Kudos for KIPP

You'd think education reform is one area -- perhaps the ONLY area -- in which the NYT and WSJ editorial pages might agree.  Instead, the NYT editorialists write lame critiques of charter schools while the WSJ nails this.

Rare is the occasion when these columns have reason to applaud more spending on public schools. But news that the Knowledge Is Power Program (KIPP) will receive $65 million to create new schools in Houston is worth a standing ovation.

 

KIPP academies are charter schools, which are public schools freed from the grip of the public education bureaucracy. Charter schools can employ lengthier school days and longer school years than union work rules typically allow. They can pay teachers based on skills and performance rather than seniority. And charter school principals can fire and replace staff who are underperforming.

 

In return for such liberties, charter schools are held accountable for producing results in the classroom. And no charters in the country have made better use of their independence than KIPP.

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Kudos for KIPP
March 26, 2007; Page A14

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB117486280821748389.html

Rare is the occasion when these columns have reason to applaud more spending on public schools. But news that the Knowledge Is Power Program (KIPP) will receive $65 million to create new schools in Houston is worth a standing ovation.