Illusions of grandeur

Several recent surveys of schools have been discussed in a series of Inquirer and Daily News articles this week. Today's result of note is that no difference was found between the performance of charter and ordinary schools nationwide, and that fact can't be attributed to socioeconomic differences between the students concerned. In part the difference may reflect differences in training and experience between the teachers at such schools, as charter schools sometimes take uncertified or younger teachers, as they try to take "alternative" approaches to education. Of course, individual schools will vary greatly, but that's as true of the regular ones as of the more visible newcomers.