Accountability for meeting high academic standards is an essential component of successful charter schools. Unfortunately, not all state charter laws have strong accountability requirements. In addition, not all state laws require charter schools to develop programs conforming with state or local academic standards, and many charter laws do not require charters to participate in the state accountability system. Equal access to charter schools . NEA believes that charter schools must guarantee access on an equal basis and should not admit or reject students on the basis of race, ethnicity, religion, gender, disability, sexual orientation, or academic performance.
Research shows that many charter schools have relatively homogeneous student bodies.
In some states, inclusion of special education students has also been an issue. In 1998-99, charter schools enrolled only three percent fewer students with disabilities than all public schools in the 27 charter states. However, in some states the difference was much greater. For example, New Jersey charter schools served eight percent fewer students with disabilities than that state's public schools. Teacher quality in charter schools .