Charter Schools are the hope of education turned right-side up. In what respect?
Several come to mind.
With Regard to Foundations:
Upside Down education begins with the obvious need to educate the children of a geographic area. More specifically, in the British Colonies, the public school system was born out of concern that too many young men were lying about town unprepared (and possibly unwilling) to contribute to the well-being of the community. Parents were accused of failing in their responsibilities, and the community felt the need to respond.
Right-side Up education begins with a sense of HOW children ought to be educated and by whom. The school is designed, top to bottom, to support a particular vision. Parents are invited to have their children educated in accordance with this vision. Parents are not asked to take on the roles of designer, principal, curriculum director or classroom teacher. Those jobs are filled by professionals.
With Regard to Parental Rights:
Upside Down education corrals families into neighborhood schools based solely on residency and without regard to individual family preferences. The results are too familiar to warrant description. Parents have a right to provide input. They have a right to ask for change. They have a right to lobby within the system, to advocate for their kids. But they don't have the right to change schools unless they successfully petition the district for permission to transfer or abandon public education altogether in favor of private or home schooling.
Right-side Up education puts ultimate authority, in the form of choice, in the hands of parents. Parents can support the school or shun it. Because Charter Schools are schools of choice, staff members are under no obligation to please each parent or to respond to pressure from groups of parents. Because parents have the right to walk away, they are never trapped in a charter school, but neither do they have leverage to make demands. Educational decisions are made by professionals, and parents retain their right to choose the best option for their children. The tension built in to mandatory attendance boundaries is broken in favor of a voluntary association.
At its best, that's what a charter school does. It resolves the fundamental tension inherent in the traditional school system. It offers a revolution in the partnership between parents and schools.
