Charting a better course: Charter schools raise educational standards for vulnerable children

The Economist features an article that outlines the origins of charter schools in Minnesota, paints a national picture of the charter school landscape—including high market share areas like D.C. and New Orleans, and discusses common criticism of charter schools. The article asserts that in research studies on charter schools that show “mixed” results, their findings “have been misinterpreted. The children who most need charters have been served well,” the article concludes.

Source: The Economist

A 20-year lesson: Evidence from America and Britain shows that independence for schools works

According to The Economist, charter schools provide evidence of the power of independent schools. The virtue of experiments is that you can learn from them; and it is now becoming clear how and where charter schools work best. Poor pupils, those in urban environments and English-language learners fare better in charters. In states that monitor them carefully and close down failing schools quickly, they work best. And one great advantage is that partly because most are free of union control, they can be closed down more easily if they are failing.

Source: The Economist

Pa. Flunks Online Charter School

Promising that students would learn two languages and get chances for internships, an online charter school failed in its first year of existence, unable to even provide some students with computers and Internet access, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Education. The department filed court documents to revoke the charter of Frontier Virtual Charter High School based in Philadelphia. The action marked the first time the state has attempted to revoke the charter of a cybercharter school, according to department spokesman Timothy Eller. On Thursday, following an emergency board meeting, Frontier agreed to surrender its charter.

Sources: Education Week

Bill Gates, Paul Allen Back Wash. State Ballot Plan

Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates, along with a number of other heavy hitters from the business community, are pouring money into an effort to allow for the creation of charter schools in Washington state. Gates, a native of the state and longtime supporter of charter schools, has contributed $1 million toward putting a ballot item before voters to grant charters, according to records on file with the state's Public Disclosure Commission.

Source: Education Week

Opinion: Our public schools must teach 21st-century skills

In the face of foreign competition for jobs and the problem of automation, Thomas Nida draws on his experience in the banking industry and membership on the D.C. Public Charter School Board to argue that every public school should be investing heavily in the skills required for future success. Nida cites Two Rivers Public Charter School in Northeast D.C. as a promising example. Two Rivers' curriculum emphasizes the importance of learning by critical thinking over learning by rote. Using a research-based approach known as Expeditionary Learning, the school aims not only to lay the foundations of knowledge that students need, but also to teach them how to solve complex problems.

Sources: Washington Examiner