Abstract
Debate is intensifying in the United States with the rapid spread of charter schools and their domination of the education reform agenda. Controversy surrounds the very existence of public charter schools – an incendiary if not polarizing topic of political discourse – while the sector expands. The authors traced the pros and cons in the discussion by analyzing relevant literature (e.g., empirical research), public documents, and media sources. The complex snapshot presented signals deep discord in the public charter school movement. A creation story underlies how public charter schools came to be and the endless struggle over education reform. A narrative emerged about the past, present, and future of the charter school movement and battles over market-based solutions to public education problems that force the privatization of public education. Informed by both sides of the charter polemic, the authors developed an unusual collaboration as a critic (first author) and advocate (coauthor). Mirroring the charter debate’s two-sided argument, the intention for this writing was to offer a gateway to productive albeit challenging discourse in a landscape that is deeply divisive and combative. The work ends with reflection on the present and future of public charter schools, and considers where shifts or anticipated ruptures or controversies can be expected to arise. This chapter’s distinctiveness is that it illuminates critical aspects of the charter debate in contemporary times, weighs pros and cons of charter schools, and advances recommendations.
Chapter submission:
F. English (Ed.), The Palgrave Handbook of Educational Leadership and Management Discourse; Section 5, “Leadership, Policy, and Politics” (accepted by Dr. English)
Date of submission: 10-12-21
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Ackerman, M., & Egalite, A. J. (2017). A critical look at methodologies used to evaluate charter school effectiveness. Educational Assessment, Evaluation and Accountability, 29, 363–396.
Angrist, J. D., Pathak, P. A., & Walters, C. R. (2013). Explaining charter school effectiveness. American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, 5(4), 1–27.
Arbogast, T. E. (2000). An historical analysis of the development of charter school legislation in Virginia. (Unpublished dissertation, Virginia Tech). https://vtechworks.lib.vt.edu/bitstream/handle/10919/27145/Dissertation.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y
Ash, K. (2013, July 9). 25-state study finds charter schools improving. Education Week. https://www.edweek.org/teaching-learning/25-state-study-finds-charter-schools-improving/2013/07
Baker, O. (2017). Knowledge is power, but at a cost. Education Studies. http://debsedstudies.org/knowledge-is-power-but-at-a-cost-kipp-cmo-report
Berliner, D. C., & Glass, G. V. (Eds.). (2014). 50 myths & lies that threaten America’s public schools: The real crisis in education. Teachers College Press.
Breitbart News Network. (2019). West Virginia teachers to strike again over charter schools bill. Breitbart. https://www.breitbart.com/news/west-virginia-teachers-to-strike-again-over-charter-schools-bill
Brighouse, H., & Schouten, G. (2014). To charter or not to charter: What questions should we ask, and what will the answers tell us? Harvard Educational Review, 84(3), 341–364.
Brinig, M. F., & Garnett, N. S. (2012). Catholic schools, charter schools, and urban neighborhoods. The University of Chicago Law Review, 79(31), 31–57.
Buckley, J., & Sattin-Bajaj, C. (2011). Are ELL students underrepresented in charter schools? Demographic trends in New York City, 2006–2008. Journal of School Choice, 5(1), 40–65.
Bulkley, K., & Fisher, J. (2002). A decade of charter schools: From theory to practice. CPRE Policy Briefs. https://repository.upenn.edu/cpre_policybriefs/23
Bushaw, W. J., & Lopez, S. J. (2013). Which way do we go? Phi Delta Kappan, 95(1), 9–25.
Carlson, D., Lavery, L., & Witte, J. F. (2012). Charter school authorizers and student achievement. Economics of Education Review, 31, 254–267.
