Hype or Hope?

1. Hype or Hope? The Future of Charter Schools in America Jessica Woodruff, Kate Wessman, Shelby Ziegler, Lianne White, Dwight Weingarten

2. Buckley and Schneider's Concerns: • Too many promises only weakly supported by evidence • Hype has caused inflated (unrealistic) hope to an unreasonable degree. • More promised than can be reasonably delivered

3. The Facts...Thus Far • Charter schools are falling short • A need to consider carefully the promise and limits • Empirical findings in regards to… • satisfaction • social capital and school communities • citizenship • achievement

4. Satisfaction • Parents begin with high evaluations but it erodes over time • Overestimation • Parents and students (“the customer”) no more satisfied than those in public schools

5. Social Capital and School Communities • Charter schools have potential, but the hope of accumulating social capital over time has not been realized • Erosion over time

6. Building Good Citizens • Charter schools have small advantages in some instances, but not significant enough for wide-scale school reform.

7. Achievement • Buckley and Schneider's study shows that "charter schools are NOT outperforming a matched sample of traditional public schools" (p. 97) • *Composition of individual schools, not the overall composition of the sector

8. Just to be fair... • "Charter schools never fared worse than the traditional public schools--and they quite often did better.” • However... • Are charter schools living up to their lofty promises?

9. Building Markets for Education • Importance of race in "school shopping" • Little accurate information available to parents • "Hot cognition” • Initial high expectations, followed by an updated evaluation (more realistic and grounded)

10. The Equity/Efficiency Trade-Off • Choice can lead to efficiency and effectiveness • However, two major concerns: • Increased segregation and stratification • Adverse effects on academic achievement • Choice driven by demographics, not academics

11. Who Picks Whom? • Idea that parents as consumers choose schools • *Schools also chose students • Charter schools have added freedom

12. 3 C's and 2 A's • Debate over charter schools: • Competition • Choice • Communities • Proponents argue that 3 C's will lead to 2 A's • Accountability • Achievement • Author's argue there is the potential, but more time and anaysis is needed

13. Inside the Black Box • Charter schools do no harm and have much potential • Now, the research community must figure out how to increase the potential and turn it into reality

14. Anecdotes of the Good and the Bad • Not all charter schools are of the same quality • Some great failures (Page 280) • Others great successes (Page 281-2)

15. Thriving Entrepreneurship • Autonomy gives charter schools the freedom to get more money to create a first-class school • Mobilize entrepreneurs • Ex: Josh Kern

16. Final Conclusions:Half Empty? Half Full? • Freedom inherent in charter schools is an opportunity for: • Great Success • Spectacular failures • Moderation is key • Future is dependent on students, parents, policy-makers and researchers • Need accountability from the bottom (parents) and the top (researchers)

17. Introduction to Class Debate • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_w1b-8FV2qI&feature=relmfu

18. Let’s Debate! • For Amendment One VS • Against Amendment One