Anonymous
12/05/2020 17:00
Subject: WaPo opinion piece on charters
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:My views on charters have completely changed with COVID. Bring on the charters. Teacher’s unions don’t care about education.
Same. I’m now pro-voucher. Pro-charter. Anti-union. It’s a complete 180 for me.
+1000
WTU has made a tremendous number of enemies through all this.
Anonymous
12/05/2020 16:38
Subject: WaPo opinion piece on charters
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:My views on charters have completely changed with COVID. Bring on the charters. Teacher’s unions don’t care about education.
Same. I’m now pro-voucher. Pro-charter. Anti-union. It’s a complete 180 for me.
+1000
Anonymous
12/05/2020 16:28
Subject: WaPo opinion piece on charters
DCPS has always been terrible except a few rich schools. You choose to live in DC. So, you pay for private or figure it out.
Anonymous
12/05/2020 16:21
Subject: WaPo opinion piece on charters
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:My views on charters have completely changed with COVID. Bring on the charters. Teacher’s unions don’t care about education.
Same. I’m now pro-voucher. Pro-charter. Anti-union. It’s a complete 180 for me.
Please withdraw your child(ren) from DCPS as soon as possible. I hope you are attending EdFest next weekend to find the right charter for you!
Everyone I know is planning to vote with their feet. This year has been a disgrace.
I hope you are right. I would love to see more OOB and diversity (racial and ses) in my upper NW school. I’m a teacher so other parents may not feel this way. But if you are right I hope it leads to better outcomes for all kids served by DCPS schools.
Anonymous
12/05/2020 16:14
Subject: Re:WaPo opinion piece on charters
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:If WTU has taught us anything, it’s that we need more charters.
Agreed. I think the charter sector nationwide needs controls and transparency (and especially the elimination of any for-profit involvement) but the attack on the charter sector as a whole is driven by the teacher’s union. I don’t trust their perspective anymore, as they have made it abundantly clear they represent the interests of teachers, not students.
I’d be more pro charter if they didn’t counsel out “hard to teach” kids or kids with IEPs. I guess public schools will still have to be around for those kids that the charters don’t want.
If the per pupil funding was higher for charters (and they had access to underused DCPS buildings) I think charters would be more willing and able to serve the “hard to teach”. They are already on a shoestring, by design, in comparison to DCPS. The teachers union gets what it gets.
There are very few underused DCPS buildings anymore. Some have space but it is in poor condition or is not enough space for anyone to want.
If the PCSB would shut down some of the low performing charter schools instead of making excuses and turning a blind eye and that would free up some buildings.
And given the enrollment growth within DCPS, it would be foolish to give up any buildings. They will need them all in the not-that-distant future. DCPS has to plan for the long term and guarantee space for everyone. Not just slam their door like charters can. And after the sh*i-fit Appletree and charter boosters threw about moving out of Jefferson at the end of their lease, DCPS can't have confidence that a short-term lease won't result in a big ugly dispute.
The charter board has and that has freed up some buildings. Chavez, the arts charter school, etc, - other charter schools moved into those buildings. Some charters built new buildings like Rocketship. The reality is that real estate is hard in a city like DC. Access to DCPS buildings doesn't seem to be the major issue. Access to financing to build, renovate and/or lease suitable property seems like a bigger issue.
That is what Building Hope exists to help with. They work with the schools that they see as the strongest. If they didn't accept someone's financing proposal, maybe it wasn't a strong application. DCPS has to purchase land and buildings too in certain areas.
I've always been puzzled by the idea that DCPS has tons of unused space and is unreasonably refusing to give it up. DCPS needs swing spaces or it's really hard to renovate anything. A lot of the school buildings DCPS or the city owns are in awful condition. Slater and Langston, for example, were RFPd earlier this year, but I don't know if anyone even applied. You can total up unused classroom space, but it tends to be a handful of classrooms here and there, and typically not on the ground floor of a building as is required for preschool. Could you run a tiny little school in five or six rooms on the top floor of a DCPS building? Sure. But there aren't a lot of schools that want to. And a lot of the space that's currently vacant will be used in the future as DCPS schools continue to grow their enrollment. So a short-term lease of a few classrooms without much access to the larger spaces or outdoor space just isn't that appealing. If it works out, great. But it's hard to see that being a big part of the solution.
