Meeting the Equity Challenge in Public Charter Schools

I long to accomplish a great and noble task, but it is my chief duty to accomplish small tasks as if they were great and noble. —Helen Keller

Frustrated by problems such as declining student performance, shrinking school budgets, and deteriorating and violent conditions in some schools, families and communities are increasingly searching for new options in education. The search is, in large part, a search for equity. The present-day problems besetting our public school system are disproportionately borne by students who have been traditionally shortchanged in the educational process: lower-income students, racial and ethnic minorities, limited-English-proficient speakers, students with disabilities, and female students. Equity in education remains part of our national agenda, a critical goal not yet realized.

Today charter schools represent only a small fraction of all public schools, less than 1 percent. But charter schools are among the fastest- growing education reform movements, spurred by federal start-up funding and a national goal to increase the number of charter schools from approximately 800 at present to 3,000 by the year 2002. A further goal is that 50 percent of all school districts in the near future will offer some avenue of choice—for example, charter schools, vouchers, or magnet schools. These goals reflect a consensus for structural change. But what kind of change is necessary? Already there is a spirited debate over different approaches to reform and how they will affect public education. Much of the debate revolves around issues of equity.

Educational equity has traditionally focused on two elements: obtaining equal access to high-quality education and equitable treatment within the school system. Less emphasis has been given and progress made in terms of a third element—obtaining equal outcomes. With an emphasis on accountability, especially in terms of raising achievement levels, charter schools are well-positioned to address this crucial third element of educational equity.

Despite the potential for increasing achievement and extending new opportunity to traditionally underserved students, charter schools may not encounter an easy path to equity. Public schools have historically suffered from institutionalized patterns of racism, sexism, and other forms of discrimination that exist in society at large. Charter schools are likely to be subject to the same influences and face both similar and unique equity challenges. Their long-term success will ultimately depend on whether they are able to act as a positive force within the public school system as a whole, accomplish their goals at a reasonable cost per pupil, and, perhaps most importantly, take comprehensive, proactive measures to achieve both equity and excellence for every student served.