Abstract
Purpose. The purpose of the study was to determine whether the charter schools that were approved and operational by September 10, 1993, under California Charter Bill (SB 1448), have reduced or eliminated structural constraints that are perceived to keep school districts from achieving their educational goals. Methodology. An ex post facto descriptive research study was conducted. A survey was utilized to collect data to answer the seven research questions. The sample consisted of twenty-eight charter schools that were operational in California by September 1993. Ninety-one surveys, 82 percent, were returned. Data were analyzed using the chi-square test of independence. Significance was set at the.05 level of confidence. Frequency, percent, and rank order correlation were also used to analyze the data. Findings. The constraints most likely to be modified by charter schools were job descriptions, the beginning and ending times of the school day, employee evaluation procedures, the use of nondistrict employees, and hiring procedures. Primary obstacles to the implementation of their charter plan were perceived to be parents, school boards, and the education code. Conclusions. Analysis of the data resulted in several conclusions. (1) The limited number of constraints modified by charter schools were due primarily to their lack of awareness of the range of possibilities including the ability to eliminate the education code. (2) The predominant reasons for becoming a charter school were the desire for self determination and flexibility. (3) The small number of charter applications approved by the state department of education in 1993 was due primarily to opposition by local boards of education, unions, parents, and district administrators. Recommendations. Charter school applicants should be provided technical assistance from their county offices. Lack of applicant sophistication should not limit the applicants opportunity to apply for charter status. Parents, administrators, and other non-profit organizations should be given the opportunity to apply for a charter. The current cap of 100 charter schools statewide and 10 within each district should be eliminated.