0 Impact of Charter Schools on Public Schools - Testimony of a BPS Student

Shared with permission, below is the text of Tabitha Kast-McBride's testimony regarding the impact of charter schools on her education as a Boston Public School student. She gave this testimony to the members of the Joint Education Committee at the Massachusetts State House on Tuesday, October 13, 2015 - after waiting more than eight hours to testify. You can also view the video of Tabitha's testimony here.

Dear Senators and Representatives of the Joint Education Committee:

Hello! My name is Tabitha Kast-McBride. I am 17 years old and currently a student at Tech Boston Academy – a Boston Public School. I would like to speak about the impact charter schools have had on my education in a real public school as a student with special needs.

When you hear about learning disabilities or mental health, often, the symptoms go unrecognized, sometimes until it’s too late. Some people don’t find out their kid has a learning disability or a mental illness until years have passed. Public schools offer testing, guidance, and more for students like me. Most students with special needs have an Individual Education Plan (IEP) that gives them access to the help they need. Currently I go to a school that has a program that helps students who are emotionally fragile, many who have the same issues like I do with anxiety and depression. Our school has a small class for us, counselors, psychologists, specially trained staff and a special area we can go to get extra help or take a time out if needed. We are not dumb either, many of us have high intelligence and the ability to not only learn but excel, but our brains just don’t work like most peoples do.

I have many friends who have come from charter schools to BPS, and they tell me that they don’t bother to help students like me and definitely do not have these types of programs for students with special needs. The charter schools ignore the problems, which is NOT okay. Worse they often eliminate students IEPs or won’t write one, but then punish students for things that are due to their disabilities, which is not allowed in REAL public schools because of the rules they have to follow. Ignoring any type of disability whether a mental illness or a learning disability, will not make it better or go away. Because the charter schools ignore students’ problems, punish them for the things they can’t help then eventually tell them they can’t go there anymore, many of these students end up even worse. And no one punishes the charter schools for all the damage they do to these students which I think is really wrong.

More charter schools will mean more students that don’t have access to the help they need and more students taught to have a fixed mindset instead of a growth mindset. A fixed mindset is basically when you think your intelligence stays the same throughout your life. A growth mindset is when your intelligence grows. In charter schools they teach you what you need to pass the tests, if you don’t do well on the tests they tell you to go to a BPS school and they give you work upon work and don’t bother to help you if you are struggling. If you struggle you fall behind. When you fall behind you start to think negatively and might even give up completely.

I was really upset to hear that the Governor wants to pass a law to open more charter schools and I am really against it! I have always gotten a good education at my BPS schools, even though we keep having things like music, art, even my favorite class Applied Science, cut out because BPS can’t afford them due to charter schools taking so much of our money even though they don’t have to follow the laws my schools do. I am asking you to KEEP THE CAP on charter schools, help fix our REAL public schools and make it more fair- If my school needs to follow the laws and only gets a certain amount of money per student, the charters should have to follow the same laws AND only get the same amount my school would for their students.

Please vote to pass Bills S326, H485, H490, S295, H380, S321 and H467. 

Sincerely,

Tabitha Kast-McBride

To get involved with the fight for our students and public education, please:

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