According to a new 26-state study, charter schools are showing slow and steady improvement in student performance compared to a similar study conducted by the same organization in 2009.
The National Charter School Study 2013, released in late June by the Center for Research on Education Outcomes (CREDO) at Stanford University, is an update and expansion of CREDO’s 2009 16-state study. The 2009 study found a wide variance in quality among charter schools, with students in charter schools not faring as well in the aggregate as those attending traditional public schools.
The 2013 study looks at performance of students in charter schools in 26 states (Connecticut was not included) and New York City. It found charter school students now have greater learning gains in reading than their peers in traditional public schools. Some of the charter improvement is attributed to the closure of a number of poor performing schools. Traditional public schools and charter schools have equivalent learning gains in mathematics.
While some have hailed the new study as a sign that charters are bringing real positive change, others point out the change is very small. Education expert Tom Loveless, blogging on the Brookings Institute education page, notes the changes may be statistically significant, but not real world significant.