Center for Education Reform (CER). (2018). National charter school law rankings and scorecard 2018: The essential guide to charter school laws (pp. 1–111). https://edreform.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/CER_National-Charter-School-Law-Rankings-and-Scorecard-2018_screen_3-21-18.pdf
Center for Education Reform (CER). (2021). Choice & charter schools: Facts. https://edreform.com/issues/choice-charter-schools/facts
Center for Research on Education Outcomes (CREDO). (2013). National charter school study (pp. 1–95). https://credo.stanford.edu/sites/g/files/sbiybj6481/f/ncss_2013_final_draft.pdf
Charter Collaborative. (2015). Collective action coalition. http://www.chartercollab.org/action-agenda
Chasmar, J. (2013). Union boss Karen Lewis blames ‘rich white people’ for Chicago’s education woes. The Washington Times. https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2013/jun/19/union-boss-karen-lewis-blames-rich-white-people-ch
Chen, G. (2020). Charter schools vs. traditional public schools: Which one is under-performing? Public School Review. https://www.publicschoolreview.com/blog/charter-schools-vs-traditional-public-schools-which-one-is-under-performing
Cohen, R. (2017). The untold history of charter schools. Democracy: A Journal of Ideas. https://democracyjournal.org/arguments/the-untold-history-of-charter-schools
Cousin, S., & Davis, R. (2019, March 11). Newly renovated Commonwealth Charter Academy unveils new agworks facility. http://www.cra-architects.com/news/newly-renovated-commonwealth-charter-academy-unveils-new-agworks-facility
Debray-Pelot, E. (2007). School choice and educational privatization initiatives in the 106th and 107th congress: An analysis of policy formation and political ideologies. Teachers College Record, 109(4), 927–972.
Dynarski, S., Hoxby, C., Loveless, T., Schneider, M., Whitehurst, G., & Witte, J. (2010). Charter schools: A report on rethinking the federal role in education (pp. 1–18). [Brown Center on Education Policy at Brookings]. https://www.brookings.edu/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/1216_charter_schools.pdf
EdChoice. (2021). School choice FAQs: What is school choice? https://www.edchoice.org/school-choice/faqs
English, F. W., Papa, R., Mullen, C. A., & Creighton, T. (2012). Educational leadership at 2050: Conjectures, challenges, and promises. Rowman & Littlefield Education.
Finn, C. E., Jr., Manno, B. V., & Wright, B. L. (2016). Charter schools at the crossroads: Predicaments, paradoxes, possibilities. Harvard Education Press.
Fishman, D. (2015). School reform for rural America: Innovate with charters, expand career and technical education. Education Next, 15(3), 8–15.
Frankenberg, E. (2011). Charter schools: A civil rights mirage? Kappa Delta Pi Record, 47(3), 100–105.
Frankenberg, E., & Lee, C. (2003). Charter schools and race: A lost opportunity for integrated education. Education Policy Analysis Archives, 11(32), 1–48.
Gawlik, M. A., & Allen, A. (2020). Perceptions of the role of a charter superintendent by charter board members and principals. European Journal of Educational Management, 3(1), 15–24.
Gill, B. P., Timpane, P. M., Ross, K. E., & Brewer, D. J. (2001). Rhetoric versus reality: What we know and what we need to know about vouchers and charter schools. RAND Corporation.
Green, P. C., & Mead, J. F. (2004). Charter schools and the law: Establishing new legal relationships. Christopher Gordon Publishers.
Grady, S., Bielick, S., & Aud, S. (2010). Trends in the use of school choice: 1993 to 2007 (pp. 1–65). [statistical analysis report, US Department of Education]. https://nces.ed.gov/pubs2010/2010004.pdf
Hess, F. M., & Davis, B. C. (2000). Charter school legislation in Virginia: How race, regional tension, and the absence of crisis produced a “weak” law. Richmond Public Interest Law Review, 5(1), 13–33. https://scholarship.richmond.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1088&context=pilr
Hill, P. (2001). Charter school districts. [Center on Reinventing Public Education]. https://www.crpe.org/publications/charter-school-districts
Hirsch, E. D., Jr. (1996). The schools we need and why we don’t have them. New york: Anchor Books.
