Charter schools are held accountable to the market for economic viability and parent satisfaction and to government for financial stability, student performance and the operation of a public agency. Like other proposals for systemic reform reflected in state education legislation, including site-base management, performance standards and assessment, and vouchers, the charter school concept is motivated by a desire to improve student learning, make our students better citizens, and help them to become more productive workers. And as with other reform proposals, neither education policy makers nor the general public can be certain that the charter school concept will work. In particular, no one knows the mix of autonomy and accountability that will yield the best payoff in student performance for the most students. Nevertheless twenty-five states and the District of Columbia have legislation permitting the establishment of charter relationships between individual schools and education agencies of the state.
More states are likely to follow.
Each has created a unique balance of autonomy and accountability. In some cases, the scope of autonomy extends only to the school's curriculum and instructional strategy. In others, it includes control over some or all of the human and financial resources expended at the school. In still others, charter schools are completely independent agencies of government. The barriers to a large supply of such applicants are significant.