At school, a new era of multiple choices for parents

But critics of the new law warn that parents should not rely on a single score for making decisions about school quality. "Parent are going to have to do a lot more study than ever before. You can't tell from a simple number what is the best fit for your child," says Kathleen Lyons, a spokesman for the National Education Association, the No. 1 teachers union.

Education Department officials admit there is a wide gap between the law and current practice, but say that that gap is narrowing. "One thing I do every day is scan local newspapers, and you get a sense that the conversation this year is very interesting," says Eugene Hickok, the No. 2 official at the US Department of Education. "Almost everywhere from as large a place as Chicago to Carlisle, Pa., the newspapers are beginning to pick up on the schools that need improvement and supplemental services."

Last year, some 8,600 schools are identified as in need of improvement, according to the US Department of Education. The numbers for this year will be available later this fall. But public schools are already circulating lists for parents showing approved providers of educational services.

"Parents are making requests to transfer, but what's not clear yet is how much real choice there will be," says Bill Jackson, president of GreatSchools.net, an online resource that reaches 12 percent of US parents.

Much of this new information about choices for parents is being circulated by such independent groups via the Internet.

"You can now get a good education without worrying about what neighborhood you live in. But if parents want to make wise choices, they have to be informed," says Onnie Shekerjian, who is parent advocacy director for the Internet Education Exchange in Tempe, Ariz.

A mother of three, she says her own plunge into school choice came when her son's third-grade teacher told her that he was just an average kid and shouldn't be expected to read well. "We didn't accept that," she says. Instead, Nicholas transferred to a public charter school with a very intensive reading program. "He's now an avid reader. I couldn't keep him in books this summer," she says.

Arizona has one of the most highly developed systems of public school choice in the nation, including 395 public charter schools and a tax credit system to fund private school scholarships.

But even in states that don't have such an intensive choice network, options are proliferating. There are some 2,700 public charter schools nationwide, most in Arizona, California, Texas, Florida, and Michigan. More than 100 new charter schools are opening this year. Just over 1 percent of public school students now attend charter schools, which are publicly funded but mission-driven and independent of the local school district.

Some 16 states have approved virtual high schools, according to a survey by Education Week. Pennsylvania opens the school year with eight "cyber charter" schools.

Page: 1 | 2