Reply #13: Some Questions:

[Dinger]

1. How will the "success" of this school be evaluated?

2. Will this school be expected to follow all the exact same standards and accountability as public schools in Hew Jersey?

3. How exactly will this help the local economy?

4. What if students can't afford to bring their own lunch?

5. What if students bring junk lunches? Will their choices (for lunch) be monitored?

6. Will the teaching staff be required to have the same licenses and education that local public school teachers do?

7. Will there be a union (for teachers and other support staff)?

8. What if walking to school or using public transportation is not an option for students?

9. How will this affect public schools' (100% public) funding?

10. Why couldn't the Green Schools Initiative be implemented in a public school (100% public school that is)?

11. Is this district in an area with high unemployment and poverty? What kind of area is it (local economy)?

12. How will this help public schools in the area, or isn't that a goal?

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Charters are not, in my opinion a replacement for public schools. They are public in part, but not 100% public, publicly funded, but not held to the same standards as public schools. Most are not required to take standardized tests, and if they choose to, are not required to report it. Look that one up. Some charter and private schools to choose to take these tests, but that is only one measure of student success (and only one measure of teacher success). I would never send a child of mine to any charter or private school that did not have the same standards and accountability as public schools. If we are comparing apples for apples, it might be that I choose a charter or private school over a public school. I really wish public schools were given the same opportunities as charters and private schools. I wish this administration would take a more broad-based approach (no pun intended) to educating our children, instead of focusing/blaming teachers or using standardized tests as the sole measure of success. The "tear down and rebuild" approach to fixing problems that exist in all areas of education is a closed-minded approach in my opinion. To me, it's like tearing down a house that needs a little TLC instead of doing the necessary repairs to bring it back to it's original glory, so to speak. It's also like clear-cutting a forest to make a big profit, and tearing down the future forest in the process.
I cannot support this approach to "fixing" education in this country. It's wrong.