The success of charter schools in outperforming public schools is well known. Some are well known, such as The Success Academy in New York City. All across the nation, charter schools have been known to improve learning, especially in low-income neighborhoods.
A new nationwide Stanford University study documents this improvement writes the editorial board of The Wall Street Journal. While school choice is gaining momentum nationwide, charter schools are a large part of the movement. Stanford’s Center for Research on Education Outcomes (CREDO) report is the third in a series (2009, 2013, 2023) tracking charter-school outcomes over 15 years. The study is one of the largest ever conducted, covering over two million charter students in 29 states, New York City and Washington, D.C., and a control group in traditional schools.
CREDO’s judgement is unequivocal: Most charter schools “produce superior student gains despite enrolling a more challenging student population.” In reading and math, “charter schools provide their students with stronger learning when compared to the traditional public schools.” The nationwide gains for charter student were six days in math and 16 days in reading.
The comparisons in some states are more remarkable. In New York, charter students were 75 days ahead in reading and 73 days in math compared with traditional public-school peers. In Illinois they were 40 days ahead in reading and 48 in math. In Washington state, 26 days ahead in reading and 39 in math. Those differences can add up to an extra year of learning across an entire elementary education.
This wasn’t always the case. CREDO’s first study in 2009 found that charters didn’t yield better student outcomes—and has long been cited by charter opponents. Teachers unions often claim charters and choice programs betray public education because they cherry-pick children and fail to serve those in greatest need. CREDO’s results should also end that discussion. The argument of the unions was always suspicious since most charter school students are picked by lottery. But now these results prove their arguments don’t hold water.
The latest study shows that black and Hispanic students had some of the largest gains and that they “advance more than their TPS peers by large margins in math and reading.” Ditto for children in poverty. Unions should also read the section on what CREDO calls “gap-busting schools,” which show black and Hispanic students succeeding as well as white peers. CREDO says this shows that “learning gaps between student groups are not structural or inevitable.”
To be sure, not all charter schools are created equal. Like all schools, some perform better than others. The study shows a growing advantage in results for schools run by charter management organizations, which operate multiple schools. This is likely the result of a learning curve that can be applied to many locations. Around 15% of charters underperform their local public school, but lackluster charters are closed, unlike failing union schools.
This Credo installment covers 2015-2019 before the pandemic. With each new report, student progress has climbed further and the long lens of the study shows that charter schools are getting better. The Credo report may even understate the success of some charter schools. In the case of Ohio, the Credo methodology dilutes the strong results of brick-and-mortar charter schools by including remote schools and other specialized schools in its results. A 2020 Fordham Institute analysis of Ohio charter school showed strong gains.
You would think these results would trigger a movement to expand charters and increase their funding. After all, everyone wants children to learn, right? Everyone except the unions. They consider charter schools an existential threat so they’re fighting for their survival. Makes you wonder where those parents send their children to school.
