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PHOENIX - A judge on Monday questioned whether state officials can tell charter schools what they have to teach and when they have to teach it.

Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Robert Miles said charter schools are public schools. They are funded with tax dollars and cannot charge tuition.

Miles said, though, the Legislature specifically exempted these schools from many requirements imposed on traditional public schools. And the judge said that appears to limit the power of the state Board of Education to dictate a teaching schedule to charter schools.

Chad Sampson, an assistant state attorney general, argued that the statutes require the state board to "exercise general supervision over and regulate the conduct of the public school system.'' And that law allows the board to "adopt any rules and policies it deems necessary.''

Clint Bolick, however, countered that the Legislature exempted charter schools "from all statutes and rules relating to schools, governing boards and school districts'' except for certain specifics.

Central to the fight is a state school board requirement for "curriculum alignment'' by all schools. For example, the state board mandates that third graders know how to multiply and divide by numbers up to 9.

State School Superintendent Tom Horne said charter schools are free to determine how to teach that - as long as it is taught by the end of third grade.

Schools have been required to align reading, math and science curricula since 2003. But several charter schools in Tucson, Chandler, Mesa and Phoenix filed suit when the state board demanded similar alignment of social studies classes this new school year.

One of those standards requires teaching U.S. history in seventh and eighth grades. But Bolick, litigation director of the Goldwater Institute, said some charter schools teach ancient and medieval history in those grades as a precursor, saving U.S. history for later.

Michael Block, co-founder of the BASIS school in Tucson, said charter schools like his do a better overall job than regular public schools.

"What's to be proud of in the traditional schools? Nothing,'' he said after Monday's hearing. "To come out and try to lop the heads off the best charter schools doesn't make sense to me.''

Horne said alignment ensures that students who transfer from one public school to another - charter or traditional - will not miss certain subjects because of different rules at different schools.

He said some charter schools do very well. But he said there needs to be a single standard for what has to be taught at all schools, both good and bad.

Horne said he supports charter schools and not trying to impose unfair requirements.

"We encourage the charter schools to experiment,'' he said. "All we're asking is by the end of a given grade level a student know certain things.''