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1. That depends on the criteria you use to rank or grade schools. The bottom line, regardless of what criteria you use, is the bottom line. Pun intended. The quality of the school, individually and/or collectively, is directly related to the demographics of the student population. Students from poor, less-educated families attend schools with less funding and with less intellectual stimulation in their home environments, birth through school age. Students from prosperous families generally receive more intellectual stimulation birth through kindergarten and beyond, and their schools get more funding from property taxes and from local fundraising. Even standardized test scores correlate more closely to the socio-economic level of the family than anything the school actually does or doesn't do.
2. Magnet schools are public schools with a particular focus. They are funded the same and run the same as part of their local school district. They tend to be more "successful" because they draw a higher number of actively involved, motivated families.
3. Charter schools are public schools that are their own "district." In my state, CA, they do have to get permission from the local district to operate, and be reviewed by the local district periodically. And they pay actual $$ to the district that "sponsors" them, with no service other than permission and a yearly visit in return. They act as their own school board/district, and provide all their own materials, services, etc. on their own. They are in charge of themselves, but must still comply with the state ed codes. They do their own budgeting, etc., and don't use the local districts contracts or payscales for employees.
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