Huson, J. A. (2021). The advantages of traditional schools. Seattlepi. https://education.seattlepi.com/advantages-traditional-schools-2140.html
Jacobson, L. (2017). NCES survey: Charter principals more likely to be Black or Hispanic. K-12 Dive. [Brief]. https://www.k12dive.com/news/nces-survey-charter-principals-more-likely-to-be-black-or-hispanic/448976/?_hsenc=p2ANqtz--1vjCn6PyHj4T94RvMf5ZSYg0ZMQyitAlZA2Xn83r-onWYBqFQP47JJs220YGS_-hgT-K5gsoon1QPrPLKcwBN6Nd2fnLEIN70w7QjKHGN5kyYohs&_hsmi=55195802
Jason, Z. (2017). The battle over charter schools. Ed. Harvard Ed. Magazine. https://www.gse.harvard.edu/news/ed/17/05/battle-over-charter-schools
Kahlenberg, R. D. (2009). Tough liberal: Albert Shanker and the battles over schools, unions, race, and democracy. Columbia University Press.
Lehnen, K. E. (2016). Charting the course: Charter school exploration in Virginia. University of Richmond School of Law, 50(3), 839–868. https://scholarship.richmond.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=3055&context=lawreview
Malin, J. R., Lubienski, C., & Mensa-Bonsu, Q. (2020). Media strategies in policy advocacy: Tracing the justifications for Indiana’s school choice reforms. Educational Policy, 34(1), 118–143.
Miron, G., & Nelson, C. D. (2002). What’s public about charter schools?: Lessons learned about choice and accountability. Thousand Oaks: Corwin.
Mora, R., & Christianakis, M. (2011). Charter schools, market capitalism, and Obama’s neo-liberal agenda. Journal of Inquiry & Action in Education, 4(1), 93–111.
Mullen, C. A. (2017). What are corporate education networks? Why ask questions? Kappa Delta Pi Record, 53(3), 100–106.
Mullen, C. A., English, F. W., Brindley, S., Ehrich, L. C., & Samier, E. A. (2013). Guest editors of “neoliberal issues in public education.”. Interchange: A Quarterly Review of Education, 43(3) (vol. 1) and 43(4) (vol. 2), 181–377.
Mullen, C. A., Samier, E. A., Brindley, S., English, F. W., & Carr, N. K. (2013). An epistemic frame analysis of neoliberal culture and politics in the US, UK, and the UAE. Interchange: A Quarterly Review of Education, 43(3), 187–228.
National Alliance for Public Charter Schools (NAPCS). (2021). Charter school data dashboard. https://data.publiccharters.org
National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) Task Force on Quality Education. (2017). Quality education for ALL: One school at a time. https://www.scribd. com/document/354815724/NAACP-Task-Force-Final-Report#from_embed
National Charter School Resource Center (NCSRC). (n.d.). What is a charter school? https://charterschoolcenter.ed.gov/what-charter-school
National Education Association (NEA). (2021). Charter school accountability. https://www.nea.org/student-success/smart-just-policies/funding-public-schools/charter-school-accountability
National Association of Charter School Authorizers. (2022). What is charter school authorizing? https://www.qualitycharters.org/authorizingmatters
New York City Department of Education. (2021). How to enroll in charter schools. https://www. schools.nyc.gov/enrollment/enroll-in-charter-schools/how-to-enroll-in-charter-schools
Oluwole, J. O. (2019). A national lesson on the dereliction and declension of educational equality: The cautionary tale of California charter schools. Campbell Law Review, 41(1), 1–45.
Pattillo, M. (2015). Everyday politics of school choice in the black community. Du Bois Review: Social Science Research on Race, 12(1), 41–71.
PDKPoll. (2020). 2020 PDKPoll of the public’s attitudes toward the public schools (pp. 1–30). PDKPoll. https://pdkpoll.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/PDKPoll2020presentation.pdf
Public Citizens for Children + Youth. (2018). Expanding high quality charter school options: Strong charter school legislation matters (pp. 1–20). https://s9528.pcdn.co/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/PCCYCharterSchoolReport2017.pdf
Public School Review. (2021). Commonwealth charter academy charter school. https://www.publicschoolreview.com/commonwealth-charter-academy-charter-school-profile
Ravitch, D. (2014). Reign of error: The hoax of the privatization movement and the danger to America’s public schools. New York: Vintage Books.
Raymond, M. E. (2014). To no avail: A critical look at the charter school debate. Phi Delta Kappan, 95(5), 8–12.
Reckhow, S., Grossmann, M., & Evans, B. C. (2015). Policy cues and ideology in attitudes toward charter schools. Policy Studies Journal, 43(2), 207–227.
