From the NY Post:Traditional public schools bested the city's charter schools on annual report-card grades for the first time -- scoring 10 points higher on average on a 100-point scale, new data shows.
The city's more than 1,000 public elementary and middle schools averaged a B on their so-called "progress reports," which assign letter grades to schools based largely on how much students improve on state math and reading tests in a given year.
By comparison, the city's 60 charter schools that received letter grades this year averaged a C+.
"This means that either the strategy Mayor Bloomberg and Chancellor [Joel] Klein have touted so often for school reform -- the creation of more charter schools -- isn't working, or that the entire progress-report methodology, which relies almost completely on standardized test scores, is flawed," said United Federation of Teachers President Michael Mulgrew.
14 comments:
Anyone who believes this is a grade A idiot. Klein and his cronies are fudging the numbers in much the same way that the police department is fudging theirs.
"Anyone who believes this is a grade A idiot. Klein and his cronies are fudging the numbers in much the same way that the police department is fudging theirs."
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Definitely.
The "Education Industry" is a boondoggle. While I applaud free-market principles being incorporated in the Charter movement, the academic content essentially remains the same. Progressive, therapeutic nonsense indoctrinating our young.
Perhaps this (Charters) can be a first step to liberating education from the nefarious grasps of the progressive elites.
Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg is about to piss away $100 million by donating it to the Newark school systems.
I'll bet $1000 that in 20 years, there will be "studies" showing how the $100 million had no impact, other than maybe making some Educrats wealthier. You won't read about these studies on the front page of the NY Times, it will be buried somewhere in the back.
The problem isn't just bad teachers and bad parents - the students are bad also.
When will the politicians and Educrats realize that "The Blank Slate" doesn't exist?
You can't feed pearls to swine, and you can't polish a turd.
What is this movie "Waiting for Superman"? Looks like he is already here no?
You think the Bloomberg Millionares that run the Charters aren't fudging the numbers? Revember Bloomie wants Charters.
Public School teachers also "teach to the test."
Public School teachers also "teach to the test."
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If public school teachers teach critical thinking and real world knowledge, you complain of low test scores and no accountability.
If public school teachers teach to the test (and get good results), you complain charter schools are still better because they teach critical thinking and real world knowledge, despite low test scores.
We can't win.
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If Bloomberg and Klein really wanted to fudge the numbers, they could easily make charter schools come out on top. The fact that public schools ranked higher shows that charter schools are no better (and in fact, worse) than public schools.
If the grading's based on "improvement of test scores," then the grades really tell us nothing vis-a-vis the standing of Charters vs. Traditional schools. If a charter school got test scores of 98% and then 94%, it would get a worse grade than if a traditional went from 35% to 36%, and yet the Charters would clearly be better in this case. But perhaps it's time to really make education free-market and think about vouchers? Dast we?
Gotta love the Post's coverage. First they report that Charters perform worse than public schools using the recentered scoring.
Then two days later they try to salvage charters' reputations (while savaging the union's) by trying to pin the underperfomance on the 7 unionized charter schools.
Wouldn't anyone stop and think that those charters are unionized because maybe administration and working conditions are so bad. If working at those schools was so great why would anyone in their right mind vote to pay $96 in UFT dues a month?!?
The Post marches lockstep with the Manhattan Institute and Bloomy's billionaire pals. That paper's advocacy is shameless.
If a charter school got test scores of 98% and then 94%, it would get a worse grade than if a traditional went from 35% to 36%, and yet the Charters would clearly be better in this case.
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No, it only means that the charter schools accept students who traditionally score high on the tests (usually predetermined by socioeconomic factors).
Anyone can open a charter school, accept only the highest scoring students and get high test scores. Actually, this is what happens in the real world; leaving high-needs students (English Language Learners, Special Education) in public schools.
Then people like you compare charter schools and public schools and point out charter schools achieve get test scores. Well obviously, if they accept only top students.
We can't win.
I spent 25 years teaching in public schools. I learned a simple lesson vis-a-vis teaching: It's the students that make or break the classroom. Most of my students came from homes where education wasn't a priority. The results of laxed parenting produced disruptive students who were incapable of learning. Instead of giving teachers the power to throw out disruptive students we're stuck with them. These disruptive students destroy the learning environment for the capable students. NYC once had the greatest public school system in the world. If teachers and administrators can't expel these worthless children then it's a fait accompli.
Deke DaSilva is a mere shadow of the late great bigot Wade Nichols. You have much to learn yet about narrow-mindedness, little Deke.
Great things are happening in charter schools.
http://www.leavechartersalone.com
Charters work!
"People like you..."
People like me are only asking for MATH LITERACY FROM PEOPLE LIKE YOU! You must have gone to a charter school.
I will admit that "better" was not a well chosen word.
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