What's magic is the commitment of various important groups to take some risks on behalf of kids. Youngsters consult specialists among the staff and in the community, a practice that extends the learning experience beyond school walls. The MNCS doesn't even look like a school. Students sit at desks arranged in clusters, with a computer in the center of each group, in a large, open, gymnasium-sized space. The recent exponential growth of charter schools is surely spurred in part by mostly anecdotal evidence.
Charter schools are to be monitored by the state.
That may explain why it took until last spring for the state of Texas to do anything about the Arlington Renaissance Academy's lack of desks, chairs, and heat. With 145 state charter schools, the Texas Education Authority has a staff of four to oversee and monitor them all. This resulting lack of support has left a bad taste in the mouths of some education reformers. Cases like Arlington's are relatively rare, however. According to the Center for Education Reform, charter schools have a 2 percent failure rate.