Charter School Grades Off The Charts - BUT

Charter schools offer parents much needed choice; particularly in bad neighborhoods. These schools receive public funds but are privately run, generally outside the full jurisdiction of the Board of Education. Many feel dollars are better spent in schools like these rather than by offering parents school vouchers. Most importantly, charters seem to work here. For example, students in New York City’s charter-schools did significantly better than students in the city’s regular public schools. In grades 3 to 8, math proficiency scores were 84.9% for charter students vs. 70.5% for students in the same district and 74.3% citywide. In English, charter students were at a 67.1% proficiency level as compared to 53.6% for others in the same district and 57.6% citywide. Unfortunately, the overwhelming majority of students are not in charter schools. It’s New York City’s responsibility to ensure the best possible education system for kids. Even with the positive results charter and magnet schools seemingly deliver, test scores highlight the fact that New York City is still not teaching many of our children to effectively read and write. School choice or not, those who are responsible for teaching our children are failing us all if over a third of our students can’t even read well. We need city government and Board of Education officials to make the grade NOW with whatever resources they have at their disposal NOW. If not, many of our children won’t be able to fulfill their aspirations in the future; the same future where these same city and Board of Education officials will be comfortably retired ... retired on the pensions that we’ll be paying them.