subjects. I think she will benefit a lot from this experience. Sounds like your grandkids sure did. Nice article BTW.

My granddaughter had to do the testing...not sure if she has to do it every year or not. I do know that they have such a waiting list that they don't tolerate not being fully engaged. You are there to learn, not there as a "daycare" like in a lot of public schools. It's also amazing how engaged the parents get ... can't be cavalier about your children's study habits, etc., especially after the hard work of getting them into the school. My daughter put my grandson on the waiting list two years ago and he will test this summer.

The main thing my daughter wanted was for her children to not be in a public school. She said that she feels public schools are more about indoctrination than about teaching. Just a side note, my granddaughter's father (my daughter's ex) is a teacher in public school and so was his mother, and he loves the fact that his daughter is in Basis.

Since day one, Basis has been all about the students learning individual responsibility and consequences. This was the biggest challenge for my grandkids ... they were so used to calling their mom if they forgot something and she would stop everything she was doing and run to the school to drop it off (books, homework, lunch ... etc).

Oh, and self defense classes were my granddaughter's phys ed subject in 5th grade taught by a professional.

[ConHog]

I used to believe charter schools did more harm by taking away from public schools then good, but I've seen too many successful stories about them to think that way now.

I wish public schools could do a lot of things they do.

[fj1200]

Public schools should be abolished in favor of charter schools and vouchers. Our county is evidence that the traditional model is a failure. The school board is anti-anything but traditional schools and their performances are just embarrassing.

[ConHog]

Public schools should be abolished in favor of charter schools and vouchers. Our county is evidence that the traditional model is a failure. The school board is anti-anything but traditional schools and their performances are just embarrassing.

Why do you assume school boards are anti anything but traditional schools? I just told you I think they do a lot of good things, I'm on a public school board. But we can't do away with traditional schools. Too many kids who don't have access to charter schools.

I predict in 10 years the brick and mortar school will be gone in either case.

[fj1200]

Why do you assume school boards are anti anything but traditional schools? I just told you I think they do a lot of good things, I'm on a public school board. But we can't do away with traditional schools. Too many kids who don't have access to charter schools.

I predict in 10 years the brick and mortar school will be gone in either case.

I was speaking of our county. GA passed a law a few years back authorizing the state to charter schools and provide full funding, including local funds, with the caveat that new schools apply to the county first. We made that application, with several others, and were denied en masse. After being chartered by the state, the GA supremes struck down the law as unconstitutional which threatened to close many schools including our own. We applied again to the county and they begrudgingly, IMO, accepted our school. Although we now have a 10-year lease to occupy a previously closed school so there is some support.

Kids don't have access to charter schools in some locations because the schools are not authorized for various reasons; the NAACP suing NYC as example. I think the old model is completely outdated and a public school monopoly is just as damaging as any other monopoly, possibly more so especially to the poor who have no other alternative.

I predict that in 10 years it will be largely the same but I hope that alternatives are available to traditional public schools.

[ConHog]

I was speaking of our county. GA passed a law a few years back authorizing the state to charter schools and provide full funding, including local funds, with the caveat that new schools apply to the county first. We made that application, with several others, and were denied en masse. After being chartered by the state, the GA supremes struck down the law as unconstitutional which threatened to close many schools including our own. We applied again to the county and they begrudgingly, IMO, accepted our school. Although we now have a 10-year lease to occupy a previously closed school so there is some support.

Kids don't have access to charter schools in some locations because the schools are not authorized for various reasons; the NAACP suing NYC as example. I think the old model is completely outdated and a public school monopoly is just as damaging as any other monopoly, possibly more so especially to the poor who have no other alternative.

I predict that in 10 years it will be largely the same but I hope that alternatives are available to traditional public schools.

I was talking more about rural areas where charter schools aren't an option. And probably never will be.

I see no reason why they won't be an option in urban settings.

[SassyLady]

I was talking more about rural areas where charter schools aren't an option. And probably never will be.I see no reason why they won't be an option in urban settings.Why are they not option?

[ConHog]

Why are they not option?

because in sparsely populated areas like ours we just don't have the student population to have two schools in a town. We have 1200 students from K-12 total. Now true Arkansas is weird and each town has a school district rather than just having a county wide school district as we should, but even that has some legitimate reasons why it wouldn't work... IE some kids would be riding the bus 2 hours or more each way. So unless you eliminated the public school I don't see how there would be enough of a demand around here for a charter school. There are charter schools in Arkansas though, so it's not about the state, rather about the logistics.

I should add, we do have a few church ran schools to , but we're talking about maybe 20-50 kids each and their kids ALWAYS are behind even the public schools in terms of testing levels, they aren't near as competitive as the charter schools are.

[SassyLady]

So, charter is an option if public school is eliminated.