This is a long but informative read about what’s wrong with massive expansion of charters while the needs of public schools go unmet. “We, the members of Journey for Justice, are comprised of thousands of youth, parents, and other concerned citizens from com- munities of color across the United States. We write this report because we need the American people to know that the public education systems in our communities are dying. More accurately, they are being killed by an alliance of misguided, paternalistic ‘reformers,’ education profiteers, and those who seek to dismantle the institution of public education. Some are being killed quickly; others are still in the early stages. But it is, at this point, quite clear that there will soon be little to nothing left of our public school systems – and many more like ours – unless current trends are disrupted. . .
To be sure, there are some charter schools that provide low-income students of color with a high-quality, well-rounded education. Yet they are far from the norm, and typically aren’t the schools that policymakers are seeking to replicate. The charter schools that are spreading in our communities are the ones that offer a second-class education, if not worse. It’s a “Fast Food Model of Education,” where schools are viewed as franchises offering standardized, relatively low-quality products, delivered by cheap and inexperienced workers
In short, the harms caused by school closures and charter school expansion in our communities have been catastroph- ic. The benefits have been virtually non-existent. And yet “reformers” show no sign of letting up. If anything, they are accelerating their assault on our public schools and our communities, and it is now apparent that without a dramatic shift in the political landscape around these issues, the downward spiral will continue until all of the public schools in many of our communities will be eliminated.”
http://www.j4jalliance.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/J4JReport-final_05_12_14.pdf