CREDO Finds Charter Schools Outperform District Counterparts
STOP THE PRESSES! In the attached report, Stanford University’s Center for Research on Education Outcomes (CREDO) discusses the results of its multi-year study of charter schools in New Jersey. See also the press release below.
The punch line is this: Charter schools in New Jersey dramatically out-perform their district counterparts, even controlling for demographic differences and other factors.
CREDO is highly respected, and one of their earlier studies – of national charter performance – is often cited by those who oppose charter schools. In that study, charter schools basically did no better than district schools across the country. Using the same methodology, this study of New Jersey charter schools paints a much different picture. Charter schools in New Jersey, particularly in the areas where they are needed most, are providing excellent options for kids.
From the press release (emphasis mine):
A significant finding came from the results of the urban charter schools in the state. Students enrolled in urban charter schools in New Jersey learn significantly more in both math and reading compared to their traditional public school peers. In fact, charter students in Newark gain an additional seven and a half months in reading per year and nine months per year in math compared to their traditional public school counterparts. Students enrolled in suburban charter schools also learn significantly more in both math and reading compared to their peers in traditional public schools; however, students in rural charter schools learn significantly less than their district school peers in both reading and math.
posted by Whitney Tilson at 11:00 PM
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