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In reply to the discussion: Ann Romney: "Throw out" the American public education system. [View all]wordpix
(18,652 posts)I have worked in public, public charter and private schools. Trust me, the charters do NOT operate like private schools b/c usually the class sizes are as large as in most public schools. This is Factor #1 in successful teaching. When you have a class of 25-30, as a very good teacher you are going to leave some percentage behind because you don't have the time to teach weak students 1:1 who can't keep up with the majority. And the majority may include those who could skip a grade due to strong skills and those in the middle who are at or near grade level.
I had a 6th gr. class and the top 10% could have skipped immediately to 7th, the next 20% did very well, the middle 40% understood most of what was going on and the lower 30% were one to five grade levels behind. So in a 6th gr class, there were those operating on the 7th-8th gr. level down to the 1st gr. level, with NO extra help or resources to meet the needs of the lower (or upper) group except what I could muster on my own in a class of 28 (average size). I worked days, nights, weekends and a good portion of vacation time trying to meet all the needs.
Private schools have learning centers staffed with tutors and specialists in learning problems, the teachers are expected to give extra help after school, and the kids' parents can afford to hire tutors. Charters and public schools have these programs only if they are funded or if a non-profit org collaborates with them. Sometimes non-profits provide tutors and after school staff but the schools don't pay for these---the non-profits do.