National Charter School Research Project

Achievement Studies

An up-to-date database of reports released since 2001 that assess the achievement of charter school students. These listings include numerous details about each study, including a brief summary of findings, a description of the data and methodology, grade levels included in the analysis, and a rating of the quality of evidence each study provides on charter school student achievement. When available, links to the studies are provided.

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Title	Date	Description
2006-07 MEAPS Show Charters Closing Academic Gap	2007	This collection of charter performance data from the Michigan Association of Public School Academies (MAPSA) finds that the average scores of the state’s charters exceeded the average scores of their host districts on 23 of 27 state tests in 2006-07.
2007 - 2008 New York State Assessments Charter Schools – New York City	2008	This analysis finds that, for the fifth consecutive year, New York City charter school students, on average, are outperforming their district school peers. Nearly 85% of charter school students met or exceeded grade-level standards in math, an increase of 7.7 percentage points over the previous year. By comparison, 70.5% of other public school students in districts with charter schools, 74.3% of students citywide, and 80.7% of students statewide met or exceeded standards. In English Language Arts, 67.1% of charter school students met or exceeded grade-level standards, an increase of 10.7 points over the previous year. By comparison, 53.6% of other public school students in districts with charter schools, 57.6% of students citywide, and 68.5% of students statewide met or exceeded standards. The analysis highlights a “notable” performance of middle school students enrolled in charter schools. In math, 80.9 percent of all charter school students in sixth, seventh, and eighth grades met or exceeded grade-level standards, compared to 61.7% of other middle-school students in districts with charter schools, 66.7% of middle-school students citywide, and 80.9% of middle school students in the rest of the state met or exceeded grade-level standards. In English Language Arts, 63% of charter school students in the middle grades met or exceeded standards, compared to 47% of other middle school students in districts with charter schools, 51.7% of middle-school students citywide, and 70.8% of middle school students in the rest of the state met or exceeded standards. Demographically, about 62% of the city’s charter school students are African-American compared to 32% for the city; 30% are Hispanic compared to 39 % for the city.
2007 Public School Academy Report to the Legislature	2008	This annual report on Michigan's charter schools [known as public school academies (PSA) in the state] presents data on 230 of Michigan’s charter schools, their students, operation characteristics, and academic performance. Michigan's charter school students (which are nearly six percent of the public school population) are disproportionately urban, minority and poor. Over one-half of charter school students are eligible for free/reduced price lunch, compared to 34 percent of non-charter students. Academically, charter elementary and middle schools report encouraging academic results, while high school charter performance lags. More PSA students in grades 3-8 score proficient on the Michigan Educational Assessment Program (MEAP) tests than do their peers in the public schools in geographic districts in which the PSAs are located. African-American and Hispanic students' performance approach or match the performance levels of all non-charter students throughout Michigan. The schools continue to receive less revenue than both the districts in which they are located ($2,289 less per-pupil). Profiles of individual schools and a series of recommendations are presented.
A Closer Look at Charter Schools Using Hierarchical Linear Modeling	2006	This examination of scores from the 2003 National Assessment of Educational Progress test shows that fourth-graders in 6,764 traditional public schools scored an average of 5.2 points better in reading than students in 150 public charter schools. It also shows that traditional school students scored 5.8 points better in math than students in the public charters. Charter schools that were not affiliated with a school district, on average, had lower mean scores than public noncharter schools and district-associated charter schools. After adjusting for student characteristics, charter school mean scores in reading and mathematics remained lower, on average, than those for public noncharter schools.
A Straightforward Comparison of Charter Schools and Regular Public Schools in the United States	2004	This study compares the reading and mathematics proficiency of charter school students to that of their fellow students in neighboring public schools, based on test scores for 99 percent of 4th graders in charter schools at the time. The findings are based on computing the difference between each charter school and its comparison school and then averaging those differences. Compared to students in the nearest regular public school, charter students are more likely to be proficient on state exams in reading and math. The charter advantage appears to be pronounced when comparing students in the nearest regular public school with a similar student composition.