The idea that DCPS should close its low-performing schools similarly doesn't make much sense. DCPS has a commitment to provide every student a by-right seat within a reasonable distance of their home (the distance varies by grade). They can only shut down a school if they have a plan for how to offer a by-right seat to every student, including all with IEPs. So there would have to be enough capacity close enough to every address-- not just now, but for years to come. DCPS has already consolidated a lot of its schools in the past two decades and has about maxed out what can be done in that area. There just aren't a lot of options left. And DCPS has to hold on to some capacity because if enrollment continues to grow, it will be very hard and expensive to figure out where to put kids if they sell off their buildings now. That is why they are hanging onto, for example, Spingarn. If a charter wanted to take on the responsibility of offering by-right seats that could be different. But remember, DCPS once did hand Dunbar over to an outside operator, and it didn't go well. Because offering by-right seats to all comers is a big part of what makes public education difficult.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/education/autonomy-considered-as-way-to-improve-dcs-struggling-dunbar-high-school/2014/01/11/05c836d2-7a06-11e3-8963-b4b654bcc9b2_story.html
Anonymous
12/05/2020 16:13
Subject: WaPo opinion piece on charters
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:My views on charters have completely changed with COVID. Bring on the charters. Teacher’s unions don’t care about education.
Same. I’m now pro-voucher. Pro-charter. Anti-union. It’s a complete 180 for me.
Please withdraw your child(ren) from DCPS as soon as possible. I hope you are attending EdFest next weekend to find the right charter for you!
Everyone I know is planning to vote with their feet. This year has been a disgrace.
Anonymous
12/05/2020 16:01
Subject: WaPo opinion piece on charters
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:My views on charters have completely changed with COVID. Bring on the charters. Teacher’s unions don’t care about education.
Same. I’m now pro-voucher. Pro-charter. Anti-union. It’s a complete 180 for me.
Please withdraw your child(ren) from DCPS as soon as possible. I hope you are attending EdFest next weekend to find the right charter for you!
Anonymous
12/05/2020 15:59
Subject: WaPo opinion piece on charters
Anonymous wrote:My views on charters have completely changed with COVID. Bring on the charters. Teacher’s unions don’t care about education.
Same. I’m now pro-voucher. Pro-charter. Anti-union. It’s a complete 180 for me.
Anonymous
12/05/2020 15:51
Subject: Re:WaPo opinion piece on charters
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:If WTU has taught us anything, it’s that we need more charters.
Agreed. I think the charter sector nationwide needs controls and transparency (and especially the elimination of any for-profit involvement) but the attack on the charter sector as a whole is driven by the teacher’s union. I don’t trust their perspective anymore, as they have made it abundantly clear they represent the interests of teachers, not students.
I’d be more pro charter if they didn’t counsel out “hard to teach” kids or kids with IEPs. I guess public schools will still have to be around for those kids that the charters don’t want.
My son is having his IEP yanked at a DCPS. Meanwhile his friend at a charter has an extraordinary IEP team. I know charters have their individual issues but I do not buy any of the conventional wisdom accusations against charters anymore.
How many charters have self contained rooms? We all already know about Bridges. How many others? How many have BES classrooms (these are behavior classes fit kids with emotional disabilities). So spare me the I don’t believe conventional wisdom crap. Charters do NOT educate the hardest kids.
Here you go - actual statistics! Did you think they weren’t collected?
https://dcpcsb.org/dc-public-charter-schools-serve-higher-percentages-risk-students-and-high-needs-special-education
Diane Ravitch and her union buddies should be given zero credibility ever again.
That is really old data. And why don't you google "Monument" and see if you are still so proud of the charter sector in this area.
I'm really perplexed at why the PP thinks these statistics help her cause. First of all, it's SY 17-18 data. Don't you think if more recent data made the charter sector look good, it would be publicized? They do love to toot their own horn. Second, this shows a higher percentage of at-risk kids, but at-risk is a huge category in DCPS and not all of those kids are actually living in poverty or especially hard to serve. And DCPS has more English Language Learners, which is challenging in its own way. Third, for special needs, this data includes adult-ed charters, so again it isn't really an apples to apples comparison. And even when adult-ed is included, the charter sector only had more kids in two of the four IEP categories, and it's only a little bit higher. DCPS has more of the highest level IEPs, and more total special needs overall. So really, this data a roughly even split at best. The bottom line is DCPS still had more kids with special needs, and that's with the charter sector counting its adult students.
Most importantly, it doesn't consider DCPS' obligation to serve all kids at all times, having high-needs placements available immediately for whoever moves to the city or leaves their charter or gets expelled or pushed out or served so poorly that they leave. If the charter sector wants to take on some of that responsibility for guaranteeing capacity, that would be an interesting project. But until they do, it just isn't the same.
