We have mentioned several times the growing success of NYC charter schools to close the achievement gap. NYC charter schools ARE examples of how the charter model produces strong performance.
A study released today by Stanford University Professor Caroline Hoxby entitled How New York City’s Charter Schools Affect Achievement, confirms the tremendous demand for New York City charter schools and shows that charter students are making greater gains, in some cases substantially greater gains, than their peers in traditional public schools.
The study tracked students who received charter school seats by lottery and students who entered but did not receive seats. It revealed that nearly all, 94%, of students applying to NYC charter schools participate in admissions lotteries — confirming that there is enormous parent demand for more high-quality charter schools in NYC. In the 2008-09 there were 39,200 students on waitlists to attend the city’s public charter schools.
Here are key findings from the study:
· Most NYC charters outperform traditional district schools. In math, 69% of the charter schools have a positive effect on student performance compared with the traditional public schools that lotteried-out students attend. In English, it is 76%.
· NYC charters make large yearly academic gains. A student who attends a charter school from K-8th grade will score roughly 30 points more in math and 23 points more in English by 8th grade than a student in the traditional public schools. At the high school level, charter students perform better in every content area on the state Regents Examinations, gaining roughly 2 to 3 points per year over students in traditional public schools.
· Charters close the NYC suburban/urban achievement gap. The study compares average charter gains with the approximate achievement gains from a suburban district outside of NYC and finds that students who attend charter schools in grades K-8 will make up 86% of the suburban-urban achievement gap in math and 66% of the gap in English.
· Charter students are more likely to graduate. For each year students enroll in charter high schools, they are 7% more likely to graduate with a Regents diploma. If a student attends a charter high school from 9-12, the student will be 28% more likely to graduate high school with a Regents diploma than a student at a traditional public school. This finding is consistent with pr evious positive findings in Chicago and Florida that found students who attend charter schools are more likely to graduate (7% and 12% more likely, respectively).
Here are additional comments by Nelson Smith, President, National Alliance for Public Charter Schools this morning.
CSP’s Al Fan recently wrote an editorial on one of New York City’s great charter success stories — Geoffrey Canada and Harlem’s Children’s Zone. Take a look.csp_gazette
