Evaluation Questions:

1. Does increased flexibility in exchange for increased accountability result 
    in improved pupil results?

2. What effect does budget have on student results, nonacademic services,
    and school facilities?

3. Are opportunities offered to charter school teachers, parents, and students
    to influence classroom and school policy significantly different from those 
    offered at traditional public schools?

4. Are the opportunities (i.e., professional growth, salaries, benefits, employee
    rights) forteachers and other employees significantly different at a charter
    school than at a traditional public school?

5. What is the impact of charter schools as related to district reform efforts?

6. Is there evidence that, over the term of the charter, student learning has
    significantly improved?

7. What are promising practices in charter schools that could be included
     in district systemic reform?

Specific areas to be addressed in the evaluation are listed as follows:

1.  Staffing

     a) Staff profile indicating degree of constancy and/or stability of teachers 
         and staff

     b) Percentage of credentialed professional employees holding a valid 
         Pennsylvania certificate

     c) Qualifications of noncertified professional employees

     d) Pupil-teacher ratio for special education needs

     e) Staff development and implementation

     f ) Other relevant measures that address the issue of staffing of charter schools
 

2.  Educational Achievement

     a) Percentage of students who have achieved instructional benchmarks identified 
         in charter proposal

     b) Evidence that charter students are more/less successful at next level of education
         (i.e., elementary to middle school) than noncharter students

     c) Transition of students from charter schools to traditional public and private
         schools, and vice versa, in terms of academic achievement

     d) Evidence that limited English proficient and special education students have 
         access to core curriculum

     e) Comparison of PSSA scores to district schools and to "like" noncharter schools,
         and percentage of student body tested

     f) Determine quality of evaluation instrument wherein students demonstrate 
         achievement and validate the program objective (other than the PSSA)

     g) Appropriate implementation of individual educational programs (IEP) for
         identified special education students

     h) Effectiveness of services offered to at-risk youngsters

     i ) Quality of technology program

     j ) Other relevant measures that address the educational achievements of
         students in charter schools

3.  Student Attendance

     a) Comparison of student attendance with district schools and "like"
         noncharter schools

     b) Other relevant measures that address attendance issues of students
         in charter schools

4.  Student Discipline

     a) Comparison of student discipline to district schools and "like" noncharter
         schools

     b) Other relevant measures that address discipline issues of students in
         charter schools

5.  Governance Process

     a) Effectiveness of process as detailed in charter proposal

     b) Assessment of vertical and horizontal decision-making process detailed
         in school's charter

     c) Terms of authority of charter school principal/director

     d) Procedure used to elect/select teachers, parents, and community members
         to various governance committees stated in school's charter

     e) Other relevant measures that address governance issues of children in
         charter schools

6.  Community Involvement

     a) Process of reporting student progress to parents

     b) Effectiveness of parent outreach programs/advisory boards

     c) Survey indicating level of parent satisfaction

     d) Racial/ethnic balance of pupils compared with district student population

     e) Other relevant measures that address the issue of community involvement 
         and charter schools

7.  Budget, Accounting, and Business Practices

     a) Compliance with guidelines for specific federal, state, and local 
         grants/revenue sources

     b) Documentation on file at school to support attendance figures

     c) Flexibility of purchasing procedures available to charter schools, e.g., outside
         vendors, bidding, timely purchases

     d) Determine whether revenues exceed expenses or if expenses exceed 
         revenues and the source of such revenues

     e) Percentage variation from budget to actual expenditures

     f ) Determine cash balance at the end of fiscal year.  Did it increase or decrease 
         decrease each year?
 

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