The Cerf Charter Report Countup Clock!

by: Jersey Jazzman

Wed Dec 28, 2011 at 10:30:00 AM EST

Governor Christie may have told ACTING DOE Commissioner Cerf to back off on his plan to introduce more charter schools into Christie's suburban base. But charters are still part of the plan - even though we don't have the data from Cerf to determine if they really work.

See, Cerf caught a lot of flack last winter when he released a report about charter schools' "successes" that didn't take into account the make up of the charters' student bodies. In other words, Cerf's report didn't show whether charter schools were succeeding by "cream skimming" - taking fewer children with special needs or limited English proficiency than schools in the surrounding neighborhoods.

Jersey Jazzman :: The Cerf Charter Report Countup Clock!

Many people objected, including scholars like Matt DiCarlo and Bruce Baker, and reporters like Bob Braun of the Star-Ledger (not to mention snarky bloggers like yours truly). After either Cerf or Governor Christie himself insulted all of these folks, he made a promise:

Speaking at a meeting of the state Board of Education, Cerf said "we stand by" controversial data about charter school performance released in January, but acknowledged that "deeper analysis" is necessary.
That data showed that 79 percent of charter schools outperformed district schools on math exams in the state’s poorest districts, and that 69 percent outperformed their home districts in language arts.
Critics assailed the numbers, saying charter school test scores may have been higher than traditional public school scores in part because charters have fewer very poor students.
"They are what they are," Cerf said of the January data. "They are not what you might call nuanced." Cerf said an independent analysis will be conducted "as quickly as is humanly possible."
He also released an "interim report" on charter schools that he said "dispels the notion" that charter schools don’t serve special needs kids. And he presented data showing that there are poor children in charter schools.

Of course there are poor children in charter schools; there are poor children in the toniest suburban schools. The question is how many are there, and does this account for the gains that some charter schools make?

Cerf promised that report on March 7, 2011. It has now been 296 days since he made that promise. Does that seem "as quickly as is humanly possible"?

To help us decide, Blue Jersey readers, I introduce you to the ACTING Commissioner Cerf Charter School Report Countup Clock!

This clock keeps track of how long it has been since ACTING Commissioner Cerf promised us his report on charter schools - a report he said would come out "as quickly as is humanly possible."

May I humbly suggest that we put a moratorium on all new charter schools until this report comes out? That would be prudent, yes?

What do you say, ACTING Commissioner? Shouldn't we have all the facts before we shove more charters down people's throats?

The Charter Report Countup Clock lives permanently at my blog, Jersey Jazzman. But I'll put it up here every now and then, just to remind the ACTING Commissioner of his promise. I'm sure he'll appreciate the gesture.