Rubin, J. S., & Weber, M. (2022). Charter schools’ impact on public education: Theory versus reality. In C. H. Tienken & C. A. Mullen (Eds.), The risky business of education policy (pp. 72–87). Routledge and Kappa Delta Pi.
Shen, Y. (2011). Authorizing charter schools. [National Conference of State Legislatures]. https://www.ncsl.org/documents/educ/AuthorizingCharterSchools.pdf
Snyder, J. A. (2014). Teaching kids ‘grit’ is all the rage: Here’s what’s wrong with it. The New Republic. https://newrepublic.com/article/117615/problem-grit-kipp-and-character-based-education
Strauss, V. (2014). A dozen problems with charter schools. The Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/answer-sheet/wp/2014/05/20/a-dozen-problems-with-charter-schools
Temkin, K., Hong, G., Davis, L., & Bavin, W. (2008). Implementation of the Credit Enhancement for Charter School Facilities Program (pp. 1–103). [US Department of Education.] https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED501541.pdf
US Department of Education (USDOE). (1995). The Improving America’s Schools Act of 1994. [Reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act.] https://www2.ed.gov/offices/OESE/archives/legislation/ESEA/brochure/iasa-bro.html
US Department of Education (USDOE). (2004). Successful charter schools (pp. 1–61). https://www2.ed.gov/admins/comm/choice/charter/report.pdf
US Department of Education (USDOE). (2018). Final audit report: Nationwide audit of oversight of closed charter schools (pp. 1–36). https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/oig/auditreports/fy2018/a02m0011.pdf
US Department of Education (USDOE). (2019). School choice in the United States: 2019 (pp. 1–91). https://nces.ed.gov/pubs2019/2019106.pdf
Vasquez Heilig, J. (2017). Fact checking KIPP, TFA, and DeVos charter voucher acolytes (trap laid). Cloaking inequity: A blog focused on education and social justice research. https://cloakinginequity.com/2017/09/28/fact-checking-kipp-tfa-and-devos-charter-voucher-acolytes-trap-laid
Virginia Law. (1998). Code of Virginia. (Chapter 13). [Legislative code § 22.1–212.6: Establishment and operation of public charter schools; requirements]. https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/title22.1/chapter13/section22.1-212.6
Virginia Department of Education. (2021). Charter schools. https://www.doe.virginia.gov/instruction/charter_schools/index.shtml
Virginia Board of Education. (2003). Public charter schools in the commonwealth of Virginia (pp. 1–6). [Report]. https://rga.lis.virginia.gov/Published/2003/RD57/PDF
West Virginia Legislature. (2020). Senate bill 451 passes the senate. West Virginia Legislature Blog. https://blog.wvlegislature.gov/senate/2019/02/04/senate-bill-451-passes-the-senate
Winters, M. A. (2014). Why the gap? English Language Learners and New York City charter schools (pp. 1–13). [Report, Manhattan Institute]. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED564925.pdf
Yan, H. (2019, February 20). West Virginia teachers scored on day 1 of their strike: But they’re back on the picket lines again. CNN. https://spotlightonpoverty.org/news/west-virginia-teachers-scored-on-day-1-of-their-strike-but-theyre-back-on-the-picket-lines-again
Zhang, Y., & Yang, K. (2008). What drives charter school diffusion at the local level: Educational needs or political and institutional forces? Policy Studies Journal, 36(4), 571–591.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2022 The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG
About this entry
Cite this entry
Mullen, C.A., Bartlett, T.C. (2022). Public School Charters: An Incendiary Topic of Political Discourse. In: The Palgrave Handbook of Educational Leadership and Management Discourse. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-39666-4_130-1
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-39666-4_130-1
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-030-39666-4
Online ISBN: 978-3-030-39666-4
eBook Packages: Springer Reference EducationReference Module Humanities and Social SciencesReference Module Education
Publish with us
Chapter history
-
Latest
Public School Charters: An Incendiary Topic of Political Discourse- Published:
- 07 July 2022
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-39666-4_130-2
-
Original
Public School Charters: An Incendiary Topic of Political Discourse- Published:
- 27 May 2022
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-39666-4_130-1