As CPS prepares to close a record number of schools, the fate of students and communities is in question.
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In the News: Report finds high charter spending
By: Cassandra West / May 07, 2012
A new report by the National Education Policy Center that focuses on charter schools' financial performance concludes that many well-known charter school networks spend more money than comparable, regular public schools.
CPS last week launched a new website designed to, it says, "provide the public with timely and factual information about the collective bargaining process as negotiations continue between CPS and its seven employee union organizations." The page contains links and info regarding the state education reform law known as SB7. There's also a downloadable timeline on the collective bargaining between CPS and the Chicago Teachers Union.
IN THE STATE
North Suburban High School District 214 passed a staff professional development and evaluation plan on Thursday that includes student performance in teacher evaluations. (Daily Herald)
IN THE NATION
A nonprofit organization created by the Minneapolis Federation of Teachers will be the nation's first union-affiliated authorizer of charter schools. (AFT.org)
A Los Angeles charter elementary school with low test scores gets a reprieve. (Los Angeles Times)
The D.C. public school system will be eliminating more than 300 jobs. Teachers were notified that they have until August to find other positions in the school system. (NBC Washington)
Re: National Education Policy Center Report
Thanks to Catalyst to posting the link to this report, I took the time to read the entire report this morning and it was well worth the effort. I was struck by several things.
First what a big role keeping special education enrollment numbers down play in keeping charter schools average cost per child down. Second I was struck by this conclusion "the substantial variation in resources introduced into urban education systems by the emergence of well-funded and less-well-funded charter schools creates significant equity concerns."
We can see the winners and losers of the charter funding wars here in Chicago too. Catalyst I recall looked at the improtant role outside funding plays in Chicago's charter schools and noted that without these funds many charters would be running deficits. In a very real way we appear to be reproducing the same problems charter schools were supposed to help fix.
Rod Estvan
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