Texas Charter Schools, Part Two: Failing and Cheating
Friday, July 6th, 2007By Mimi Rothschild
The problems with charter schools in Texas are not limited to just one or two schools. There are charter schools all over Texas that are robbing students of a quality education, but state officials are having a tough time closing them down.
For example, Texas state officials are trying to close down the American Academy of Excellence charter school for four straight years of low ratings and financial mismanagement, but two bills that would have closed the American Academy of Excellence, and dozens of other struggling charter schools, didn’t make it very far at all. There are now a total of five bills which would’ve have closed failing charter schools in Texas that never passed due to a large number of opponents. But why do people oppose closing down charter schools that fail to educate the next generation of lawmakers, politicians, scientists, teachers, doctors, accountants, laborers, etc?
“Opponents of the bills say they would have punished campuses that are reaching out to dropouts, teen parents and other students who couldn’t make it in traditional public schools. Republican Representative Sid Miller said the school can’t be expected to meet traditional standards when its students arrive three to six grades behind other children their age.”
And what do Texas supporters of closing charter schools down say?
“Schools that can’t boost students’ test scores and get them to graduate aren’t doing young people any favors.”
I definitely agree with the last statement. Not only are charter schools wasting taxpayers’ money, but they are also setting their students up to fail once they graduate. Receiving a diploma is great, but a diploma from a Texas charter school most likely symbolizes a sub par education that was possibly influenced by cheating. Texas charter schools are doing a disservice to their students by staying open if they aren’t educating them or giving students the proper skills to succeed in life.
On the other hand, homeschooling offers hundreds of benefits. One of the most important benefits of homeschooling is that homeschooling delivers first-class customized educations to homeschooling students which equip them with skills that will allow them to be successful for the rest of their lives.