蜜桃影视

San Jose, California聽

鈥淰ideo games are bad for you; they鈥檙e distracting,鈥� says one kid. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e too violent,鈥� says another. It鈥檚 jarring to hear middle-schoolers talk down on-screen entertainment, but the boys in this Bay Area classroom are doing their level best 鈥斅燼nd in Spanish, no less.

To be sure, they鈥檙e practicing taking positions and marshaling evidence as part of a unit on persuasive essay writing. 鈥淎re you guys serious about this?鈥� I ask. 鈥淥h yes, sir, we鈥檙e good kids,鈥� says one 鈥� and he winks.

Sixth-grade eye twinkles aside, he鈥檚 right. here at Voices College-Bound Language Academies significantly outperform their across the state in reading and math. The same is true for the dual-language immersion school鈥檚 Hispanic students and students from low-income families. Whether or not those guys still play FIFA 20 on the sly, it鈥檚 clear that Voices runs an excellent network of schools.

As charter schools, Voices use their public funding 鈥� and flexibility on staffing, curricula and scheduling 鈥� to provide academic instruction in Spanish and English. This helps them tailor their school model for their students, nearly three-quarters of whom come from low-income families. In addition, 92 percent are Hispanic and 42 percent are classified as English learners.

But success hasn鈥檛 protected charter schools like Voices from a growing wave of criticism. Ask founder Frances Teso about the future, and she says, 鈥淵ou鈥檙e catching me in this place where it鈥檚 pretty depressing and pretty pessimistic, at least from my sort of view 鈥� maybe I need to retire.鈥�

Teso鈥檚 attitude is understandable. After years of relatively uncomplicated bipartisan support, charters like Voices are under fire in . Sen. Bernie Sanders鈥檚 presidential campaign recently released , but his proposals to ban (relatively rare) for-profit charter schools and cut off federal grants supporting charter school growth attracted by far the most attention. Sen. Elizabeth Warren for the sin of simply being introduced at an event by a teacher who once worked for a charter school.

These national dynamics are feeding 鈥� and feeding on 鈥� similar political trends in California. New governor Gavin Newsom has moved to shift regulations governing charters, and state legislators are exploring ways to slow, or cap, the growth of charter schools in the state. For the moment, Teso says that Voices鈥檚 plans to expand to serve more of 鈥渢he kids who need us the most鈥� have largely been shelved. At present, the school serves just over 1,100 students across three elementary campuses and one K-8 campus.

Schools like Voices weren鈥檛 always so controversial on the left. For years, many progressives saw charters as a means of giving historically underserved families options outside of the neighborhood schools they could afford to purchase through the real estate market. They also worked to make that possibility real. Charter school performance , but research suggests they tend to do best in places defined by progressive politics 鈥� the District of Columbia, and Newark, for example 鈥� where these schools face strong oversight and accountability for student outcomes.

To that end, Teso launched the first Voices school in the same school district that she attended as a student 鈥� and where she worked as a teacher 鈥� because she was frustrated that students like her were not being served well. She鈥檇 arrived in college feeling betrayed. 鈥淚 was so unprepared, I was not set up for success, I had moments of resentment,鈥� she says. 鈥淲hy wasn鈥檛 I prepared, why was I tricked? Why was I told that I was a good student and here I am in remedial classes and struggling?鈥�

As an English language learner from a low-income family, Teso had a slim margin for error. Her mother was a teenager who鈥檇 dropped out of high school, and her father was a Mexican immigrant who鈥檇 left school in third grade. 鈥淲e checked all the boxes,鈥� she says. 鈥淚 went into kindergarten, I spoke only Spanish.鈥�

Teso鈥檚 narrative, her schools, her life鈥檚 work 鈥� they鈥檙e suddenly out of fashion with progressives. Critics that, unlike charter schools, district schools have little control over which students enroll at their campuses; districts simply receive the students who happen to live nearby.

This critique is concerning, but charters are the wrong target. No single district school is required to serve all students in its community; unlike charters, district schools鈥� enrollments are usually filtered by race and/or socioeconomic class through the real estate market. Traditional public schools engage in additional to curate their student bodies. They frequently establish academic 鈥渢racking鈥� systems and/or launch selective school programs that sort struggling students from their peers. These initiatives often exacerbate existing patterns of racial and socioeconomic segregation.

What鈥檚 going on? in Oakland, Los Angeles and Sacramento focused attention on charters in California. Teachers union leaders have argued that charter schools, which are generally not unionized, use education funding that would otherwise go to (generally unionized) district schools.

And yet, this zero-sum framing . It also brings up the most important question: Why do families leave district schools in the first place? Juan Carlos Villase帽or, principal at Voices鈥� Morgan Hill campus, says that Voices appeals to different families for different reasons: Many first-generation immigrants send their children because the Spanish-language instruction makes it easier for them to connect with the school and community. Many second- or third-generation immigrant parents who lost their Spanish see the school as a way to give their children access to Spanish language and Hispanic culture.

I asked a few Spanish-speaking parents at Voices about this. They agreed to speak with me, but they asked me not to use their full names, after referencing the present state of immigration politics. Luis says, in Spanish, that he sends his children to Voices because they鈥檒l have more opportunities: 鈥淸they鈥檒l have] more jobs, better careers, more money. But it鈥檚 also the culture, the connections to our culture.鈥� Voices understands children better than other schools, he says. 鈥淭hey treat them like they鈥檙e important, and they also expect more of them.鈥�

Diana and Natal铆 each have a first-grader at Voices. Diana says, in Spanish, that she chose it 鈥渂ecause it was our only bilingual option here.鈥� Natal铆 jumps in: 鈥淥h, and the schedule! They are here a few hours more each day, and it helps them progress.鈥� Charter parents across the country 鈥� they see their children鈥檚 schools as opportunities, as lifelines.

鈥淭hese big debates, charter versus non-charter, I sometimes lose track,鈥� says Villase帽or. 鈥淚 became an educator because I like being around kids and seeing people learn.鈥� Working at Voices, he said, was an 鈥渙pportunity to keep learning and keep growing. If something doesn鈥檛 work, we change it. That鈥檚 the mentality in this school. Our communities deserve that.鈥�

Various campaigns now see policies targeting charter schools as a political opportunity. But it鈥檚 also clear that Democratic criticism of charters splits along racial lines 鈥� majorities of Democrats of color support them. A party that increasingly relies upon a diverse base of voters should be careful about catering to white Democrats who oppose charters. After all, what could be more progressive than successful, hardworking schools led by educators of color and organized around affirming students鈥� language and cultures?

Meanwhile: Will Teso retire? She pauses, then says she plans to continue doing the same work for students while trying to 鈥渟tay under the radar.鈥�

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