An analysis of student performance in Chicago’s charter schools

Authors

  • Myron Orfield Institute on Metropolitan Opportunity University of Minnesota Law School
  • Thomas Luce Institute on Metropolitan Opportunity University of Minnesota Law School

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.14507/epaa.24.2203

Keywords:

charter schools, student performance, school reform

Abstract

Charter schools have become the cornerstone of school reform in Chicago and in many other large cities. Enrollments in Chicago charters increased by more than ten times between 2000 and 2014 and, with strong support from the current mayor and his administration, the system continues to grow. Indeed, although state law limits charter schools in Chicago to 75 schools, proponents have used a loophole that allows multiple campuses for some charters to bypass the limit and there are now more than 140 individual charter campuses in Chicago. This study uses comprehensive data for the 2012-13 and 2013-14 school years to show that, after controlling for the mix of students and challenges faced by individual schools, Chicago’s charter schools underperform their traditional counterparts in most measurable ways. Reading and math pass rates, reading and math growth rates, graduation rates, and average ACT scores (in one of the two years) are lower in charters all else equal, than in traditional neighborhood schools. The results for the two years also imply that the gap between charters and traditionals widened in the second year for most of the measures. The findings are strengthened by the fact that self-selection by parents and students into the charter system biases the results in favor of charter schools.

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Author Biographies

Myron Orfield, Institute on Metropolitan Opportunity University of Minnesota Law School

Myron Orfield is Professor of Law at the University of Minnesota Law School and Director of the Institute on Metropolitan Opportunity.

Thomas Luce, Institute on Metropolitan Opportunity University of Minnesota Law School

Thomas Luce is the Research Director of the Institute on Metropolitan Opportunity, University of Minnesota Law School.

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Published

2016-10-31

How to Cite

Orfield, M., & Luce, T. (2016). An analysis of student performance in Chicago’s charter schools. Education Policy Analysis Archives, 24, 111. https://doi.org/10.14507/epaa.24.2203

Issue

Section

Articles