Yeah, so Betsy DeVos is like a broken clock here; she is narrowly right but for all the wrong reasons. Charter schools are heavily used in a neighboring school district, most are publicly funded though. They are doing great there. Many many reasons also come into that issue, but suffice to say that school uniforms, school lunches, strict no-phone policies, and a lack of a restorative-justice model really do help. Well that and a lack of racist elderly turbo-republican voters that will never raise a levy for new taxes for the schools. As I say in another comment, the main issue here is the poverty. I have no idea how to solve that, but I know chromebooks aren't a part of it.

Yeah, we're bitter, we know.

I think the biggest factor in the success of those schools isn't any specific policy. It's the selection bias. These kids have at least one parent/guardian that cares enough to put in the minimal effort required to get the kid in a different school. Some charters require parent volunteers, which ups the bar again. What actually happens in school might not matter as much as having the home support you need to be successful.

I think that's spot on, additionally I don't see why if someone identifies a child that has interests and WANTS to learn should be in the school similar to that either.