The Texas Education Agency has proposed changes to the Charter School Performance Framework (CSPF) that leave out consideration of two important student groups: students receiving special education services and students in bilingual education/English as a second language.
The indicators within the CSPF are supposed to evaluate each charter school’s compliance with federal law, state law, state rules or regulations, and/or the charter contract. However, the proposed changes strike program indicators for bilingual and special education populations from the operations standards. In other words, this Charter School Performance Framework focuses on school operations and not on academic performance for these two major student groups. Charters have a long record of educating fewer students with special needs and fewer language learners. Rather than abandoning these students groups, the CSPF needs stronger indicators to hold charter schools, with no elected board oversight, accountable for properly serving these student groups.
Read the full Charter Framework Manual here.
TEA will hold a virtual public hearing on these proposed changes to the Charter School Performance Framework (CSPF) at 9 a.m. on Monday, Oct. 4, and Texas AFT will be there to testify.
You can watch the hearing on Zoom. Those wishing to testify must register here by 9 a.m. on the day of the hearing.
Texas AFT members are strongly encouraged to submit their opinions and voice opposition to this new rule by sending an online letter to TEA.