Abstract

This chapter reviews the empirical literature on charter school governance and politics, with special attention on evidence of change in the sector, new areas getting research attention, and the emerging maturation of theory and conceptualization with which the research is framed. The review brings to the surface two overarching and linked themes. First, in a number of areas, the governance and politics of charter schools—as well as the governance and politics in traditional school districts—has evolved in ways that make the two sectors less distinct than envisioned when charters first arrived on the scene. Second, research as a result is progressing from studies of charter politics and governance per se to studies of charters in the context of discussion of broader changes in education governance and politics.