C-L Editorial: Charter schools not the solution

I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season.  Now it's back to the grind.

With the 2013 Legislative session looming, there's no doubt that once again the focus of education-related efforts will be on passing a charter schools bill.  The Clarion-Ledger stepped forward in a powerful editorial just before New Year's and called it what it is: a red herring.

From the editorial:

In a best-case scenario for charter school supporters, expansion in Mississippi would impact only a fraction of students, and that impact could be years down the road. If an expansion is passed, the first charter schools in the state could take years to set up. 

Thus, charter schools are little more than a political red herring — garnering most of the debate, energy and focus of the commonwealth while drowning out other education and general issues in Mississippi.

I strongly suggest reading the whole thing.