BLOG # 4

From my visits to Hope Community Charter school, I can attest that charter schools promote competition with public schools. In the case of HOPE, a budding charter school, the students, teachers, and administrators are very passionate about learning. Unlike the public schools which are usually neighborhood schools, charter schools take more time and effort from the parents for their children to attend. The principle, Mr Sanker, was a student of DCPS, and discussed his experience with Christina M. and I. He talked about the atrocities of his DCPS middle school. Fortunately, he received a scholarship to attend a private school for high school. Charter schools are rising in numbers in the District, and in the years to come charters might take over DCPS if the DCPS continues to deteriorate.
Parents should have the ultimate say in where to send their children. The parents should be involved in the decision process for choosing their child’s school because they know what best suits their child’s needs. I know that for HOPE, transportation is not provided. Parents who choose to send their children to charter school are required to drop/pick them up. It is obvious that they are truly involved in their kid’s education.
I think that specialized curricula is tricky because even though it would be better for students in their primary and secondary education, they might have trouble adapting to post-secondary education. In the case of D.C, abysmal reading and math scores would gear the specialized curricula towards below grade level material. When these students gradate high school, any average university’s curriculum might prove to be exceedingly difficult for them to adapt to.
Teacher accreditation is important. The schools should hire teacher based on their qualifications. For example, with my third grade class, the permanent Wednesday substitute is Mr. Ramiro. I do not know why he was hired. He is incompetent in handling the kids in a civil manner. This man is not even passionate about the children. He hands out worksheets, and goes and sits down in Ms. Eckman’s chair. I know he is not a teacher, but he is hired to teach for three hours each Wednesday. I find it frustrating when he is not as helpful when the kids raise their hand. From my personal experience, I think the teacher need to be both passionate and accredited.