Definitions vary, according to rules set by different jurisdictions.
Legislation allowing for charter schools is on the books in several U.S. states and in Alberta.
Much of the criticism of charter schools has been based on a concern that they contribute to a breakdown of the public purposes of public schooling. Others have found that experience indicates that many of the positive hopes for effectiveness have not been achieved in practice. Charter schools create two-tiered education. Opposition to charter schools has been expressed by the B.C. Minister of Education, Art Charbonneau. Research indicates that inequalities in schooling and segregation by social class have increased in Britain since the system of grant-maintained schools was introduced.