It’s that time of year again; the kids are already prepping for their first day of school. Here in Surprise, the charter schools opened their doors this morning. We are lucky to have a lot of choices in regard to our children’s education here in Surprise. As the kids in navy and kaki move about town, I wonder how our charter schools stack up against the traditional public school.
Charter schools are basically public schools that are operated independently and are allowed the freedom to be innovative while being held accountable to providing quality education. Like public schools, charter schools are tuition free and open to any student who wishes to enroll. Charter schools, like the public school system, are funded by tax dollars based upon attendance. Many successful charter schools do a substantial amount of fundraising as well. Enrollment for charter schools differs from public schools in that parents must apply for enrollment. Much like private schools, spaces are limited and many times students are selected by a lottery system and many are on wait lists.
Charter schools were birthed out of parent and community concern for the education that their children were or were not receiving. Charter schools are governed by parents, teachers, and administrators directly from the local community. Arguably, the fact that the schools are more accountable to the parents and community is what makes it more effective. Not only are the charters accountable to state and federal academic standards, but they must go toe to toe with mom and dad…a little scarier, I say! Charter schools are reviewed for renewal every five years to ensure good academic results and to make sure that they operate in a fiscally and operationally responsible way.
Charter schools are free to se their own operating hours. They are able to offer additional classroom time in the evenings, weekends, or extend further into the summer. A charter school can provide students with more time on the core subjects that they need most by breaking up the day. Charter teachers have a say in the curriculum they teach and have the ability to change materials if they need to in order to meet the students’ needs.
Culture is key in the charter school system. Schools build upon the core academic subjects by adopting a theme. For example, some focus on STEM education, performing arts, project based learning, college prep, career readiness, language immersion, or global awareness-just to name a few.
So, how do our charter schools rate? Here are the scores from Greatschools.org and are based on AIMS (standardized) testing and have a possible 10 points:
Paradise Education Center: 9
Paradise Honors High School: 9
Imagine Charter Elementary at Rosefield: 8
Calibre Academy of Surprise: 8
Imagine Middle at Surprise: 6
Imagine Preparatory High School at Surprise: 5
Arizona Charter Academy 4
E Institute at Acoma: 4
