Tuesday, September 22, 2015

Thesis topic

The academic effectiveness of charter schools is something that has interested me for a long time. I knew very little about what a charter school even was before I began working at one several years ago. Charter schools were designed to allow innovation in the classroom and give parents and students some choice in their education.  This ultimately would help improve the local public schools by providing competition and choice. Unfortunately is largely unclear if charter schools are having the desired effect on the regional public schools. Originally, I tried to focus my inquiry on the simple question, “Are charter schools effective?” This question is almost impossible to answer because of the immense variability among charter schools.  Reading an article by Stephen Lawson has helped me focus my research question on “What factors account for the varying degree of effectiveness seen among charter schools in the United States?". As I do more research, it will be able to determine if this question leads to a more reliable answer about charter school effectiveness.  

Lawton, S. (2009). Effective Charter Schools and Charter School Systems. Planning and Changing, 40(1/2), 35-60.

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