Why
Charter Schools Work by Deborah Kenny
from the
Wall St. Journal, June 25, 2012
Accountability for
results and freedom from union rules attract the best teachers into the
profession.
Charters succeed because
of their two defining characteristics – accountability and freedom. In exchange for being held accountable for
student achievement results, charter schools are generally free from
bureaucratic and union rules that prevent principals from hiring, firing or evaluating
their own teams.
Accountability attracts
the best teachers into the profession.
Smart, driven people want to work in a place that holds them
accountable, where they’ll work alongside educators who share their values –
first among them, a belief that all children can learn at a high level. It’s exciting to work with talented
colleagues who believe enough in their own abilities that they are willing to
be held accountable for student learning outcomes.
Every school in this
country can and must be filled with teachers like that. When the union and political forces that are
protecting the status quo finally come around to doing what’s best for
children, they will find that it is also what’s best for the majority of
teachers. Then we will see the best and
brightest minds competing for the privilege of working in the teaching
profession – a profession that will finally be elevated to its rightful place
as the noblest in our nation.
I think Deborah Kenny writes a very
lucid explanation as to why Charter Schools are superior to public schools. She makes an excellent point when she says,
“Accountability attracts the best teachers into the profession. . . . talented colleagues who believe enough
in their own abilities that they are willing to be held accountable for student
learning outcomes.”
When we finally give schools the
freedom from bureaucratic and union rules, is when we will finally have the
“best and brightest minds competing for the privilege of working in the
teaching profession.” That day cannot
come soon enough.