Anonymous
12/05/2020 15:50
Subject: WaPo opinion piece on charters
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Well, you should know that "charters do more with less" is a contested opinion. DCPS funding is different in a lot of ways, and DCPS has the responsibility of taking kids who arrive mid-year, so their budgets are built for that-- charters can just turn them away. And DCPS has the responsibility of maintaining an adequate education system for all kids for all time so has to be forward-looking and may make financial decisions around future capacity needs. Also, even charters that serve low-income and at-risk kids as a primary demographic are still serving the easier of those kids and have various ways of pushing out the more difficult ones. The "at-risk" category is large-- almost 50% of DC students-- and there is a lot of variation within it that isn't being captured by the study that Jay Mathews cites. I'm no defender of DCPS, and I'm a charter parent myself, but I don't find this article very persuasive. It's the same old Jay Mathews blah blah blah.
Our charter (ITS) has not offered my kids any more than DCPS friends are getting. And they aren't offering anything like CARES for people who really need it. So I would not say ITS is performing any better than DCPS. Maybe the "resources and technology" are the same, but the kids served by the schools are not the same, and that matters a great deal.
OP here. Obviously you don’t have to answer, but given the above, why did you choose a charter?
We specifically chose to stay at our low-performing IB because we wanted to invest in our neighborhood school and contribute to making it better. But it feels like an uphill battle and in the meantime I worry constantly about my kids’ education. This year has been the cherry on the shit sundae.
you mean and every other well meaning UMC parent at our Title 1 school. All planned to bail before 5th grade of course, but now COVID DL has been a total disaster. the admins have always said this school is NOT for kids who are above grade level but they are really doubling down on this now. Most classes are just prerecorded videos. My kids class is being taught on the same level as last year. The mass exodus is going to be after 2nd and thid grade now
You still complaining about Bruce-Monroe? So charters can “specialize” but Dcps better not focus on kids who aren’t at grade level and leave your kid behind.
Anonymous
12/05/2020 15:48
Subject: Re:WaPo opinion piece on charters
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:QaAnonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:If WTU has taught us anything, it’s that we need more charters.
Agreed. I think the charter sector nationwide needs controls and transparency (and especially the elimination of any for-profit involvement) but the attack on the charter sector as a whole is driven by the teacher’s union. I don’t trust their perspective anymore, as they have made it abundantly clear they represent the interests of teachers, not students.
I’d be more pro charter if they didn’t counsel out “hard to teach” kids or kids with IEPs. I guess public schools will still have to be around for those kids that the charters don’t want.
My son is having his IEP yanked at a DCPS. Meanwhile his friend at a charter has an extraordinary IEP team. I know charters have their individual issues but I do not buy any of the conventional wisdom accusations against charters anymore.
How many charters have self contained rooms? We all already know about Bridges. How many others? How many have BES classroomzs (these are behavior classes fit kids with emotional disabilities). So spare me the I don’t believe conventional wisdom crap. Charters do NOT educate the hardest kids.
Here you go - actual statistics! Did you think they weren’t collected?
https://dcpcsb.org/dc-public-charter-schools-serve-higher-percentages-risk-students-and-high-needs-special-education
Diane Ravitch and her union buddies should be given zero credibility ever again.
That is really old data. And why don't you google "Monument" and see if you are still so proud of the charter sector in this area.
Isnt the reason they are around TO educate? Instead of expecting ALL schools to be ALL things to ALL people, im all in favor of specializing.
Some charters are specific in their mission to reach specific populations. If some of these kids are being "left" in public schools, maybe public schools should focus on these hard to help kids with specialty programming. They certainly have the respurces.
It's okay to "specialize" but it's not okay to avoid the hardest kids and claim higher performance. It isn't an apples to apples comparison and it's dishonest to say that it is. And when charters approach 50% of the school system, it produces a concentration of high-needs students in the traditional system that makes it more difficult for high-needs-concentration schools to function.
Anonymous
12/05/2020 15:46
Subject: WaPo opinion piece on charters
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Well, you should know that "charters do more with less" is a contested opinion. DCPS funding is different in a lot of ways, and DCPS has the responsibility of taking kids who arrive mid-year, so their budgets are built for that-- charters can just turn them away. And DCPS has the responsibility of maintaining an adequate education system for all kids for all time so has to be forward-looking and may make financial decisions around future capacity needs. Also, even charters that serve low-income and at-risk kids as a primary demographic are still serving the easier of those kids and have various ways of pushing out the more difficult ones. The "at-risk" category is large-- almost 50% of DC students-- and there is a lot of variation within it that isn't being captured by the study that Jay Mathews cites. I'm no defender of DCPS, and I'm a charter parent myself, but I don't find this article very persuasive. It's the same old Jay Mathews blah blah blah.
