We charter advocates can fall into the same simplistic thinking that charter=good and traditional =mixed.
Not so at a pair of charter schools with inexplicable cover from political patrons.
As pointed out by their state report card, the Westside Academy in Columbus Ohio is exactly the kind of public school that traps students in a cycle of failure. How sad that this charter school is sliding by on a technicality that performance is only slightly less horrible than in years past.
What's worse, this school seems to trap immigrant Somali's into a curriculum based on Arabic language study. For the ethnographers among us, Somali nationals don't speak Arabic.
Hmmm. Perhaps those responsible for holding charter schools accountable in Ohio lack the political will to take on C.A.I.R. the Islamic organization that operates the schools.
There can be no exemption for religious/political/controversial/delicate sponsors. Fair's fair—and CAIR's efforts in Columbus aren't even fair, they're lousy. Shut this school down and set the children free.
1 comment:
I agree Mr. Hilts. Too often education reformers think charter schools are a silver bullet that will always make things better. This is not the case. Charter schools allow more freedom and competition, and just like in a market, the bad schools should be ended to make room for others to try their hand at educating.
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