Teacher Qualifications
According to PublicSchools.org, teachers in public schools are required to be certified with the state. Certification also requires ongoing education and periodic renewal of credentials. Charter schools and private schools do not have this requirement, which means parents don’t always know the level of training attained by the teacher in their child’s classroom. In some cases, these schools might not even require teachers to have a four-year degree to work in the classroom.
Accountability
By the same token, public schools are held accountable by the state for their academic performance. While some have complained this has led to an overabundance of standardized testing, the schools do at least have a higher authority they must answer to. This prevents abuse and leads to management of failing schools much more quickly than if the school did not have such accountability.
Results
According to the Huffington Post report, students in public schools score comparably on standardized tests to students in private schools. In some cases, they outscore students in charter schools. While some public schools turn up relatively poor results, those results are often found in areas with high poverty rates. When comparing apples to apples in terms of student demographics, public schools are right up there with other types of schools.
While many are complaining about the state of public schools today – and some with good reason – these schools are still working effectively for the majority of students in the system. With many benefits from public schools, it is no wonder the majority of students and their parents are still choosing the public school in their neighborhood as their first choice for an education.