Our charter (ITS) has not offered my kids any more than DCPS friends are getting. And they aren't offering anything like CARES for people who really need it. So I would not say ITS is performing any better than DCPS. Maybe the "resources and technology" are the same, but the kids served by the schools are not the same, and that matters a great deal.
OP here. Obviously you don’t have to answer, but given the above, why did you choose a charter?
We specifically chose to stay at our low-performing IB because we wanted to invest in our neighborhood school and contribute to making it better. But it feels like an uphill battle and in the meantime I worry constantly about my kids’ education. This year has been the cherry on the shit sundae.
you mean and every other well meaning UMC parent at our Title 1 school. All planned to bail before 5th grade of course, but now COVID DL has been a total disaster. the admins have always said this school is NOT for kids who are above grade level but they are really doubling down on this now. Most classes are just prerecorded videos. My kids class is being taught on the same level as last year. The mass exodus is going to be after 2nd and thid grade now
Anonymous
12/05/2020 15:44
Subject: Re:WaPo opinion piece on charters
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:If WTU has taught us anything, it’s that we need more charters.
Agreed. I think the charter sector nationwide needs controls and transparency (and especially the elimination of any for-profit involvement) but the attack on the charter sector as a whole is driven by the teacher’s union. I don’t trust their perspective anymore, as they have made it abundantly clear they represent the interests of teachers, not students.
I’d be more pro charter if they didn’t counsel out “hard to teach” kids or kids with IEPs. I guess public schools will still have to be around for those kids that the charters don’t want.
My son is having his IEP yanked at a DCPS. Meanwhile his friend at a charter has an extraordinary IEP team. I know charters have their individual issues but I do not buy any of the conventional wisdom accusations against charters anymore.
How many charters have self contained rooms? We all already know about Bridges. How many others? How many have BES classrooms (these are behavior classes fit kids with emotional disabilities). So spare me the I don’t believe conventional wisdom crap. Charters do NOT educate the hardest kids.
Here you go - actual statistics! Did you think they weren’t collected?
https://dcpcsb.org/dc-public-charter-schools-serve-higher-percentages-risk-students-and-high-needs-special-education
Diane Ravitch and her union buddies should be given zero credibility ever again.
That is really old data. And why don't you google "Monument" and see if you are still so proud of the charter sector in this area.
Isnt the reason they are around TO educate? Instead of expecting ALL schools to be ALL things to ALL people, im all in favor of specializing.
Some charters are specific in their mission to reach specific populations. If some of these kids are being "left" in public schools, maybe public schools should focus on these hard to help kids with specialty programming. They certainly have the respurces.
It's okay to "specialize" but it's not okay to avoid the hardest kids and claim higher performance. It isn't an apples to apples comparison and it's dishonest to say that it is. And when charters approach 50% of the school system, it produces a concentration of high-needs students in the traditional system that makes it more difficult for high-needs-concentration schools to function.
Anonymous
12/05/2020 14:47
Subject: Re:WaPo opinion piece on charters
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:If WTU has taught us anything, it’s that we need more charters.
Agreed. I think the charter sector nationwide needs controls and transparency (and especially the elimination of any for-profit involvement) but the attack on the charter sector as a whole is driven by the teacher’s union. I don’t trust their perspective anymore, as they have made it abundantly clear they represent the interests of teachers, not students.
I’d be more pro charter if they didn’t counsel out “hard to teach” kids or kids with IEPs. I guess public schools will still have to be around for those kids that the charters don’t want.
My son is having his IEP yanked at a DCPS. Meanwhile his friend at a charter has an extraordinary IEP team. I know charters have their individual issues but I do not buy any of the conventional wisdom accusations against charters anymore.
How many charters have self contained rooms? We all already know about Bridges. How many others? How many have BES classrooms (these are behavior classes fit kids with emotional disabilities). So spare me the I don’t believe conventional wisdom crap. Charters do NOT educate the hardest kids.
Here you go - actual statistics! Did you think they weren’t collected?
https://dcpcsb.org/dc-public-charter-schools-serve-higher-percentages-risk-students-and-high-needs-special-education
Diane Ravitch and her union buddies should be given zero credibility ever again.
That is really old data. And why don't you google "Monument" and see if you are still so proud of the charter sector in this area.
Isnt the reason they are around TO educate? Instead of expecting ALL schools to be ALL things to ALL people, im all in favor of specializing.
Some charters are specific in their mission to reach specific populations. If some of these kids are being "left" in public schools, maybe public schools should focus on these hard to help kids with specialty programming. They certainly have the respurces.
Anonymous
12/05/2020 14:45
Subject: WaPo opinion piece on charters
Jay Matthews no longer even lives here but tries to write about DC schools. Why is that?