A new report looks at school choice in 30 major U.S. cities. We’ve got the Florida angle.
I have no illusion that families will always choose a great school for their children. But this is not the right question. The right question is whether or not, on average, families will be better choosers than district officials.
Two pieces of evidence make it very clear to me that families will, on average, choose better than district officials.
First, to date, district officials (who do not give families choice) have not improved on their century old algorithm of assigning schools based on geographic proximity. If this is the best that they can come up with, then good riddance.
Second, district officials continue assigning poor black and Hispanic families to terrible schools. If they cannot see that their algorithm is terribly racist, then good riddance.
That doesn’t mean that choice-based systems don’t need improvements, too. High-scoring Denver, for example, made enrollment easier for parents, and saw more disadvantaged students enroll in charters as a result.
Meanwhile…
The Every Student Succeeds Act is now law. What’s changed? What’s really changed? What’s that mean for charter schools? What’s the biggest concern with the new federal education policy?
A final tally on the legislative gains made across the country in 2016, “the year of educational choice.”
Legal update: Washington State charter schools find a way to remain open after their funding was found unconstitutional. A ruling on Nevada’s ESA program may be imminent. School choice backers score another legal win in Florida, but the battles aren’t over.
Charter schools are less likely to “label” special needs children and English Language Learners, a new working paper finds.
Tweets of the week
“A Christmas miracle: A bipartisan bill signing right here.” —@POTUS: https://t.co/jGzOUZeaAs #ESSA pic.twitter.com/dXoIE1Ds9k
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) December 11, 2015
In this bill, we send money back to the states & give parents more choices by promoting high-quality #CharterSchoolshttps://t.co/Wdn2sNHS5b
— Paul Ryan (@SpeakerRyan) December 9, 2015
Send tips, links and holiday cheer to tpillow[at]sufs[dot]org.