Accountability and Performance in Charter Schools in Florida: A Theory-Based Evaluation	2003	The authors evaluate the operation of Florida charters for one school year. Data sources include Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test scores for 4th, fifth, 8h, and tenth grades, annual financial and progress reports, questionnaires mailed to charter school principals and those responsible in each district for charter school oversight. The authors conclude that student performance in charters is no better than in regular public schools, and that charters have not resulted in any changes in the way that regular public schools operate or perform.
Achievement and Behavior in Charter Schools: Drawing a More Complete Picture	2007	Using disciplinary, performance, and demographic data from a large, unidentified school district that has experienced great growth in its charter schools since 1997, this article examines how charter schools impact the achievement and behavior of students who enroll in them. While results differ between start-up and conversion charter schools, the study finds that children behave better in charter schools than in traditional public schools.
Achievement in Charter Schools and Regular Public Schools in the US: Understanding the Differences	2004	This study compares the reading and mathematics proficiency of charter school students to that of their peers in neighboring traditional public schools. Compared to students in the matched regular public school, charter students were 5.2 percent more likely to be proficient in reading and 3.2 percent more likely to be proficient in math on state assessments. In states where charter schools were well-established, charter school students' proficiency was greater. Ninety-nine percent of all elementary students in the nation's charter schools were included in the study.
Advantage None: Re-examining Hoxby's Findings of Charter School Benefits	2005	The authors examine differences in reading and math proficiency between charter schools and their regular public school counterparts, with and without controlling for student backgrounds. This paper is a response to Hoxby’s national analysis (2004), which Roy and Mishel argue was problematic. The authors find that after controlling for racial composition, only California among the major charter states retains a significant charter school advantage in reading proficiency. For math, charter schools do not have any statistically significant edge over their matched traditional public schools.
An Analysis of Charter vs. Traditional Public Schools in Utah Performance Assessments	2005	This evaluation conducted for the Utah State Charter Board finds there is a trend for Utah’s charter students to outperform traditional students in grades 1-8 on state assessments, however, students in traditional high schools are more likely to perform better than charter school students.
Apples to Apples: An Evaluation of Charter Schools Serving General Student Populations	2003	The authors analyze charter school performance in eleven states, comparing charters to nearby regular public schools and excluding any schools that target particular populations. Results were standardized in an attempt to allow state-to-state comparison. The findings suggest a modest positive impact nationally from charters, with some variation between states.
Apples to Apples: Charter School Performance in Colorado	2006	This analysis looks at how well charters in Colorado perform compared to district schools when serving similar student populations. The authors find charter schools performed equal to or better than district schools with similar percentages of black and Hispanic students. In most comparisons of subgroups based on grade and ethnicity, the difference in scores between charter and district schools was not statistically significant.
California Charter Schools Serving Low-SES Students: An Analysis of the Academic Performance Index	2002	The authors examine the impact of charters on student, adjusting for socioeconomic status. Results show that California charter schools are doing a better job of improving the academic performance of at-risk students than non-charter California public schools. Also, student achievement in California’s low-income charter schools is, on average, improving at a faster rate than in similar non-charter schools. Smaller schools tend to outperform larger schools in terms of student achievement growth.
California’s Charter Schools: Measuring Their Performance	2007	This report addresses two primary issues concerning California’s charter schools: how does academic performance of charter schools differ from that of noncharter public schools and how does performance between different types of charter schools vary. The researchers found that charter schools managed by management organizations, such as KIPP, Green Dot, and Aspire, outperformed other charter schools. Classroom-based charters had higher math scores than nonclassroom-based charters. When comparing charters to noncharter public schools, the researchers’ strongest finding was that charter middle schools showed higher performance than traditional public middle schools.
Capital Campaign: Early Returns on District of Columbia Charter Schools	2005	This report from the Progressive Policy Institute examines the historical background and growth of charters in the District of Columbia and details the effectiveness of them as well as their impact on the District system.

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