In the Eye of the Beholder: Charter Schools and Innovation

ABSTRACT Many expect that charter schools will produce innovations, but it is unclear what kinds and how much innovation is desirable. This paper summarizes the research evidence on charter school innovation to date and suggests ways to more productively pursue future research and development in the charter sector. The paper addresses three main questions: In what ways are charters being innovative? How can we assess the value of charter school innovations? And how might we encourage and enable charter schools to innovate more aggressively regarding instructional methods and uses of technology?